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yiangos — Linear B Symbols
Published: 2013-03-10 19:12:44 +0000 UTC; Views: 2504; Favourites: 18; Downloads: 85
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Description
This is a collection of 120 Linear B symbols (see [link] if you don't know what Linear B is), in svg format. I found these in various images on the web and converted them to vector format.Each glyph is in a separate file, with the syllable/word represented by each glyph being the filename. There are two or three which do not really correspond to a word (probably the guy that uploaded them on the internet wasn't that familiar with the script or the language it represents. "Meri" for instance, I'm pretty sure stands for "honey" (μέλι/meli in Greek). "Arepa" and "kanako" are rather more obscure, though. "Arepa" might (or might not) stand for "ointment" (αλοιφή/aloife), while "kanako" I was unable to find, though I didn't do much of a research.
I "created" them for a mini online game I've been developing on and off for about 3 years now, but then I thought they may be of use to someone else as well.
I can't (nor would I want to) claim any rights to this resource; I don't think it is possible (or desirable, for that matter) to claim rights to the alphabet/script of a real-life language, be it a live (such as English, Greek, Russian, Chinese, Japanese,...) or dead language (such as ancient Egyptian, Babylonian, Latin,...).
So feel free to use these at your will, in or out of deviantart. I would appreciate it if you sent me a link to what you've done, though I don't require it.
EDIT: I just realized that the title was somewhat vague, so I changed it a bit.
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Comments: 11
Because of the similarity with Japanese when read aloud (e.g. wanake instead of *wanakte, I enjoyed Linear B's transcriptions: they sound like a language different from their original Greek.
In fact, Linear B's transcriptions inspired me to create one or a few languages of my own!
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Similar to hiragana and katagana, linear B glyphs are syllabograms (i.e. each glyph represents a syllable) however the sound they represent is not always the same. For instance, "ri" is not only "ri", but "li" as well, depending on context. It's roughly the same with egyptian hieroglyphics, where the sound they represent depends on context (neighboring glyphs). Japanese written language is more refined in that sense, as the glyphs correspond to specific sounds (excluding kanji, I guess), under strict rules.
The rules for linear b may have been equally strict for all we know though. However it was abandoned as a writing system pretty soon, as the more versatile predecessor to the modern greek alphabet was adopted. Notably, linear B has only been found in clay tablets detailing merchant transactions so far. There's no literary work found using this system, and I really doubt it was ever used for anything more than mercantile bookkeeping. I'm pretty certain that there were poets, bards and story tellers at the time and if there was a widely used writing system, there should have been evidence of written literary work from that era (e.g. the greek equivalent of Gilgamesh, whatever that may be).
My personal opinion, based on nothing more than my own thoughts (i.e. no scientific data to back it up) is that linear B was developed by the Myceneans based on the more elaborate linear A and hieroglyphic system the Minoans had developed (themselves possibly influenced by the Egyptians) mainly because the Myceneans saw a potential for easier trade by using a writing system, but little more than that.
Feel free to use the resource any way you like. Please provide a link to the result, if possible.
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That's interesting to know, on why the Mycenaeans and Minoans might had used a syllabary that relies very much on context. Thanks!
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I don't think that linear A or or the hieroglyphics found on the Phaestos disc were syllabograms. They may or may not have been so. Both scripts are still indecipherable so far. And linear B would also have remained indecipherable had it not been for Ventris and Chadwick.
My take on this is that early scripts relied more on context and less on hard rules because they were not very widespread. Fewer people could read and write, thus the need for the written message to be ubiquitously read and understood was more relaxed. As the centuries progressed though, there was a greater need to pass on written knowledge, and therefore the rules had to become strict. Probably that's why this writing system was deemed insufficient, while what is now known as the Greek alphabet was adopted - easier to remember, less reading/writing rules to follow, easier to enforce those rules, versatile enough to cover the entire span of the then spoken language.
Again this is my personal, totally unscientific opinion on the matter.
(and I'll stop spamming you now... 
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Never mind, this is not spam.
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Curious, "Kanako" sounds a lot like the Japanese name "Kanoko".
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Heh, they do sound similar, but probably mean entirely different things (that is if Kanoko does mean something in Japanese. I think I was told once that Japanese names have meanings, but I'm not really sure about it). Also please note that "kanako" would not really be pronounced "kanako" back then, they used the same glyphs for different sounds - see "Meri"-->"Meli" or "Arepa"-->"Aloife"
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True. It's like "wahine" (Hawaiian for "women") and Wahinee (an Apache family name).
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It's beautiful! I love it. Maybe someday i will use them for my story thank u.
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Thanks, please provide me with a link if/when you use the symbols.
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