Alphabet

An alphabet is a writing system that uses a standard set of symbols called graphemes, more commonly known as letters, to more or less represent particular sounds in a spoken language, the graphemes largely corresponding to phonemes. The cited article contrasts it with a syllabary, which assigns symbols to spoken syllables, and with logographies, which assign symbols to words, morphemes or other semantic units. It says the Phoenician system is considered the first true alphabet and the ultimate ancestor of many modern scripts, including Arabic, Cyrillic, Greek, Hebrew, Latin and possibly Brahmic, and that Peter T. Daniels distinguishes true alphabets, which use letters for both consonants and vowels, from abugidas and abjads, which only need letters for consonants. Scripts the atlas records as alphabets are grouped under this entry.