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Hieroglyphs typical of the Graeco-Roman period

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Hieroglyph (Greek ἱερογλύφος "sacred carving") or hieroglyphics ( = τὰ ἱερογλυφικά [γράμματα]) may refer to:

• Egyptian hieroglyphs
• Cursive hieroglyphs
• Dongba script
• The rap group called Hieroglyphics
• more generally, a character of any logographic or partly logographic writing system.
• Cretan hieroglyphs
• Anatolian hieroglyphs
• Hieroglyphic Luwian
• Mayan hieroglyphs
• Olmec hieroglyphs
• Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writing
• a Chinese character

Origin

"Hieroglyphs" refer to the characters made by graphical figures, be it animals or objects. It can refer to the initial Chinese characters or the ancient Egyptian characters.^{citation needed}

The characters that are relatively old seem to be originated from Sumer or Elam in Mesopotamia^{citation needed}. The hieroglyphs that were originally used for recording agricultural products and handicrafts leaded birth of linear and cuneiform script. Those were widely used to Sumerians, Assyrians and Babylonians. 5000 years ago, Ancient Egyptians had started to use other Hieroglyphs in a separate way. The features that are visually well arranged about heavenly body, natural phenomena, animals and plants, God, human, residing and household were used for 3000 years for recording Egyptian. Ancient Greeks called this system as Hieroglyphs because it was mainly used by government officials for God. It is still remained that the papyrus and carved characters, which were used in Maya and Aztecan.

References

• Andrew Robinson (2007). Alphabets, Hieroglyphs and Pictograms, London: Thames & Hudson.
• Angelika Rauch (1997). The Hieroglyph of Tradition, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press.
• Douglas J (2007). Egypt and the Egyptians, UK: Cambridge University Press.
• Janice Kamrin (2004) Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A practical guide. New York, Abrams

• Character (sign)
• Sememe
• Hieroglyphica
• Writing in Ancient Egypt
• Bronze Age writing
• List of hieroglyphs

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