The emergence of writing occurred when a person switched to a sedentary lifestyle. It was then that the methods of cultivating the land became more complicated, the tools were improved, and religion arose and became widespread. Mankind has gained initial experience in interacting with the surrounding reality; experience that was worth passing on to the next generation. Oral traditions could not fully fulfill this function, the need arose for the visual transfer of information to other people. So the first written evidence of the life of ancient people appeared.
First writing
The first letters arose in the Mesolithic. Scientists have found many small stones on which various figures were depicted in bright colors. Each tribe used its own system of signs and images. But even such random attempts to portray what was previously spoken about had a beneficial effect on the development of mankind. At the state level, the widespread use of writing was noted in the ancient kingdoms of Mesopotamia - in Sumer and Babylon, in the states of the front of Asia - Media and Lydia, and, of course, in Ancient Egypt.
Writing in Ancient Egypt
The first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt arose more than 3 thousand years ago, in the pre-dynastic period. Then the first state formations appeared, the traces of which were lost in the thick of the ages. But the images of royal families on the walls of tombs and temples, as well as the first information about the economic activities of the early states, have survived to this day. It is known that in the pre-dynastic era the ancient Egyptians had a complex religious system of worldview - the first traces of hieroglyphic writing in ancient Egypt also testify to this. The date and age of the first written signs are indicated very approximately, based on a carbon analysis of antiquities. It is safe to say that the first written designations that reached us are about 4 thousand years old. e.
These are pictographic signs that were in the tomb of Abydos - the pharaoh of the pre-dynastic era. The first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt, the date of which lies within the era of the Early Kingdom, are associated with the development of statehood in the territory of this country, with the unification of the Upper and Lower Kingdoms into one power. To manage a huge state, thousands of officials and scribes were required, for which general rules of account and writing were needed. It was then that the writing system of the ancient Egyptians acquired the forms and style characteristic of hieroglyphic writing.
Writing in the religion of ancient Egypt
According to the beliefs of the Egyptians, writing was given to them by the god of wisdom Thoth. He gave people the first signs that could indicate the simplest concepts - the sun, bread, butter and so on. In such simple signs, the first traces of hieroglyphic writing in ancient Egypt reached us. The date of appearance of the first hieroglyphs that have come down to us is the 23rd century BC. e. Later, the first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt convey more complex semantic and figurative concepts - for example, the day was designated by the sun, since the sun shines only during the day. The patron of writing has also changed. They became the goddess Seshat, who was the daughter of Thor. The name Seshat was associated with the prayers of the Egyptians for the science and knowledge of children, for successful exams for the position of official or scribe, for success in public service. The first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt tell about these and other information about the beliefs of the Egyptians.
In what century did writing flourish?
The written language was fully formed by the end of the Ancient Kingdom. The first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt indicate the active use of more than 800 hieroglyphs. Throughout the third millennium BC. e. this number of hieroglyphs changed insignificantly. In the Hellenistic period, the number of hieroglyphs increased significantly and reached 6600.
With the fall of the Egyptian state and a series of numerous conquests of this country, the values of the ancient hieroglyphs were completely forgotten.
And only at the beginning of the 19th century, the great French scientist and researcher J. Champollion, having studied the first traces of hieroglyphic writing in Ancient Egypt, began work on their decoding. Thanks to his genius and the painstaking work of many other scholars, the ancient signs revealed their secrets and provided numerous information about life in the ancient country to modern researchers.