Written language in particular allows civilizations to record their own history and everyday events—crucial for understanding ancient cultures.
Written language in particular allows civilizations to record their own history and everyday events—crucial for understanding ancient cultures. The world's oldest known written language is Sumerian, which developed in Mesopotamia around 3100 B.C.E. The most familiar form of early Sumerian writing was called cuneiform, and was made up of different collections of wedge (triangle) shapes. The earliest Sumerian writing was record-keeping. Just like written records of modern civilizations, Sumerian cuneiform kept track of taxes, grocerybills, and laws for things like theft.