Egypt was the first nation-state ~ the ALPHABET was derived from Egyptian hieroglyphics which were themselves based on the Sumerian hieroglyphics system.
The Phoenicians who lived along the Mediterranean coast between Egypt proper and Anatolia (and who had colonies all over the place) are usually credited with FORMAL development of the alphabet because they broke the letters completely away from their underlying meanings assigned in the age of hieroglyphic dominance.
Modern people are sometimes misled into thinking an alphabet is an "obvious invention", but it's not. Even a syllabary like those used by the Mayans, Koreans, Japanese or Cherokee isn't "obvious".
Hieroglyphic systems derive directly from the image of objects or the process applied to them by a man, animal or nature (wind, lightning, light). All such systems, once devised, are quickly modified to include agreed upon "shortcuts" ~ the current Chinese character systems are very difficult to understand without substantial instruction (about 8 years worth), but some people can pick their way through them with limited experience.
The original Chinese characters ~ called the Shan Dynasty Characters ~ are petty close to the original idea and can be expressed quite well in Plains (or Sioux) Indian sign language ~ (proving 1 of 2 things ~ either the Chinese origins of much of Plains Indians culture, or maybe the Plains Indians figured out how to get to the Old World in ancient times and founded civilization)
Sumerian hieroglyphs became quite stylized thereby facilitating the use of the cunuiform wedge ~ which allowed records to be made on mud tablets.
All writing forms on Earth appear to derive in one way or the other from the original discoveries in Mesopotamia.
Regarding Judaism, Christianity and Islam ~ Judaism began among the predecessors to the Hebrews in Mesopotamia ~ Ur in fact. Guy who started it off was named Abram. At the same time the most ancient Mesopotamian texts date back to a time long before Abram (now known as Abraham) and include many religious concepts reflected in the quite later Hebrew materials.
Although Abram was clearly a Semitic-speaker, his "followers" who accompanied him were drawn from the broad masses of Mesopotamia, and that MUST include the descendants of the same folks who used to make an idol of a dwarf with a tall conical hat and long beard. He rode a reindeer ~ they made reindeer too. That same figure was known all across the broad expanse of Northern Asia as well for many thousands of years.
The Sami wore dunce caps?
Thanks for this post.
If you want to get a good picture of what those old household idols were about check out this book by Julian James called “The Origin of Consciousness in the breakdown of the Bicameral Mind”
Basically James fills in the blanks left by Nietzsche. Nietzche was famous for among other things saying that philosophy comes in when religion/theology breaks down. He said this was the case of classical 5th -3rd century bc greeks.
But having said that, Nietzsche did go into more detail. What precisely came before—and why did it break down.
For one thing. He didn’t have the data.
James does.
For a really eye opening read —check out
http://www.amazon.com/Origin-Consciousness-Breakdown-Bicameral-Mind/dp/0618057072
Well, no.
It is debated whether the Chinese system had any input from the Middle East. There seems to be no direct descent, but it is possible the idea of writing made its way across Asia, but the Chinese writing goes WAY back, 4000 to 6000 years, so far that it is doubtful there was any connection across such a huge distance. Also the very ideas behind Chinese writing are completely different from those of Asia further west. More likely a completely independent invention.
It is almost certain the Meso-American writing systems of the Maya, Olmec, etc. were invented independently, and the textile-based quipu record-keeping of the Andean civilizations may just possibly have qualified as true "writing" if we could figure it out. If so, it would be a 4th independent invention of writing.