alphabetical

[ˌælfəˈbɛɾɪkəl]

From Latin alphabēticus + -al. By surface analysis, alphabet + -ical.

Paul, who talks about what the magical papyri do, has in his first letter to the Corinthians described basic aspects of alphabetical language.

1986, Arthur Hilary Armstrong, A. A. Armstrong, Classical Mediterranean Spirituality: Egyptian, Greek, Roman, page 486:

Pertaining to, furnished with, or expressed by letters of the alphabet.

All names were placed into an alphabetical list.

According to the sequence of the letters of the alphabet.

أَلِفْبَائِيّ

in the sequence of the letters of the alphabet


alphabetical

[ˌælfəˈbɛɾɪkəl]

We used to publish two, or sometimes three, alphabeticals a year and I am proposing to resume the same sort of frequency.

2015 March 13, Hugh Stephenson, “A to Z”, in The Guardian:

alphabetical jigsaw
alphabetical jigsaw#English

(crosswording) Ellipsis of alphabetical jigsaw.


alphabet

From Middle English alphabete, borrowed from Classical Latin alphabētum, from Ancient Greek ἀλφάβητος (alphábētos), from ἄλφα (álpha) and βῆτα (bêta), the names of the first two letters of the Greek alphabet, Α (A) and Β (B), lowercase forms α and β. The Greek names derived from aleph, the name of the Phoenician letter 𐤀 (ʾ, “ox”) and beth, the name of the letter 𐤁 (b, “house”), so called because they were pictograms of those objects, having developed from the Egyptian hieroglyphs F1 (𓃾) and pr (𓉐).
 Doublet of alfabeto.

The Greek alphabet has only twenty-four letters.

In the first year of school, pupils are taught to recite the alphabet.

The set of letters used when writing in a language.

алфавит

an ordered set of letters used in a language

A writing system in which letters represent phonemes. (Contrast e.g. logography, a writing system in which each character represents a word, and syllabary, in which each character represents a syllable.)

A writing system in which there are letters for the consonant and vowel phonemes. (Contrast e.g. abjad.)

We realize the fact that the alphabet A has been used in many world scripts as a vowel with the others AEIOU.

2002, Eugene E. Dike, African myth of creation in African form of writing, Monsenstein und Vannerdat, →ISBN, page 30:

There are 26 alphabets in English.

2005, Satinder Bal Gupta, Comprehensive Discrete Mathematics & Structures, Laxmi Publications, page 237:

Tamil got 247 alphabets you know. Got two R-eh, got three L, got two N you know.

2007, Elangovan, P, Singapore, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 83:

(India, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia) An individual letter of an alphabet; an alphabetic character.

The very alphabet of our law.

1828, Thomas Babington Macaulay, “The Constitutional History of England: From the Accession of Henry VII, to the Death of George II, by Henry Hallam”, in The Edinburgh Review, volume 18:

(Internet slang, politics) An agent of the FBI, the CIA, or another such government agency.


Greek

en-noun

Greek (countable and uncountable, plural Greeks)

Greeks (plural)
Gr. (alternative abbreviation)
Greeke (alternative obsolete)

Inherited from Old English Grēcas (“Greeks”), variant of Crēcas, from Proto-West Germanic *Krēkō, from Latin Graecus of uncertain origin, perhaps derived from the toponym Γραῖα (Graîa) or from other Paleo-Balkanic forms from a tribal name Graii.
Greek in any case has the cognate Γραικός (Graikós), the mythological ancestor of the Γραίοι (Graíoi, “Graecians”). Germanic cognates include Dutch Griek, German Grieche. The ⟨g⟩ in English and Germanic cognates was restored under influence from French grec and classical Latin Graecus. The adjective dates to 14th-century Middle English, replacing Old English Grēċisċ (“Greekish”) and earlier Middle English Gregeis. In reference to fraternities and sororities, a clipping of earlier Greek-letter in reference to their usual names being initialisms of mottos in the Greek language. In reference to terms used to analysize financial derivatives, from their usual names consisting of Greek letters.

inh+

(finance, chiefly in the plural) One of the Greeks, measures of derivative price sensitivity.


