Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Linear A

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Linear A Jan 16th 2012, 11:07 Linear A is the name given to the as-yet-undeciphered written language (or script) of the Minoan people, and it is one of two used during the Proto-palatial period (1900-1700 BC). Linear A was used in the central-southern region (Mesara) of Crete, while Cretan Hieroglyphic was used on the northern and northeastern parts of Crete; some scholars see these as simultaneous scripts, others see Cretan hieroglyphics as occurring slightly earlier. Invented about 1800 BC, Linear A is the first known syllabary (writing system using symbols for syllables) in Europe, and it includes about 7,000 different characters. It was apparently used for both religious and administrative functions. The scripts are found on stamp seals and roundels (and their impressions on tokens and bullae) used by Cretan administrative persons, as well as painted and carved into tombs and altars. Linear A and Cretan Hieroglyphic Both Linear A and Cretan Hieroglyphic were used on sealings, leading researcher Ilse Schoep to believe that they reflect a fairly sophisticated administrative system in place on Crete as early as the pre-Palatial. Linear A scripts have been found in quantity at the Minoan sites of Haghia Triadha, Khania, Knossos, Phaistos, and Malia. About 1450, Linear A disappeared, replaced by the language called Linear B. Linear B has been deciphered, and was found to be a form of archaic Greek. Scholars are divided, to say the least, about the origins and possible language of Linear A. Sources See the Phaistos Disk. The best online source on Linear A (if a bit technical) is from John Younger, whose page on the Haghia Triada site contains many (if not all) the corpus on Linear A. Anonymous 2003. Bronze Age Writing on Crete: Hieroglyphs, Linear A, and Linear B. Athena Review 3(3). Article on line, has images of Cretan hieroglyphic script, Linear A and Linear B characters. Lawler, Andrew 2004 The Slow Deaths of Writing. Science 305(5680):30-33. Schoep, Ilse 1999 The origins of writing and administration on Crete. Oxford Journal of Archaeology 18(3):265-290. This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Any mistakes are the responsibility of Kris Hirst.

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