Language/Modern-greek-1453/Culture/The-History-of-the-Latin-Alphabet

The History of the Latin Alphabet

The Etruscan alphabet was the alphabet used by the Etruscans. It has 26 letters.

The Etruscan alphabet takes its origin from the Greek alphabet and it is from the Greek colony of Ischia (then Pithékuses), opposite Cumae (Italy), in mid-7th century BC. J.-C.

The Latin alphabet was originally used to write Latin, the language spoken by the inhabitants of Rome and Lazio.

It is derived from the Etruscan alphabet, itself a variant of a Greek alphabet different from the so-called classical alphabet.

The Greek alphabet is in turn at the origin of all the scripts of Europe. The alphabet of the early Greek dialects of the western Mediterranean, where the letter "eta" remained an h, evolved into the old italic, from which the old Roman alphabet was derived.

Ancient Greek has left its mark in the French language for students who think they are going towards a literary stream and Greek for children who will go more towards a scientific stream. Ancient Greek was spoken by great thinkers in matters of science:

Thales, Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato ... We all know the first letters of the Greek alphabet.

With this lesson under your command, consider pursuing these related subjects to expand your expertise: Historical speech of Xenophon Zolotas, Greek Salad Horiatiki Salata, The mysterious origins of punctuation & Glass half full or half empty.

Other Lessons

• Playing in Ancient Greece
• The Homeric Epics: Iliad
• Valentine’s day quotes
• Toys and Games in Ancient Greece
• National Anthem of Greece
• Allegory in Art and Literature
• Agnodice: The First Female Physician
• Best Greek Street Food
• épopée Homérique Odyssée
• Battle of Thermopylae