Hebrew

en-noun

Hebrew (countable and uncountable, plural Hebrews)

Hebrews (plural)
Ebrew (alternative obsolete)

From Middle English Ebreu, from Old French Ebreu, from Latin hebraeus or hebraicus, from Ancient Greek Ἑβραῖος (Hebraîos), from Aramaic עִבְרַי (ʿiḇray), from Hebrew עִבְרִי (ʿiḇrī́).

der

Hebrew עִבְרִי (ʿiḇrī́)

(uncountable) The writing system used in Hebrew language.


Arabic

General American, Canada, Mary–marry–merry merger

From Latin arabicus, from Arabia + -icus, from Ancient Greek Ἀραβία (Arabía), ultimately from the Arabic عَرَب (ʕarab).

Arabical (alternative archaic)
Arabick (alternative obsolete)

The Aramaic-derived alphabet used to write the Arabic, Persian, Pashto, Urdu, and Uyghur languages, among others.

ғәрәп яҙыуы

ğərəp yaźıwı


International Phonetic Alphabet

the International Phonetic Alphabet (canonical)

/ˌɪntəˈnæʃ(ə)nəl fəˈnɛtɪk ˈælfəˌbɛt/

[ˌɪntəˈnæʃ(ə)nəɫ fəˈnɛtɪk ˈæɫfəˌbɛt]

[ˌɪntɚˈnæʃ(ə)n(ə)ɫ fəˈnɛtɪk ˈæɫfəˌbɛt]

The International Phonetic Alphabet is commonly used in books about Shanghainese because none of the existing romanizations are very popular.

(phonetics, phonology) A standardized set of symbols for representing the sounds of human speech.

اَلْأَبْجَدِيَّة الصَّوْتِيَّة الدُّوَلِيَّة

الْأَلِفْبَائِيَّة الصَّوْتِيَّة الدُّوَلِيَّة

халкьуннал дянивсса фонетикалул алфавит

xalqʼunnal daˤniws:a fonetikalul alfawit

אינטערנאַציאָנאַלער פֿאָנעטישער אַלפֿאַבעט


Armenian

Of, from, or pertaining to Armenia, the Armenian people, the Armenian language, or the Armenian alphabet.

аерман

of, from, or pertaining to Armenia, Armenians, the language or alphabet


Armenian

(uncountable) The language of Armenia and the Armenian people, whose older stages are Old Armenian and Middle Armenian.

(uncountable) A branch of Indo-European languages, which includes the various stages of the Armenian language.


Georgian

/ˈd͡ʒɔːd͡ʒən/

/ˈd͡ʒɔɹd͡ʒən/

/ˈd͡ʒɔʊ.d͡ʒən/

/ˈd͡ʒoːd͡ʒən/

United States of America
United States of America

A native or resident of the state of Georgia in the United States of America.

Iberian

native or resident of the Eurasian country of Georgia

goober

native or resident of the US state of Georgia


Gothic

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-gothic.wav

From Late Latin gothicus (“Gothic, barbaric”), from Ancient Greek Γοτθικός (Gotthikós), from Ancient Greek Γότθοι (Gótthoi, “Goths”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”), proposed to derive from unattested Gothic *𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌰 (*guta). Equivalent to Goth + -ic. The various usages of the adjective are introduced nearly simultaneously in the first half of the 17th century. The literal meaning “of the Goths” is found in the 1611 preface of the King James Bible, in reference to the Gothicke tongue. The generalized meaning of “Germanic, Teutonic” appears in the 1640s. Reference to the medieval period in Western Europe, and specifically the architecture of that period (“barbaric style”, initially a term of abuse), also appears in the 1640s, as does reference to “Gothic characters” or “Gothic letters” in typography.

gothic (alternative)
Gothick (alternative obsolete)
goffick (alternative)

An extinct Germanic language, once spoken by the Goths.


