Middle Eastern merchants created the first enduring records. The invention of writing allowed merchants to track transactions by recording what had been agreed upon.
Like many other inventions, writing appeared by chance, and this time, it was found on the back of an envelope.
The Sumerians Created Writing for Trade Convenience
About 6,000 years ago in the region of Mesopotamia, a community known as the Sumerians invented a new method to track trade transactions. They created clay tokens shaped like animals, jars, and other goods, and recorded transactions by wrapping these tokens in clay envelopes.
Once the envelopes were sealed, they could no longer see what was inside. Therefore, they used a sharp stick to mark symbols on the soft clay indicating the contents. It didn’t take long for them to realize that once they had done this, they no longer needed the tokens: a marked envelope was sufficient.
Cuneiform writing emerged from trade transactions. (Illustration from a book).
By around 3100 BC, these envelopes evolved into simple square clay tablets that recorded trade transactions in symbolic form. The recording had begun.
Initially, the Sumerians used symbols that were simplified drawings. To speed up the recording process, they started using the pointed end of a reed to impress into the clay instead of drawing with a stick. The drawings no longer resembled real objects and became true writing. Archaeologists refer to this as cuneiform. This script was used for 3,000 years.
However, there were some issues with writing this way. Every time a new word was introduced, someone had to invent a new symbol. Some words like “in” or “into” were difficult to translate into images. And how could one write their name? The Sumerians somewhat addressed this issue by using words they could illustrate to represent those they could not draw. For example, “in” sounds like “water” in Sumerian, so they also used the symbol for “water” to denote “in.”
Today, the Chinese still use a similar system, but they developed it completely independently, likely around 3,500 years ago, using entirely different symbols. This system persists because people in different regions of China pronounce the same word differently, making the use of an alphabetic system ineffective for recording pronunciations.
Although the Sumerians never used an alphabet, they were the first to write. Without writing, there would be no history, and these ancient merchants certainly earned their place in that history.
Writing on clay. (Image from a book).
Some Notable Information About Early Writing
Clay Signatures. Clay has been used to store information long before true writing emerged. People in Mesopotamia sealed packages with clay and then used stone seals to imprint their personal marks on them.
Writing with a Reed. The first “pencil and paper” consisted of a piece of hard reed and a piece of soft clay. The end of the reed was sharpened to create strokes on the clay.
Cuneiform Writing. Writing speed in Sumer increased as curves gradually evolved into wedge or triangular shapes with short, straight edges. Later, symbols were written from left to right, without spaces between words.
Ancient Greek Writing. About 3,000 years ago, people on the island of Crete used three different types of writing. In the 1950s, British architect Michael Ventris discovered how to read one type of script you see here, known as Linear B. The other two types remain a mystery.
Chinese Writing. The first Chinese characters appeared about 3,500 years ago, carved on wood, bones, or shells. Ancient writing differs from modern writing, but the Chinese can still read it without too much difficulty.
