Two Christians have been hospitalised and dozens arrested in a fight between young Copts and Muslims in Egypt's Minya province, according to local media.

Daily News Egypt reports that the clash between the Muslim and Christian youths took place in the village of Assem on Monday.

Police arrested 17 Christians and 20 Muslims, but said that no reason had yet been determined for the violence.

Bishop Makarios of Minya, a Coptic Orthodox cleric, reportedly confirmed the incident in a post on social media.

Tensions between Christians and Muslims have intensified in the country since the 2011 Arab Spring, and clashes have been especially fierce in Minya.

On July 16, five Christian homes were set alight in a village in the province after rumours spread that a church was to be built in the area.

A day later, a Muslim mob attacked two priests in Tahna El-Jabal village following a disagreement between Muslim and Christian children. A 27-year-old man died in the incident.

Recent weeks have also seen the assault on homes of Christian families in the village of Karm el Loofy, the burning of a kindergarten run by Christians in Minya, and the murder on June 30 of Rafael Moussa, a Coptic Orthodox priest of the church of St. George.

Egypt has an estimated population of nine million Christians. Mostly Orthodox Copts, they account for about 10 per cent of Egypt's population, which is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim.