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each symbol of the phoenician alphabet represented a consonant.

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Why there is no vowels in Phoenician alphabet?

The reason there were no vowels created in the Phoenician alphabet was because the consonants already had a vowel sound incorporated in each consonant symbol, therefore they did not need separate vowels.


Is the Greek alphabet phonetic?

The Egyptian alphabet/language is one of the oldest known that has been recorded as of yet. The Greek alphabet is descendant of the Phoenician alphabet but the Greek alphabet is the first and oldest to record each consonant and vowel with a separate symbol.


What did the Phoenician alphabet and the trade have in common?

Each had its role in building up the Phoenician trading empire.


Who is developed the first alphabet?

Even though our modern 26 letter alphabet is called the Roman alphabet, the Romans did not invent it. They simply refined and polished a system of written language that had been developing for thousands of years in many nations. Most alphabet letters began as a simplified version of ancient drawings of animals, objects, or signs. In 3000 B.C., the Egyptians were writing with several hundred signs and pictures. Each sign or picture stood for a complete word or a syllable in the word. This was called hieroglyphics. But sign and picture writing was too slow for the business world, especially for the ancient Phoenicians, who were worldwide merchants and traders in 1200 B.C. So they developed an alphabet in which only symbols were used. Each symbol represented one sound, and several were combined to make the sounds of one word. The Greeks, who traded with the Phoenicians, adopted their alphabet in 800 B.C., but found that the Phoenician alphabet did not contain vowel sounds, which they needed for their language. So they kept 19 Phoenician letters and added 5 of their own (vowels) to make a 24 letter alphabet. The alphabet was perfected by the Romans in about 114 A.D. The Normans in England later added the letters V, W, and J, making the 26 letter alphabet, which was the basis for the western world's present alphabet. Our capital Q was once the symbol for a monkey. The ancient drawing looked like a Q with a head, ears, and short lines for arms!


How does Mayan writing differ from the alphabet?

In the Mayan writing system each symbol represents words and pictures, where as our writing system just shows words.

Related Questions

What does each symbol mean in the Phoenician alphabet?

It represents a sound which combines with other symbol-sounds to represent oral words - and effective way of communicating in writing.


How are the Phoenician alphabet and cuneiform writting different?

the Phoenician alphabet had symbols to represent consonant sounds, like the alphabet we have now. Cuneiform has symbols to represent full words, not consonant sounds, so it's a lot harder to learn.


Why there is no vowels in Phoenician alphabet?

The reason there were no vowels created in the Phoenician alphabet was because the consonants already had a vowel sound incorporated in each consonant symbol, therefore they did not need separate vowels.


How many symbols did the phoenician alphabet include?

It contained 22 symbols. Each symbol represented either a consonantal sound or a form of punctuation used inside of words. This alphabet is considered as an abjad because it did not represent any vowel sounds.


Is the Greek alphabet phonetic?

The Egyptian alphabet/language is one of the oldest known that has been recorded as of yet. The Greek alphabet is descendant of the Phoenician alphabet but the Greek alphabet is the first and oldest to record each consonant and vowel with a separate symbol.


What did the Phoenician alphabet and the trade have in common?

Each had its role in building up the Phoenician trading empire.


How are Phoenician alphabet and cuniform writing different?

By this time it consisted of about 700 symbol's that stood for words or syllable's about 1400b.c.,the Phoenicians had developed 22 simple characters for the entire writing system. Each character stood for a consonant.* Later,the Greeks added vowels to the Phoenician alphabet.


What was the big adventage of the Phoenician alphabet when compared to cuneiform?

The Phoenician alphabet had only 22 characters. It did not use a difficult pictoral sign for each word but it was the first phonetic writing. It was much simpler than Sumerian or Egyptioan writing and became the basis of the Greek and the Roman alphabet.


How are the Phoenicians alphabet and cuniform writing different?

By this time it consisted of about 700 symbol's that stood for words or syllable's about 1400b.c.,the Phoenicians had developed 22 simple characters for the entire writing system. Each character stood for a consonant.* Later,the Greeks added vowels to the Phoenician alphabet.


What are some similarities between English alphabet and cuneiform alphabet?

hats the similarities and differences


What is the difference betwewen the Chinese alphabet and the English alphabet?

we use letters and they use symbols to represent things we use letters and they use symbols to represent things There is no such thing as the Chinese alphabet. Each character has a meaning.


Did the Phoenician alphabet symbols stand for a single word?

If they stood for a single word, it would not be alphabetic. An alphabet is comprised of a set of symbols each of which has a sound value, so a word is a combination of several symbols.