UNIV 1200 Chapter Notes - Chapter 12-14: Guns, Germs, And Steel, Syllabary, Egalitarianism
5 Nov 2016
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During the 19th century, civilization changed from savagery to civilization. This transition included the development of agriculture, metallurgy, complex technology, centralized government, and writing. People who could write thought themselves a level above others. Writing allowed for more accurate communication which allowed knowledge to be transferred in more detail, travelled farther, and in more remote lands. Three basic strategies of writing include: the alphabet, logograms (one symbol is one word), and syllabaries ( sign for each syllable) It is much more difficult to create a new language than it is to copy. No writing system only uses one approach, it is usually a blend of strategies. This is probably why only a few languages have been created independently. In order to create a language one must learn to recognize the same sound /speech unit, through all normal variations of speech.
