- The Phoenicians are credited with the development of the first true alphabet, which was initially called the Proto-Canaanite or Early Canaanite alphabet.
- The Phoenician alphabet consisted of 22 characters, each of which represented a consonant sound.
- It was the first alphabet to use separate symbols for consonants, and was a major breakthrough in the history of writing.
- The Phoenician alphabet was adopted by many other cultures, including the Greeks, who adapted it to create their own alphabet, which became the ancestor of most modern Western alphabets.