The Development of Writing

A large number of languages only in the spoken form

The development of writing is a recent phenomena

Attempts were made to record events (precursors to writing)

about 20,000 years ago through Cave Drawings called

petroglyphs

about 10,000 years ago on clay tokens

The earliest writing for which we have clear evidence is referred

to as cuneiform marked on clay tablets 5000 years ago.

An ancient script connected to writing systems in use today is

identified in inscriptions dated around 3000 years ago

Writing system can be divided in the following categories:

Pictograms

Ideograms

Logograms

Rebus Writing

Syllabic Writing

Alphabetic Writing
Pictograms

A form of picture writing

Using pictures to represent
particular images in a consistent
way (grapheme/symbol = picture of a thing)
grapheme = the smallest unit in a writing system
A conventional relationship must exist between the symbol
and its meaning
language independent
Do not represent words or sounds in a particular lang.
Examples: star =
sun =

bathroom signs =
Ideograms

A system of idea writing

more abstract relationship (grapheme/symbol =an idea, but
not a concrete object)
more indirect (in terms of form & meaning)
more derived forms
Do not represent words or sounds in a particular lang.
Example:
for sun, also heat, warmth, daytime
Egyptian writing for water
 Does not represent words or sounds in a lang.
Logograms

A system of word writing

symbols represent words or morphemes in a
particular language [sound + meaning]
grapheme = words or morphemes
Examples
cuneiform writing: used by the Sumerians, referred
to as the earliest writing system
cuneiform = wedge-shaped
Chinese symbols or characters ( only represent
meaning of words, not of sounds of
spoken lang.)
Logographic symbols in use = numerals, &, @
Advantage and disadvantage

Rebus Writing

A process (or a way) of using existing symbols to

represent the sounds of language
borrow the symbol, take over the sound, but
forget the meaning
reduce the number of symbols needed in a
writing system
nd2spk2u2nite
Examples
is used for both sun and son
in language games:
Syllabic Writing
Every symbol represents one syllable
 o grapheme = syllable
o e.g., Japanese (which also uses logographic
charactersKanji)
Examples in Japanese
o Hiragana: hito no
kuruma
Examples in Devanagri Script: pa , ba

Alphabetic Writing

Symbols represent single phonemes

grapheme = phoneme (i.e., symbols represent
single phonemes)
definition of letter (each written symbol) vs.
alphabet (a set of written symbols) (Yule 13)
Examples
alphabets representing mainly consonants:
e.g., Arabic, Hebrew
alphabets representing both consonants &
vowels: e.g., Greek

Conclusions

Cave drawings pictograms ideograms

logograms (phonological) rebus writing syllabic
writing alphabetic writing
Writing systems seem to have gone from syllabaries to
alphabets representing mainly consonants, to
alphabets representing both consonants and vowels.
This reflects the phonemic nature of language, so can
be considered a natural developmentthough not a
necessary one or a better one.