Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Letters as Pictures?
The statement that “letters began as pictures” sounds like a metaphor, but surprisingly it is not. This statement actually goes all the way back to the origins of the first known alphabet, which was created by the Phoenicians around 1000 B.C. The Phoenicians somewhat integrated hieroglyphics with now a day letters. The Phoenicians used letter shapes to describe a word. These letter shapes were not full pictures, but were shaped in a fashion as to signify its meaning appropriately. This system or alphabet made by the Phoenicians first consisted of 22 common noises. This system was then spread worldwide to many different trading partners of the Phoenicians; such as Greece. The Phoenician alphabet was then changed by the Greeks, and soon for Latin. After many centuries, the changed Phoenician alphabet was adapted for the English. This was a very long and intriguing process, and the Phoenician letters A and K are two great examples of how this change took place.
The letter “A” was one letter that was present in the Phoenician alphabet. It was used to symbolize an ox. The letter “A” was a broad picture of an ox’s head, and was written as well to visualize the head of an ox. It was originally written sideways, with its top point as the head of the ox and the two horns stuck out the bottom (Bierma). The letter “A” was the first sound of the Phoenician word “aleph”, which meant ox (Bierma). As the alphabet was changed, the letter “A” was changed. The letter was flipped so that the point or “head” pointed up and so the two legs or “horns” pointed down.
Another letter that was present in the Phoenician alphabet was the letter “K”. “K” was used to symbolize the human hand. The letter “K” itself was drawn so that it had pointed lines facing outward, similar to fingers on a hand. It originally had three lines pointing up that came to a point facing downward. The letter “K” was the first sound of the Phoenician word “kaph”, which meant hand (Bierma). The letter was then changed through history to the modern day “K”.