Gothic

en-adj

Gothic (comparative more Gothic, superlative most Gothic)

more Gothic (comparative)
most Gothic (superlative)
gothic (alternative)
Gothick (alternative obsolete)
goffick (alternative)

готически

of the type formerly used for printing German

Gothic tales

Shelley's two early novels Zastrozzi and St. Irvyne are, as many scholars have noted, obviously connected to the tradition of the Gothic novel; as well, two volumes of early poetry contain Gothic elements and his tragedy The Cenci has been […]

1975, John V. Murphy, The Dark Angel: Gothic Elements in Shelley's Works, Bucknell University Press, →ISBN, page 9:

(literature) Of or relating to the style of fictional writing associated with Gothic fiction, emphasizing violent or macabre events in a mysterious, desolate setting.

готически

of or relating to a style of fictional writing

Gothic letters

black letter
black letter#English:_typography

(typography, England) Synonym of black letter.


Gothic

Gothics (plural)
gothic (alternative)
Gothick (alternative obsolete)
goffick (alternative)

One hundred fifty Gothics sold over 1.5 million copies a month last spring.

1996, Nora Sayre, Sixties going on seventies, page 180:


Glagolitic alphabet

(linguistics) The Glagolitic writing system, the oldest known Slavonic alphabet.


Aramaic

/ˌæ.ɹəˈmeɪ.ɪk/

/ˌæɹ.əˈmeɪ.ɪk/

/ˌɛɹ.əˈmeɪ.ɪk/

From Latin Aramaeī (“Aramaeans; people of Aram”) + -ic, the root from Ancient Greek Ἀραμαῖοι (Aramaîoi), from Aramaic ܐܪܡܝܐ / אָרָמָיָא (ʾārāmāyā), from Aramaic ארם, ܐܪܡ (ʾarām).

der

ܐܪܡܝܐ / אָרָמָיָא

Aramaic ܐܪܡܝܐ / אָרָמָיָא (ʾārāmāyā)

ܐܪܡܝܐ

ʾārāmāyā, ʾărammāyā

A subfamily of languages in the Northwest Semitic language group, including, but not limited to:

The liturgical language of various Christian churches: often called Syriac.

The liturgical language of the Mandaeans: usually called Mandaic.


Aramaic

/ˌæ.ɹəˈmeɪ.ɪk/

/ˌæɹ.əˈmeɪ.ɪk/

/ˌɛɹ.əˈmeɪ.ɪk/

ܐܪܡܝܐ / אָרָמָיָא

Aramaic ܐܪܡܝܐ / אָרָמָיָא (ʾārāmāyā)

Referring to the Aramaic language, alphabet, culture or poetry.

آرَامِيّ

pertaining to the language, alphabet, culture or poetry


Ogham

Borrowed from Irish ogham, from Middle Irish ogam, from Proto-Celtic *ogmos (“furrow, path”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂óǵmos.
The Irish word is frequently folk-etymologized as og-úaim, referring to ogham being supposedly made by the point of a sharp weapon, but this approach faces serious phonological and morphological problems in that:
* The name of ogham and the supposed second element (úaimm (“seam”)?) inflected very differently in Early Irish, "ogham" being an o-stem and the second element being a neuter n-stem.
* Middle Irish ogmóir (“skilled in ogham”) should have a vowel in between the g and m because vowels lengthened by compensatory lengthening after consonant loss are usually not syncopated in Early Irish.

m+

The rectangular sandstone rock that Graham Senior had discovered was inscribed in ogham, an alphabet used in the early medieval period primarily for writing in the Irish language.

2024 May 8, Dalya Alberge, “Teacher finds stone with ancient ogham writing from Ireland in Coventry garden”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

An ancient Celtic alphabet historically used to write Primitive Irish.


Ogham

Oghams (plural)
ogham (alternative)
ogam (alternative)


Runic

From rune + -ic, because such languages were written using runes.

So likewise a day comes when the Runic Thor, with his Eddas, must withdraw into dimness; and many an African Mumbo-Jumbo and Indian Pawpaw be utterly abolished.

1831, