Mesopotamian Cuneiform Overview

Mesopotamian Cuneiform

• Cuneiform means "wedge-shaped," referring to the script's design.
• Originated around 3200 BC in Sumer, later spreading throughout Mesopotamia.
• Initially used clay tablets to inscribe pictographs that represented numerical values, syllables, and full words.
• Early clay tokens were utilized for accounting, receipts, and labeling goods and crops.
• Transitioned from 3D tokens to 2D pictographs on flat surfaces.

Development and Spread

• Symbols evolved to represent spoken language, with Sumerian cuneiform adopted by Akkadians.
• Spread through conquest and cultural exchange, evolving to suit local phonetics.
• In Ugarit and Ebla, the script became semi-alphabetized, focusing on consonant representation.

Linguistic Evolution

• Functioned as a lingua franca until replaced by the Phoenician Alphabet, which had 22 letters for consonants.
• Mesopotamian pictographs covered entire words/concepts, not utilizing vowels.
• Seen as complex and cumbersome, eventually phased out in favor of simpler writing systems.

Cultural Significance

• Writing was perceived as a divine gift, integral to temple activities and knowledge.
• Only a select few, like priests and scribes, were trained in cuneiform, similar to university-level education.
• Important texts, such as the Law Code of Hammurabi, were inscribed in Akkadian cuneiform.
• Astronomical observations were documented through narrative forms, leading to advancements in time tracking and celestial understanding.

Decipherment of Cuneiform

• Significant deciphering efforts began in the 1800s, led by Henry Rawlinson.
• The Behistun Inscription was a critical artifact for deciphering Babylonian, inscribed in three languages—Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian.
• The inscription depicted the life of Darius the Great and provided a key to translating Akkadian.

Other Writing Systems

• Petroglyphs are ancient rock carvings, primarily from the ancestors of Pueblo people, with origins dating back to 2000 BC.
• Nsibidi, a symbol system from the Ejagham people in Nigeria, comprises nearly a thousand symbols.
• Deeper knowledge of Nsibidi was historically restricted to men’s associations who controlled trade and social order.

Quipus and Other Ancient Notations

• Quipus were knotted cords employed by the Inca Civilization (1400-1560) for record-keeping; their structure conveyed complex information.
• The Chronicle of Good Government documented Andean history and critiques of Spanish colonization.
• The enigmatic Dispilio Tablet from Macedonia, dated to 5260 BC, remains undeciphered and challenges the timeline of writing development.

Oracle Bones

• Oracle bones, made from animal bones, were used in divination, significant in ancient Chinese writing practices.