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Writing and Script: A Very Short Introduction

Andrew Robinson

August 2009

ISBN: 9780199567782

176 pages
Paperback
174x111mm

In Stock

Very Short Introductions

Price: £8.99

Writing is a defining marker of civilisation; without it there could be no accumulation of knowledge. Andrew Robinson tells the fascinating story of the history of writing, considering its development, and examining the enormous variety of writing and scripts we use today.

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Description

Writing is a defining marker of civilisation; without it there could be no accumulation of knowledge. Andrew Robinson tells the fascinating story of the history of writing, considering its development, and examining the enormous variety of writing and scripts we use today.

  • An appetizing first taste of the subject of writing and languages
  • Explains the origins of writing and how it developed, along with how it has been used over five millennia
  • Focuses on specific examples including the Roman alphabet and Chinese characters

About the Author(s)

Andrew Robinson, Visiting Fellow, Wolfson College, Cambridge

Table of Contents

    1:Writing and its emergence
    2:Development and diffusion of writing
    3:Disappearance of scripts
    4:Decipherment and undeciphered scripts
    5:How writing systems work
    6:Alphabets
    7:Chinese and Japanese writing
    8:Scribes and materials
    9:Writing goes electronic
    Chronology: 3300 BC to AD 2000
    References
    Further reading
    Index

Reviews

"User-friendly survey." - Steven Poole, The Guardian