WORLD CIVILIZATION

Detailed explanation-1: -"Phoenician proper” consists of 22 consonant letters (leaving vowel sounds implicit) – in other words, it is an abjad – although certain late varieties use matres lectionis for some vowels.

Detailed explanation-2: -They spoke a Northern Semitic language and adapted the Proto-Canaanite alphabet into one that was much more efficient. The Phoenician alphabet had 22 letters, but only represented the sounds for consonants, making it a consonantal alphabet.

Detailed explanation-3: -The alphabet remained, however, essentially a Semitic alphabet of 22 letters, written from right to left, with only consonants represented and phonetic values unchanged from the North Semitic script.

Detailed explanation-4: -The Phoenician alphabet had 22 letters, each for sound rather than a word or phrase. It provided the basis for the Hebrew and Arabic alphabet as well as the Greek alphabet which gave birth to the Latin alphabet which beget the modern alphabet.