4.2 KiB
Cuneiform
Cuneiform
Overview
Cuneiform is the earliest known writing system, developed in Sumer ~3400 BCE. Written by pressing a reed stylus into wet clay tablets, it was used for over 3,000 years across multiple languages and civilizations.
Key Facts
- Origin: Sumer, southern Mesopotamia, ~3400 BCE
- Medium: Clay tablets impressed with a wedge-shaped reed stylus
- Name: From Latin cuneus ("wedge")
- Languages written: Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite, Elamite, Urartian, Old Persian
- Deciphered by: Henry Rawlinson, Edward Hincks, and others (~1840s–1850s) via the Behistun Inscription 1
Development
- Began as pictographic/logographic system for accounting (~3400 BCE)
- Evolved into syllabic writing by ~2600 BCE
- ~600–1,000 signs in use at various periods
- Last known cuneiform tablet: 75 CE (astronomical text from Babylon) 2
Significance
- Enabled record-keeping, literature, law, science, and diplomacy
- Preserved the Epic of Gilgamesh, Code of Hammurabi, and thousands of administrative records
- ~500,000 cuneiform tablets have been excavated; many remain untranslated
Review Queue
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@q[temporal]Line 10: "Origin: Sumer, southern Mesopotamia, ~3400 BCE" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 11: "Medium: Clay tablets impressed with a wedge-shaped reed stylus" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 12: "Name: From Latin cuneus ("wedge")" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 13: "Languages written: Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite, Elamite, Urartian, Old Persian" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 14: "Deciphered by: Henry Rawlinson, Edward Hincks, and others (~1840s–1850s) vi..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 17: "Began as pictographic/logographic system for accounting (~3400 BCE)" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 18: "Evolved into syllabic writing by ~2600 BCE" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 19: "~600–1,000 signs in use at various periods" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 20: "Last known cuneiform tablet: 75 CE (astronomical text from Babylon) 2 " - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 23: "Enabled record-keeping, literature, law, science, and diplomacy" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 24: "Preserved the Epic of Gilgamesh, Code of Hammurabi, and thousands of admini..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 25: "~500,000 cuneiform tablets have been excavated; many remain untranslated" - when was this true? -
@q[missing]Line 10: "Origin: Sumer, southern Mesopotamia, ~3400 BCE" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 11: "Medium: Clay tablets impressed with a wedge-shaped reed stylus" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 12: "Name: From Latin cuneus ("wedge")" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 13: "Languages written: Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite, Elamite, Urartian, Old Persian" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 17: "Began as pictographic/logographic system for accounting (~3400 BCE)" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 18: "Evolved into syllabic writing by ~2600 BCE" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 19: "~600–1,000 signs in use at various periods" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 23: "Enabled record-keeping, literature, law, science, and diplomacy" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 24: "Preserved the Epic of Gilgamesh, Code of Hammurabi, and thousands of admini..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 25: "~500,000 cuneiform tablets have been excavated; many remain untranslated" - what is the source? -
@q[stale]Line 14: "Deciphered by: Henry Rawlinson, Edward Hincks, and others (~1840s–1850s) vi..." - Walker source from 1987 may be outdated, is this still accurate? -
@q[stale]Line 20: "Last known cuneiform tablet: 75 CE (astronomical text from Babylon) 2 " - Robson source from 2008 may be outdated, is this still accurate?