Chapter 12: Writing…
NOTES:
 About exercising: it keeps you healthy: physically & mentally…
 I’ve tried to match the slides to the order of the textbook this time…
Generalities
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< 6,000 years old
Human invention
Learned skill
Impacts our thinking
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How many vowels in English?
Word pronunciation
History of Writing
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Apparently for Business Transactions…
Multiple Independent Developments
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Middle East – Sumerians
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~ 3,500 BC
Egypt
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~ 3,000 BC
China
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~ 2,000 BC
(totally independent??)
Rosetta Stone…
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196 BC
Hieroglyphics
(prestige - religious)
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Demotic
(popular - daily script)
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Greek
(Conquered people)
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So What??
http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aes/t/the_rosetta_stone.aspx
Pictograms… Writing or Not?
Writing: Defined
A system of visual symbols
representing audible symbols
U Tell Me
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What are some creative txt examples?
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What are some emoticons?
Whaddya Think?
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Does TXT qualify as:
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writing
a new language
just shorthand of normal English
something else… << If so, what? >>
What about emoticons?
Writing Systems
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Syllabic
Logographic (ideographs)
Alphabetic
Syllabic
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Symbol represents a syllable
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4GET IT
But NOT: GR8
Gradual development
from pictures to symbols
Modern Syllabic Systems
Japanese
AKA
Logographic
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• Ideographic
• Pictographic
Symbols represent words – Not syllables
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Symbols based on:
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Ideal system
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Meaning &/or Sound
each word: unique symbol
Chinese system
each word: symbol or combination of symbols
 5,000 characters to read a newspaper
 30,000 characters to read classical literature
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From Pictures of Real Items
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Sun
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Moon
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Bird
Extensions of Meaning
Dialect Variation
Alphabetic
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Set of graphic symbols which represent
distinctive sounds
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English
IPA
Greek = 1st …?
Ideally – 1 to 1 relationship with sound
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English (& French) are way off…
Spanish & Korean come close
Korean: Alphabetic/Syllabic
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English Orthography
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26 letters:
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20½ consonants
5½ vowels
Actual Usage
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≈ 24 consonants
≈ 13 vowels
≈ 5 diphthongs
Spelling Reform Issues
You Try It
Find examples of words where the
root change pronunciation and
A. does not change the spelling
B. does change the spelling
What Do You Think?
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What are the two most important
human inventions of all time?
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Compare their importance to writing
Advantages & Disadvantages of:
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Logographic, syllabic, alphabetic systems
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Learning ease
Ease in writing
Ease of reading
Problems for printing
Adaptability for current & future technology
Represent borrowed words (names, etc)
What sociological & historical factors interact with
the items above – be as specific as possible
On Orthography
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How important is a language’s orthography?
Why do you suppose Sequoya chose to invent
a totally new orthography?
What’s your prediction for the future of our
globe’s languages?
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Solidarity? - What system? Why? To what result?
Diversion? - Support your point? To what result?
Recommended Exercises
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Just for Fun:
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http://www.omniglot.com/index.htm
(Writing & languages of the world)
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Textbook Exercises
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(1, 2 – previous slides) & 5