History of writing: Difference between revisions

Before the 20th century, most scholarly theories of the origins of writing involved some form of [[Monogenesis (linguistics)|monogenesis]],{{sfnmp|1a1=Olson|1a2=Torrance|1y=2009|1p=59|2a1=Condorelli|2y=2022|2p=19}} the assumption that writing had been invented only once—namely, as [[cuneiform]] in ancient [[Sumer]]—and spread across the world from there via [[cultural diffusion]].{{sfnp|Olson|Torrance|2009|p=59}} According to these theories, writing was such a particular technology that exposure through activities like trade was a much more likely means of acquisition than independent reinvention. Specifically, many theories were dependent on a literal account of the [[Book of Genesis]], including the emphases it placed on [[Mesopotamia]].{{sfnp|Daniels|1996|p=24}} Over time, greater awareness of the systems of pre-Columbian [[Mesoamerica]] conclusively established that writing had been independently invented multiple times. Four independent inventions of writing are most commonly recognized{{sfnp|Condorelli|2022|p=19}}—in Mesopotamia ({{circa|3400–3100 BCE}}), Egypt ({{circa|3250 BCE|lk=no}}),{{sfnp|Regulski|2016}}{{sfnp|Wengrow|2011|pp=99–103}}{{sfnp|Olson|Torrance|2009|p=59}} China (beforearound {{circa|1250 BCE|lk=no}}),{{sfnp|Boltz|1994|p=31}} and Mesoamerica (before {{circa|1 CE|lk=no}}).{{sfnp|Fagan|Beck|Michaels|Scarre|1996|p=762}}

Sumerian cuneiform and [[Egyptian hieroglyphs]] are considered the earliest true writing systems, both having gradually evolved from proto-writing between 3400 and 3100&nbsp;BCE. The [[Proto-Elamite script]] is also believed to have been in use during this period.{{sfnp|Walker|1989|pp=7-9}} Regarding Egyptian hieroglyphs,{{sfnp|Regulski|2016}}{{sfnp|Baines|2004}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dreyer |first=Günter |title=Umm el-Qaab I. Das prädynastische Königsgrab U-j und seine frühen Schriftzeugnisse |publisher=Philip von Zabern |year=1998 |isbn=978-3-8053-2486-1 |location=Mainz |language=de |trans-title=Umm el-Qaab I. The predynastic royal tomb U-j and its early written evidence}}</ref> scholars point to very early differences with Sumerian cuneiform "in structure and style" as to why the two systems "[(must]) have developed independently"," and if any "stimulus diffusion" of writing did occur, it only served to transmit the bare idea of writing between cultures.{{sfnp|Regulski|2016}}{{sfnp|Woods|2010|pp=15–25}} Due to the lack of direct evidence for the transfer of writing, "no definitive determination has been made as to the origin of hieroglyphics in ancient Egypt"."{{sfnp|Krebs|Krebs|2003|p=91}}

* The [[Indus script]] attested in short inscriptions between 35002600 and 19002000&nbsp;BCE.{{sfnp|Sproat|2010|p=110}}

Most alphabetic writing systems presently in use either descended from PVrotoProto-Sinaitic—usually via the [[Phoenician alphabet]]—or were directly inspired by its descendants. In Italy, about 500 years separated the early [[Old Italic scripts]] from [[Plautus]] ({{circa|750–250&nbsp;BCE|lk=no}}), and in the case of the [[Germanic peoples]], the corresponding time span is again similar, from the first [[Elder Futhark]] inscriptions to early texts like the ''[[Abrogans]]'' ({{circa|200–750&nbsp;CE|lk=no}}). These early [[abjad]]s remained of marginal importance for several centuries, and it is only towards the end of the Bronze Age that forms of [[Proto-Sinaitic script]] split into the [[Proto-Canaanite alphabet]] ({{circa|1400 BCE|lk=no}}), the undeciphered [[Byblos syllabary]], and the [[South Arabian alphabet]] ({{circa|1200 BCE|lk=no}}). Proto-Canaanite, which was probably influenced by the Byblos syllabary, in turn inspired the [[Ugaritic alphabet]] ({{circa|1300 BCE|lk=no}}).

In China, after the [[Qin dynasty]] attempted to remove all traces of the competing [[Confucian]] tradition, the [[Han dynasty]] made [[philological]] knowledge the qualification for the government bureaucracy, so as to restore knowledge that was in danger of vanishing. The [[imperial examination]] system for the civil service functioned for two millennia, and consisted of a written exam based on knowledge of classical texts. To support students obtaining government positions through the written examination, schools focused on those same texts and the associated philological knowledge.<ref name="Lee2000">{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Thomas H. C. |title=Education in Traditional China: A History |publisher=[[Brill Publishers|Brill]] |year=2000 |isbn=978-90-04-10363-4 |series=Handbook of Oriental studies |volume=13 |location=Leiden}}</ref>{{page needed|date=August 2024}} These texts covered philosophical, religious, legal, astronomical, hydrological, mathematical, military, and medical knowledge.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bodde |first=Derk |title=Chinese Thought, Society, and Science: The Intellectual and Social Background of Science and Technology in Pre-Modern China |publisher=[[University of Hawaiʻi Press]] |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-8248-1334-5 |location=Honolulu}}</ref>{{page needed|date=August 2024}} [[History of printing|Printing]] as it emerged largely served the knowledge needs of the bureaucracy and the monastery, with substantial vernacular printing only emerging around the 15th century.<ref name="HKCUP1998">{{Cite book |publisher=Hong Kong City University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-962-937-032-9 |editor-last=Luo |editor-first=Shubao |editor-mask=Luo Shubao (罗树宝); |language=zh |script-title=zh:中国古代印刷史图册 |trans-title=An Illustrated History of Printing in Ancient China |editor-last2=Chan |editor-first2=Sin-Wai |editor-mask2=Chan Sin-Wai (陈善伟)}}</ref>