GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

Detailed explanation-1: -What was the Phoenicians’ greatest legacy? It was undoubtedly their alphabet. Created c1000 BC, the Phoenician writing system of 22 letters was in itself not very revolutionary. In fact, it was really only a modification of similar alphabets that already existed in the region.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Phoenician alphabet was a significant contribution of the Phoenician culture because it was the first to connect the written language to the spoken language. By developing symbols that stood for sounds instead of phrases, readers of the Phoenician writing system could sound out words.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Phoenician alphabet developed from the Proto-Canaanite alphabet, during the 15th century BC. Before then the Phoenicians wrote with a cuneiform script. The earliest known inscriptions in the Phoenician alphabet come from Byblos and date back to 1000 BC.

Detailed explanation-4: -The original alphabet was developed by a Semitic people living in or near Egypt. * They based it on the idea developed by the Egyptians, but used their own specific symbols. It was quickly adopted by their neighbors and relatives to the east and north, the Canaanites, the Hebrews, and the Phoenicians.