Alphabets and Brains
I learned today that languages with alphabets that contain vowels read from left to write and languages that don't have them read from right to left.*
This is highly significant.
Languages that don't use vowels require you to 'get the gist' of an entire sentence to be able to read the words, context and holistic thinking is everything here. They trigger the right brain into activity.
Ancient Greek was the first left to right language and it's appearance coincided with the development of pure science in that up until then all science had had entirely practical applications. Science existed for the creation of solutions to tangible problems It wasn't abstract or for its own sake.
I suspect that before the development of linear (rather than contextual) language, all the 'big questions' like "Why are we here?" will have lead to holistic, possibly even mystical answers.
The development of linear, analytical thinking lead to answers based on that linear, analytical thinking; science as we know it today.
Soon after the development of the Greek language, Christianity began to spread. Although the religion came from regions where vowelless languages were prevalent, the Bible was written in the new Greek language (Ancient Greek to us). As a result of using analytical language to write religious thought, Europe (where Christianity became most popular quickest) developed believing that religion and science were the same.
Fascinatingly though, if using a language that reads from left to right we develop more analytical brains, and if from right to left, more creative, holistic, community-thinking type brains.
My next question is, what difference will this make to the type of society we develop?
And my sense of humour asks, was it an Ancient Geek using Ancient Greek who invented science?
* Chinese is structured totally differently and goes down the page, it has completely different rules.
