The earliest known alphabets emerged in the Middle East during the Bronze Age. The oldest known alphabet is Proto-Sinaitic script, which dates back to the 18th-17th century BCE in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It consisted of 30 symbols, each representing a consonant sound. The Proto-Sinaitic script is believed to have influenced the development of the Phoenician alphabet, which emerged around the 15th-14th century BCE.
The Phoenician alphabet consisted of 22 symbols, representing consonant sounds only. It was primarily used by the Phoenicians, a seafaring people who lived in the present-day Lebanon and Syria. The Phoenician alphabet became influential in the Mediterranean region, and its derivatives spread widely.
One significant adaptation of the Phoenician alphabet occurred in Greece around the 8th century BCE. The Greeks added symbols to represent vowel sounds, creating the first true alphabetic system. This innovation marked a major advancement in writing systems, as it allowed for the precise and unambiguous representation of speech in written form. The Greek alphabet influenced the development of many later alphabets, including the Etruscan, Roman, Cyrillic, and Coptic alphabets.
In summary, the creation of the alphabet is an iterative and collaborative process that involved multiple cultures and civilizations over thousands of years. The earliest alphabets emerged in the Middle East, most notably the Proto-Sinaitic and Phoenician scripts. The Greeks made significant contributions by introducing vowel symbols, leading to the development of the Greek alphabet and its vast influence on subsequent alphabetic systems.