In the middle of the second and first millennium BC
In the middle of the second and first millennium BC, on a narrow strip of land located between the Mediterranean Sea and the mountains of present-day Lebanon, the Phoenician civilization developed. Its territory had fertile cultivated fields, but in insufficient quantities to maintain a growing population. That's why they dedicated themselves to trade in the Mediterranean Sea. Phoenicians needed to record, in a simpler and more practical way, the orders, purchases and sales they made. Therefore, they simplified the writings of the Egyptians and Sumerians by inventing a revolutionary system of alphabetic writing, made up of 22 very simple signs, each of which represented a sound. Phoenician alphabetical writing gave rise to the Greek, Hebrew, Latin and Arabic alphabets. Writing evolved using different supports such as papyrus (Egyptians), stone (Phoenicians), parchment (Middle Ages), even paper and digital media (electronic mail/cell phone)... Did you know?