Alphabet

History

The Fertile Crescent was home to many civilizations of the ancient world, including the Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and the Phoenicians. The Phoenicians lived in what is today Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. The Phoenician city-states began to form around 3200 BC and were established by 2750 BC. The Phoenicians were very wealthy and excelled in trading with other civilizations while influencing communication throughout the Mediterranean. They were great traders who traded with nearly every civilization that had a shore, making them very wealthy. Phoenician civilization lasted from 1550 BC to 300 BC when the Persians and later Greeks conquered them.

Phoenician Alphabet

In 1050 BC, the Phoenician Prince Cadmus created the Phoenician alphabet to make communication easier when trading with other civilizations. This alphabet was a simplification of Egyptian hieroglyphics, which was used when Egypt controlled Phoenicia. With only 22 letters that represented sounds instead of thousands of pictograms that represent actions, it made communication much easier. This alphabet made it easier for merchants to keep track of goods, transactions, and contracts, making trade more efficient and quick. The spread of this alphabet through trade allowed for other civilizations to adopt it and make their own modifications to it. Originally, the alphabet only contained consonants; when the Greeks adopted it, they made their own modifications by adding vowels. The alphabet was eventually passed to the Romans, who made their own changes to the alphabet. This is the alphabet that is used today in the English language.

Modern Alphabets

The Greek and Roman alphabets are not the only alphabets that derive from the Phoenician alphabet; almost every modern-day alphabet comes from the Phoenician alphabet. Without the Phoenician alphabet, the way the people of the world communicate would be very different. The Phoenician alphabet is the most important alphabet in history influencing the entire world.