Hieroglyph

Hieroglyphics ( from Ancient Greek ἱερός hieros ' sacred ' and γλυφή glyph, Preserved Unearthed, engraving ') is a non-specific term for writings which are composed mainly of characters in the form of schematic pictures ( pictograms ).

The better-known hieroglyphs logo syllabic writings of logograms and syllabic characters (or at the Egyptian: consonants ) are made; Cretan hieroglyphs seem to be a logogram font such as Chinese. In contrast, pure picture-writings of the Naxi Dongba as the only function as a memory aid, that is, it is not every word written down. The first hieroglyphs were invented in the Nile Valley in the pre-dynastic period. According to the ancient Egyptian tradition Thoth, the god of wisdom, the hieroglyphs has created. The Egyptians therefore called " writing the words of God ."

In particular, a distinction is made:

• Egyptian hieroglyphs
• Cretan hieroglyphs
• Luwian hieroglyphs
• Mayan hieroglyphs
• Urartian hieroglyphs