Pronouncing pictures! - History of Writing Systems #4 (Rebus writing)

Watch ancient Sumerians figure out how to use pictures to write sounds for the first time in history. See why the Egyptians disagree with their approach.

Meaning writing (logographs) let early writers get civilized and document their thoughts. But what if you don't have a symbol for a word in your language? Just use the sound-alike rebus principle to invent one!

Exit the cave of pictographs and journey to Sumer, Egypt and Tenochtitlán! Marvel as ancient cultures use logographs to start writing not just meaning words, but sound words. Watch as Sumerian writers press a stylus into wet clay to make wedge shapes - cuneiform!

Ponder the tension this brings up: is writing phonetic or is it semantic? What will future scribes do to balance this tension between meaning and sound? Next time, travel East to find out how one early calligrapher balances that tension.

The whole history of writing:

Who created this?
Art, animation and music by NativLang
CC-BY and public domain credits:

[cozyfallout]

This series seriously deserves waaaay more views. Really good work!

[michaelturvey]

Am I right in assuming the ankle/uncle example was an analogy? It would be very odd if the ancient language had words for ankle and uncle which sounded the same!

[UVtec]

Not only the narrator lady has a silk voice, but she pronounce the "r" in the Egyptian symbols the same way Czech language uses it, which is quite hard if you are not used to. I am impressed!

[grunezunge]

the narrator has the cutest rolled R I've ever heard

[RBLXbranefreez]

Ahhhh! The ever-dreaded cliff-hanger returns!

[MarioAtheonio]

This really reminds me of onyomi and kunyomi in Japanese, which are also based on a borrowed writing system.

[mihrdat]

You guys have an amazing channel, I'm learning a lot. Shame my language isn't cool enough to be covered in your vidoes (Farsi)

[GregTom]

We use a lot of logography in medicine and in science.

[dorkmax]

The glyph for the city of Tenochtitlan was literal. It wasn't indirectly representing a sound, it was exactly what was meant. Tenchotitlan meant "Place of the Cactus Rock" because the city's mythology says it was founded at a place where an eagle ate a snake atop a cactus in the middle of a lake.

[hernes]

I still write in english using rebus unintentionally. i just write down words that sound what i can remember and that means misspelling

[hugonegrete]

Actually, the Mexican flag has way more meaning in it's shield, the legend says some people were travelling the area looking for a place to live when a voice told them to look for a lake, where an eagle will be eating a snake on top of a nopal, they found it and founded Tenochtitlan there, the Mexican flag tells that story, well that's at least how I remember the story. 🇲🇽

[arnoldlane]

I always die laughing with the... "MAJOR MOMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF WRITING!"

[claymore]

Love it!! I hope you do not mind I shared on my FB and shout out to you! *all giddy fron ancient lingos*

[Hoonters-goona-Hoont]

So what you're saying is that puns are a fundamental part of our linguistic development and are therefor acceptable?

[anointedblessed]

The little diacritic mark below is a tense meaning for semantic purpose! 16 tenses 8 to each side 4 up 4 down up ongoing down means completed the diacritics for short and long syllables also are short/long up/down above/below to indicate the enunciation of the words to show what register and tone and melodic prosody one uses when pronouncing them!

[eSZett_]

Don't call it a comeback, they've been here for years!

[MichaelShulski]

Aren't emojis pretty much logographs?

[VolkColopatrion]

eye bee leaf ant flower can well bear chisel four lamb.

i don't get it.

[jayroneacasio]

Gold! I'm rich!! This is amazing. Thank you.

[MandMs]

I believe...
antflower can wellbear needle four sheep?