Ethiopic

Ge’ez script   ፊደል

Origins

The Ge’ez or Ethiopic script possibly developed from the
Sabaean/Minean script. The earliest known
inscriptions in the Ge’ez script date to the 5th century BC. At first
the script represented only consonants. Vowel indication started to
appear in 4th century AD during the reign of king Ezana, though might
have developed at a earlier date.

Notable Features

  • Type of writing system: abugida (አቡጊዳ)
  • Writing direction: left to right in horizontal lines.
  • Each symbol represents a syllable consisting of a consonant plus
    a vowel. The basic signs are modified in a number of different ways
    to indicate the various vowels.
  • There is no standard way of transliterating the Ge’ez script
    into the Latin alphabet.

Used to write

Ge’ez (ግዕዝ), the classical language
of Ethiopia which is still used as a liturgical language by Ethiopian
christians and the Beta Israel Jewish community of Ethiopia.

Amharic (ኣማርኛ),
the national language of Ethiopia, has about 27 million speakers.
It is spoken mainly in North Central Ethiopia. There are Amharic
speakers in a number of other countries, particularly in Egypt,
Israel and Sweden.

  • Categoria dell'articolo:Lingue
  • Tempo di lettura:2 minuti di lettura