Language is a method of communication employed to enhance an existing uniformity. Language was portrayed in the centuries past as symbols and shorthand than the conventional wording system we have today. With Africa being inferred as the bedrock of global civilization, here are Africa’s most ancient languages that influenced our languages today.
Ancient Meroitic
Native to the kingdom of Kush or modern-day Sudan, ancient Meroitic was used from 300 BCE to 400 CE. Additionally, it was spoken in Meroe during the Meroitic period.
Tifinagh
Also written as Tifinay, is an abjad script used for writing Berber languages derived from the Maghreb, Sahara, and Sahel regions. Neo-Tifinagh; the updated version of Tifinagh, is now used for trading and educational purposes.
Nsibidi
Nsibidi is also referred to as nsibiri, nchibiddi, and nchibiddy. It was formed in what is now known as Southeastern Nigeria. It was used from 400 to 1400 CE. It featured thousands of symbols in which there is a record of 500.
Ancient Egyptian
Egyptian hieroglyphics is one the most prevalent and ancient languages known. Its use has been dated back to the 3200 B.C. It included 1,000 unique characters combined by logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic components. It was considered proto-writing as it was meant to convey meaning using a limited amount of information. Its last widespread use was recorded to be in AD 400, though it is still used in the liturgical language in the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria and the Coptic Catholic Church of Alexandria.
Old Nubian
Old Nubian was spoken during the 8th century up until the 15th century in Sudan and Egypt. It was used by the Noba nomads and Makorae nomads. It is an uncial alternative to the Greek alphabet. Uncial is the usage of strictly capital letters.
Ge’ez
Formulated in Eritrea and Ethiopia during the 8th and 9th centuries, Ge’ez is a Semitic language also known as Ethiopic. It is now used only as the main language used in the liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the Ethiopian Catholic Church, the Eritrean Catholic Church, and the Beta Israel Jewish community.
