
How writing began, and other unexpectedly funny stories about cuneiform [video] - jelliclesfarm
https://aeon.co/videos/how-writing-began-and-other-unexpectedly-funny-stories-about-cuneiform
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HocusLocus
I also recommend Thoth's Pill, an amazing historical overview of writing
systems that breaks new ground in animated video production... as they are
describing alphabet systems and letter figures they are drawn in real time and
presented on a clear crisp background.

Where most documentaries we've seen over the years show glimpses of
photographs of ancient writing samples, often dimly lit or weathered and
faded, tending to make it more about documents than language -- _these_ folk
are writing script and glyphs on computer, presenting detailed traces or
brushing the characters and building alphabets, explaining down to the
character/sound.

For children this is precious. If I had seen something like this when I was
young, it would have sucked me in and maybe changed the course of my life.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdO3IP0Pro8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdO3IP0Pro8)

~~~
tasogare
> For children this is precious. If I had seen something like this when I was
> young, it would have sucked me in and maybe changed the course of my life.

I’m fascinated by writing systems since childhood. It was only at the end of
high-school that I could start teaching myself about Chinese script with
Wikipedia. A decade later I was finally able to start Sumerian. This is
incredibly niche and hard to find classes for before college level. Internet
helped a lot.

Also it drove me to East-Asian languages which, like you suppose it, indeed
totally changed the course of my life, for the best.

~~~
jelliclesfarm
Fascinating. May I ask how one would go about learning Sumerian. Any
resources/online classes would be much appreciated.

I am currently reading Enuma Elish and Epic of Gilgamesh translated. It’s a
rabbit hole. My wish list for the rest of my life is significantly longer
now.. some of them possible..learning Sumerian/Akkadian and going to Pamir Hwy
and silk route.. Checking out where Oxus flowed and ancient civilizations
lived seems like a 2020 thing to do.

~~~
tasogare
Do you read French? If yes, there is this remote diploma of Sumerian offered
by the University of Strasbourg (costs around 400€/year, formation of two
years): [https://histoire.unistra.fr/offre-de-formation/diplome-
duniv...](https://histoire.unistra.fr/offre-de-formation/diplome-duniversite-
de-langues-anciennes). This is the path I took. The Louvre Museum also has
epigraphy courses, but nothing remote.

Then there are the free resources such as ePSD (dictionary), materials put
online by CDLI, le manuel d'épigraphie akkadienne de René Labat
([https://archive.org/details/LabatR.ManuelDEpigraphieAkkadien...](https://archive.org/details/LabatR.ManuelDEpigraphieAkkadienne5Ed1976))
that also contains Sumerian reading of symbols, Jagersma thesis. Those are
necessary to got further, but as the language is really grammatical, it not
something that can really be learnt without class in my opinion.

------
hprotagonist
Irving Finkel is a treasure.

~~~
jedimastert
He really is. He's got two incredible videos with Tom Scott where the two of
them play what could be considered the worlds oldest game[0] and he introduces
Tom and Matt to "writing" cuneiform[1]. He's so sharp in both, I love seeing
him anywhere else now.

[0]:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZskjLq040I](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZskjLq040I)
[1]:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOwP0KUlnZg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOwP0KUlnZg)

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imvetri
thanks for sharing. Watched the full video.

Something worth to spend time than any other posts here.

