Chapter 1 : The origins of Writing

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Early Notation systems

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The earliest know examples of a graphic code date back to what is today France.  Scientists discovered rocks qith symbols enscribed on them.  Unlike today's alphabet, these symbols didn't represent language or words, they might have simply stood for ideas.  This system of notation was referred to as pictograms.

With this discoverery, the concept of a code was established.

Real writing emerged aroud 3200 BC in mesopotamia,in an rea between the trigris and euphrates rivers.  These were called cuneiform scripts and they were to be very influencial in future writing systems.  Cuneiform was a logographic code which represented words with schematic (simplified )  pictures.  Cuneiform was a breakthrough because it allowed ideas to be communicated on a more abstract/complex level and.  Cuneiform played an important role in the evolution of future writing systems and were adopted by many sorrounding countries, such as Turkey, syria, and lebanon.  Cuneiform also made possible, the first stable written record of human history, cultural developments, etc.

Hieroglyphs represented another advance in visual communication.  Thye may have been influenced by cuneiform or they may have been created independently.  What makes them so significant is that hieroglyphs took into consideration the arrangement of the consituent symbols and their direction.  Hieroglyphs were also based on a grid system.  These two reperesented a radical advance in graphic thinking.  Despite it's innovations, hieroglyphs did not spread.

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The earliest alphabets

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The earliest form of an alphabetic system can be traced back to caananite cultures, which are roughly 4000 years old.  The alpha betic sysem was by fat the biggest advance in communication.  It's artibrary symbolic combination was revolutionary.  It's flexability enabled communication on a level that was never even imagined.  Traders apread it to many other regions and because the letters could be used to repersent sounds from a wide variety of languages, it connected many cultures and geographic regions.