| Cypriot | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Script type | Syllabary |
Time period | 11th–4th centuries BCE |
| Direction | Right-to-left script  |
| Languages | Arcadocypriot Greek,Eteocypriot |
| Related scripts | |
Parent systems | Linear A
|
| ISO 15924 | |
| ISO 15924 | Cprt(403), Cypriot syllabary |
| Unicode | |
Unicode alias | Cypriot |
| U+10800–U+1083F | |
| This article containsphonetic transcriptions in theInternational Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. For the distinction between[ ],/ / and ⟨ ⟩, seeIPA § Brackets and transcription delimiters. | |
TheCypriot orCypriote syllabary (also Classical Cypriot Syllabary) is asyllabic script used inIron AgeCyprus, from about the 11th to the 4th centuries BCE, when it was replaced by theGreek alphabet. It has been suggested that the script remained in use as late as the 1st century BC.[1] A pioneer of that change was KingEvagoras ofSalamis. It is thought to be descended from theCypro-Minoan syllabary, itself a variant or derivative ofLinear A. Most texts using the script are in theArcadocypriot dialect ofGreek, but also one bilingual (Greek andEteocypriot) inscription was found inAmathus.
It is thought that the Cypriot syllabary is derived from theCypro-Minoan syllabary; the latter is thought to be derived from theLinear A script, and certainly belongs to the circle ofAegean scripts. The most obvious change is the disappearance of ideograms, which were frequent and represented a significant part of Linear A. The earliest inscriptions are found on clay tablets. Parallel to the evolution ofcuneiform, the signs soon became simple patterns of lines. There is no evidence of a Semitic influence due to trade, but this pattern seemed to have evolved as the result of habitual use.[2]
The structure of the Cypriot syllabary is very similar to that ofLinear B. This is due to their common origin and underlying language (albeit different dialects).[2] The Cypriot script contains 56 signs.[3] Each sign generally stands for a syllable in the spoken language: e.g. ka, ke, ki, ko, ku. Hence, it is classified as asyllabic writing system.[4] Because each sign stands for an open syllable (CV - a consonant followed by a vowel) rather than a closed one (CVC - a consonant, a vowel and then a consonant), the Cypriot syllabary is also an 'open' syllabary.[3]
| -a | -e | -i | -o | -u | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 𐠀 | 𐠁 | 𐠂 | 𐠃 | 𐠄 | |
| w- | 𐠲 | 𐠳 | 𐠴 | 𐠵 | |
| z- | 𐠼 | 𐠿 | |||
| j- | 𐠅 | 𐠈 | |||
| k-, g-, kh- | 𐠊 | 𐠋 | 𐠌 | 𐠍 | 𐠎 |
| l- | 𐠏 | 𐠐 | 𐠑 | 𐠒 | 𐠓 |
| m- | 𐠔 | 𐠕 | 𐠖 | 𐠗 | 𐠘 |
| n- | 𐠙 | 𐠚 | 𐠛 | 𐠜 | 𐠝 |
| ks- | 𐠷 | 𐠸 | |||
| p-, b-, ph- | 𐠞 | 𐠟 | 𐠠 | 𐠡 | 𐠢 |
| r- | 𐠣 | 𐠤 | 𐠥 | 𐠦 | 𐠧 |
| s- | 𐠨 | 𐠩 | 𐠪 | 𐠫 | 𐠬 |
| t-, d-, th- | 𐠭 | 𐠮 | 𐠯 | 𐠰 | 𐠱 |
To see the glyphs above, you must have acompatible font installed, and your web browser must supportUnicode characters in the U+10800–U+1083F range.
The main difference between the two lies not in the structure of the syllabary but the use of the symbols. Final consonants in the Cypriot syllabary are marked by a final, silent e. For example, final consonants, n, s, and r are noted by using ne, re, and se. Groups of consonants are created using extra vowels.Diphthongs such as ae, au, eu, and ei are spelled out completely. However,nasal consonants that occur before another consonant are omitted completely.[2]
Compare Linear B𐀀𐀵𐀫𐀦 (a-to-ro-qo, reconstructed as *[án.tʰroːkʷos]) to Cypriot𐠀𐠰𐠦𐠡𐠩 (a-to-ro-po-se, read right-to-left), both forms related toAttic Greek:ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos) "human".
One other minor difference involves the representation of themanner of articulation. In the Linear B script,liquid sounds /l/ and /r/ are covered by one series, while there are separate series for thedentals /d/ and /t/. In the Cypriot syllabary, /d/ and /t/ are combined, whereas /l/ and /r/ are distinct.[4]
There are minor differences in the forms of the signs used in different sites.[2] However, the syllabary can be subdivided into two different subtypes based on area: the "Common" and the South-Western or "Paphian".[4]
.jpg)
The script was deciphered in the 19th century byGeorge Smith due to theIdalion bilingual. EgyptologistSamuel Birch (1872), the numismatist Johannes Brandis (1873), the philologistsMoritz Schmidt,Wilhelm Deecke, Justus Siegismund (1874) and the dialectologist H. L. Ahrens (1876) also contributed to decipherment.[5]
About 1,000 inscriptions in the Cypriot syllabary have been found throughout many different regions. However, these inscriptions vary greatly in length and credibility.[4] Most inscriptions found are dated to be around the 6th century. There are no inscriptions known to be before the 8th century. Most of the tablets found are from funerary monuments and contained merely names of the deceased. A few dedicatory inscriptions were also found but of very little contribution to decipherment. The most important tablets are mainly found inEnkomi andPaphos.
