Civilization that originated along the banks of the Nilemore than 4000 years ago, keeps a lot of secrets. Favorable conditions in this area, mild climate contributed to the very early development of various branches of science and art. The writing and knowledge of the ancient Egyptians - the subject of study of many scientists of the world. The first texts from among those that have come down to us were created in about 3000 BC. e., later evolved and are monuments of art and history. Well, let's consider them in more detail and understand the secrets left by the most ancient civilization.
General ideas about language and skills
All the information we have today about the AncientEgypt, obtained from archaeological excavations. Various documents compiled in dead languages were found. They have been deciphering for more than a decade. They contained information about all spheres of life within this civilization, starting with the laws and the church service, ending with recipes for cooking. It turns out that the writing and knowledge of the ancient Egyptians, which we can study now, is inextricably linked. By deciphering the grammar of this nation, we can discover most of its secrets. Therefore, it is with the history of the letter that we begin, dividing it into four main periods.
Period one: hieroglyphs
The ancient writing of the Egyptians appeared back inpre-dynastic period, when as such the state did not even exist. However, gods and priests for this people were something sacred and inviolable at all times, and it was thanks to the ideas about these “masters of the world” that the Egyptians created their first written system. The hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt were very different from modern Chinese or Japanese. These were multi-colored pictures (today we find them in one-color because of the destructive influence of time), which depicted objects, events, people. In a word, people painted what they saw, slightly simplifying objects. Writing hieroglyphs could have any direction - from right to left or vice versa, sometimes even from top to bottom. The main thing is that the result was beautiful.
Period Two: Hieratik
The Hellenistic period for Egypt is closely related toGreece and the Roman Empire. In addition to exchanges of military experience, language assimilation has occurred. The writing and knowledge of the ancient Egyptians was systematized thanks to the alphabet, which came from ancient Europe. The first type of cursive writing appeared - hieratika. Then this new literary language was accessible only to the cream of society, and sacred texts and legal acts were compiled on it.
The third stage of development: demotika
At the turn of eras assimilation has already occurred inpopulation of ancient Egypt. Arabs flooded in here, bringing their traditions, beliefs and, of course, language. Among all the layers of the people, a fundamentally new type of letter became popular - demotic, which in appearance resembles modern Arabic. On it public documents, the literature of the general access, biographies and instructions were also made. Nevertheless, hieratica has so far been the official letter of the country and has been used in worship and jurisdiction.
Fourth period: Coptic
This is the last stage of development of ancient Egyptian speech.and writing, which replaced demotik. Unlike its predecessors, the Coptic letter had its own alphabet, a different manner of pronunciation, spelling, addition of syllables and words into a sentence. In many ways, this language is similar to Greek, but it belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. The writing and knowledge of the ancient Egyptians, which belong to earlier periods, scientists were able to decipher only thanks to the Coptic cursive. In this language the Egyptians translated older documents and summaries of their ancestors. Until the 19th century, the language of the Copts was used in worship, and later it was already defined in the ranks of the dead.
Pyramid - the repository of secrets
The knowledge of the ancient Egyptians became the basis formodern science. None of the civilizations is as advanced as this one, and in no part of the world at that time did such an advanced household system exist. It is in the records that were stored in these buildings, we find the first medical benefits. They tell you how to heal craniocerebral traumas, describe which herbs treat us for certain ailments. The Egyptians knew what stars are in the sky, why they appear at night and where they disappear during the day. In addition, the ancient Egyptian mathematics is what we learn today in school. The volumes of the figures, the ratio of mass and parameters, the equation with unknowns and fractions - all this was invented precisely in the Nile Valley.
