Writing: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 02:46, 31 October 2005

Revision as of 17:46, 31 October 2005

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== Writing in Historical Cultures==

===Mesopotamia===

The original [[Mesopotamian]] writing system was initially derived from a system of clay tokens used to represent commodities. By the end of the [[4th millenium BC]], this had evolved into a method of keeping accounts, and finally a general purpose writing system, initially used to represent [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]]. This writing system was originally a [[logogram|logographic]] writing system, but had begun to evolve phonetic elements by the [[29th century BC]]. By the [[26th century BC]], this script had been adapted to another language, [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]], and from there to others such as [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]], and [[Hittite language|Hittite]]. Scripts similar in appearence to this writing system include those for [[Ugaritic language|Ugaritic]] and [[Old Persian language|Old Persian]].

In [[Mesopotamia]] the writing system invented by the Sumerian culture is called [[cuneiform]]. This system developed over several hundred years beginning with pictograms, which were used to represent physical objects beginning around 3200 BC. Apparently the first symbol, which 'nail' cuneiform is named after, was used on its own to represent one, the numerical counting unit, long before any language was represented. Primitive mathematical writing was, therefore, the pre-cursor of all alphabets. Soon afterwards pictograms were modified to represent abstract ideas as well as physical objects.

===Egypt===