Re: origin of the first alphabet
From: Peter T. Daniels (grammatim_at_worldnet.att.net)
Date: 01/28/05
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Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2005 20:46:50 GMT
vasil_stanev wrote:
>
> Let's assume the first alphabet ever is the
> phonician(misspelled?english is my 2 language,sorry).
Why should we assume what is contrary to fact? The Phoenician alphabet
is not the first ever.
> It contains 22
> symbols,as u well know.Some of the symbols(plz dont be letter-bound
> about the term) are similar and we can assume that sounds that are
> close have related sumbols-as mem-nun(resemble water and snake or a
> fish),kof-res(a head and a monkeys head),and so on.THE question:
> WHY DOES "A" HAVE TO BE THE FIRST SYMBOL OF THE ALPHABET?
No one has ever been able to find an explanation for either of the
anciently attested orders of the alphabet.
The best guess is that they first got written down as the inventor
happened to think of them.
> Why B the second?And so on.And please dont say "It just happens to
> be so",in
> language all happens for a reason.
This is not correct. There is no "reason" why a Germanic root became
_Knabe_ 'boy' in German and _knave_ 'rascally fellow' in English.
> 2.IF the acrophonic theory is right(and I.E.Gelb questions that,as
> well as i do),why does EXACTLY the symbol for "cow" has to be used for
> "A" or the related
> sound of that time?Why not some other,just as so simple symbol?
It's the one the inventor happened to think of when looking for a word
that started with that sound. (Not 'cow', but 'cattle'.)
-- Peter T. Daniels grammatim@att.net
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