Contents; Abbreviations; 1 Introduction; 2 The Syllabaries; 3 Syllable-Dependent Approaches; 4 Non-Syllable-Dependent Approaches; 5 The Hierarchy of Orthographic Strength; 6 The Alphabet; 7 Cyprus and Beyond; 8 Conclusions; Phonetic Glossary; Symbols; References; Index
Summary
Greek Writing from Knossos to Homer examines the origin of the Greek alphabet. Departing from previous accounts, Roger Woodard places the advent of the alphabet within an unbroken continuum of Greek literacy beginning in the Mycenean era. He argues that the creators of the Greek alphabet, who adapted the Phoenician consonantal script, were scribes accustomed to writing Greek with the syllabic script of Cyprus. Certain characteristic features of the Cypriot script--for example, its strategy for representing consonant sequences and elements of Cypriot Greek phonology--were transferred to the new
