The origin of the Greek alphabet dates to about 800 BCE, though there is disagreement on exactly when it was invented. The alphabet made possible a vast number of additional technologies dependent upon writing. The writing systems of most languages, such as English, are based on the Latin alphabet, which was derived from the Greek, and have 24â�∲6 characters. The Khmer alphabet, which represents Cambodian, has 74 characters. Today there are dozens of alphabets with no set characteristics. The administration of a large state required written records, and so in this period we see the rise of various writing systems, none of which were alphabetic, instead relying on ideograms and syllabaries. It also enabled the first empires, which date to about 4000 years ago. Farming enabled our species to feed many more mouths per acre and for ever-increasing numbers of us to settle in small areas. Before this revolution, we hunted and gathered in small bands requiring vast territories to sustain us. The agricultural revolution dates to about 12,000 years ago. Peek, CC BY 4.0 The AlphabetĪbout 300,000 years ago homo sapiens regularly used fireâ��one of our greatest technologies, enabling us to create many more technologies dependent upon it.
