Cuneiform Writing System PDF

Cuneiform is an ancient system of writing. It is thought to be the oldest writing system in the world. **Origins** Cuneiform was first used about 5500 years ago by Sumerians in the ancient region of Mesopotamia. This area included modern-day Iraq and parts of Syria, Türkiye and Iran. The Sumerians...

Cuneiform is an ancient system of writing. It is thought to be the oldest writing system in the world. **Origins** Cuneiform was first used about 5500 years ago by Sumerians in the ancient region of Mesopotamia. This area included modern-day Iraq and parts of Syria, Türkiye and Iran. The Sumerians were people who lived in southern Mesopotamia, known as Sumer, from c. 5000 BC. They began drawing small pictures of objects and people which they used as a system of writing. These symbols are called pictographs. The writing system became popular in the ancient city of Uruk and was widely used. **Discovery** Since the 17th century AD, historians have found thousands of clay tablets in different parts of the Middle East that were covered in cuneiform writing. Maps, laws and medical manuals have all been discovered that were written in cuneiform script. The script began to be deciphered in the 19th century AD by Assyriologists. Assyriology is the study of ancient Assyria, including Mesopotamia. It took years and many different experts to complete the process and understand the writing system. Development =========== Cuneiform evolved to use wedge-shaped markings. The name 'cuneiform' comes from the Latin words for 'wedge' and 'shape'. Each marking represents a sound and these markings could be grouped together to create a picture that represents a whole word. They were usually pressed into clay that was then dried and hardened. Cuneiform was first used for the ancient Sumerian language but it was soon adapted for other languages. From c. 2400 BC, it was used in Mesopotamia for the Akkadian language and later on, it was adapted for the Hittite language. The writing system spread and it is thought to have been used until the 1st century AD.