Efforts to collect and publish the known corpus began in the 1800s.[6][7][8] In the 1900s the work was taken up by T. B. Mitford and Olivier Masson.[9] Over the years a number of inaccuracies and duplications crept into the collects corpus. In 2015, Massimo Perna published a consolidated and corrected corpus totaling 1,397 inscriptions.[10]
The earliest dated inscription from Cyprus was discovered atEnkomi in 1955. It was a part of a thick clay tablet with only three lines of writing. Epigraphers immediately saw a resemblance. Because the date of the fragment was found to be around 1500 BCE, considerably earlier than Linear B, linguists determined that the Cypriot syllabary was derived fromLinear A and notLinear B. Several other fragments of clay tablets were also found in Enkomi. They date to a later period, around the late 13th or 12th century BCE. The script found on these tablets has considerably evolved and the signs have become simple patterns of lines. Linguists named this new script asCypro-Minoan syllabary.[2]
Idalium was an ancient city in Cyprus, in modernDali, Nicosia District. The city was founded on the copper trade in the 3rd millennium BCE. Its name in the 8th century BCE was "Ed-di-al" as it appears on theSargon Stele of 707 BCE. From this area, archeologists found many of the later Cypriot syllabic scripts. In fact, Idalium held the most significant contribution to the decipherment of Cypriot syllabary – theTablet of Idalium. It is a large bronze tablet with long inscriptions on both sides.[2] The Tablet of Idalium is dated to about 480–470 BCE. Excluding a few features in morphology and vocabulary, the text is a complete and well-understood document. It details a contract made by the king Stasicyprus and the city of Idalium with the physician Onasilus and his brothers.[4] As payment for the physicians' care for wounded warriors during a Persian siege of the city, the king promises them certain plots of land. This agreement is put under the protection of the goddessAthena.[4]
Recent discoveries include a small vase dating back to the beginning of the 5th century BCE and a broken marble fragment in the Paphian (Paphos) script. The vase is inscribed on two sides, providing two lists of personal names with Greek formations. The broken marble fragment describes a fragment of an oath. This inscription often mentions KingNicocles, the last king of Paphos and includes some important words and expressions.[4] Four inscribed objects were found in the British Museum stores, a silver cup from Kourion, a White Ware jug, and two limestone tablet fragments.[11]
The number of discoveries of new inscriptions has increased. However, most of the new discoveries have been short, or bear only a few signs. One example is a small clay ball.[2]
The Cypriot syllabary was added to theUnicode Standard in April 2003 with the release of version 4.0.
The Unicode block for Cypriot is U+10800–U+1083F.The Unicode block for the related Aegean Numbers is U+10100–U+1013F.
| Cypriot Syllabary[1][2] Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) | ||||||||||||||||
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | |
| U+1080x | 𐠀 | 𐠁 | 𐠂 | 𐠃 | 𐠄 | 𐠅 | 𐠈 | 𐠊 | 𐠋 | 𐠌 | 𐠍 | 𐠎 | 𐠏 | |||
| U+1081x | 𐠐 | 𐠑 | 𐠒 | 𐠓 | 𐠔 | 𐠕 | 𐠖 | 𐠗 | 𐠘 | 𐠙 | 𐠚 | 𐠛 | 𐠜 | 𐠝 | 𐠞 | 𐠟 |
| U+1082x | 𐠠 | 𐠡 | 𐠢 | 𐠣 | 𐠤 | 𐠥 | 𐠦 | 𐠧 | 𐠨 | 𐠩 | 𐠪 | 𐠫 | 𐠬 | 𐠭 | 𐠮 | 𐠯 |
| U+1083x | 𐠰 | 𐠱 | 𐠲 | 𐠳 | 𐠴 | 𐠵 | 𐠷 | 𐠸 | 𐠼 | 𐠿 | ||||||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
| Aegean Numbers[1][2] Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) | ||||||||||||||||
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | |
| U+1010x | 𐄀 | 𐄁 | 𐄂 | 𐄇 | 𐄈 | 𐄉 | 𐄊 | 𐄋 | 𐄌 | 𐄍 | 𐄎 | 𐄏 | ||||
| U+1011x | 𐄐 | 𐄑 | 𐄒 | 𐄓 | 𐄔 | 𐄕 | 𐄖 | 𐄗 | 𐄘 | 𐄙 | 𐄚 | 𐄛 | 𐄜 | 𐄝 | 𐄞 | 𐄟 |
| U+1012x | 𐄠 | 𐄡 | 𐄢 | 𐄣 | 𐄤 | 𐄥 | 𐄦 | 𐄧 | 𐄨 | 𐄩 | 𐄪 | 𐄫 | 𐄬 | 𐄭 | 𐄮 | 𐄯 |
| U+1013x | 𐄰 | 𐄱 | 𐄲 | 𐄳 | 𐄷 | 𐄸 | 𐄹 | 𐄺 | 𐄻 | 𐄼 | 𐄽 | 𐄾 | 𐄿 | |||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)