What are symbol languages?
How symbol languages shaped communication

Symbol languages are attested languages that use written scripts to represent sounds, meanings, or a combination of both. They include:

Written Systems for Natural Languages

Natural Symbol Languages

• Phonographic Writing Systems (Representing Sounds):
  • English: Written in the Latin alphabet, representing sounds in the English language.
  • Korean: Written in Hangul, a phonetic alphabet designed to represent the sounds of the Korean language.
  • Arabic: Written in the Arabic script, which primarily represents consonants, with optional diacritics for vowels.

• Ideographic or Logographic Writing Systems (Representing Meanings):
  • Chinese: Written in characters that primarily represent meanings (e.g., “山” means “mountain”).
  • Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A mix of logographic and phonetic elements.

Constructed Symbol Languages

• Esperanto: A constructed international auxiliary language with a phonetic writing system.
• Lojban: A constructed language designed to represent logical relationships, with a script derived from Latin.

Historical Symbol Languages

Here is a list of some Symbol Languages with a brief description.
These are systems of writing or communication based on symbols rather than letters or phonetic scripts, used throughout history:

Egyptian Hieroglyphs

• Ancient Egyptian writing system combining logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements.
• Used primarily for religious texts and monumental inscriptions.

Maya Hieroglyphs

• • Writing system of the Maya civilization in Mesoamerica.
  • Combined logograms and syllabic symbols for recording historical and religious events.

Cuneiform

• One of the earliest systems of writing, developed by the Sumerians of Mesopotamia.
  Used wedge-shaped symbols on clay tablets for administrative, literary, and legal texts.
• Used by ancient Sumerians, Akkadians, and others to record sounds and meanings.

Chinese Oracle Bone Script

• • • • Earliest known form of Chinese writing, inscribed on turtle shells and animal bones.
      • Used for divination during the Shang Dynasty.

Also included are these:

Linear B

1. • Script used by the Mycenaean Greeks for administrative purposes.
   • Deciphered as an early form of Greek.
2. Indus Script
   • Writing system of the Indus Valley Civilization, still undeciphered.
   • Consists of pictorial symbols on seals and pottery.
3. Runes
   • Alphabets used by Germanic peoples, including the Vikings.
   • Carved onto wood, stone, and metal for inscriptions.
4. Tangut Script
   • Logographic writing system created for the Tangut language of Western Xia.
   • Used in religious and governmental texts.
5. Nsibidi
   • Indigenous symbol system of southeastern Nigeria.
   • Used for communication among secret societies and for artistic expression.
6. Quipu
   • Andean system of knotted strings used by the Inca for record-keeping and communication.
   • Encodes numerical and possibly narrative information.

Summary:

Symbol languages are languages that use written scripts to represent sounds, meanings, or a combination of both. These historical symbol languages were foundational in early communication and record-keeping. Bridging the gap between oral traditions and modern written scripts. By using symbols to convey thoughts, concepts, and phonetic elements, symbol languages bridge the gap between spoken and written word. Thus allowing for the preservation of culture, knowledge, and history.

In conclusion:

Symbol languages are a fascinating reflection of how humanity has developed systems to represent both the sounds and meanings of speech. These languages, whether phonographic, ideographic, or a blend of both, demonstrate the richness of human communication.
Understanding symbol languages provides valuable insight into the evolution of language systems. Also the diverse ways societies have captured and shared human expression are interesting to see.

If interested, read more about them here: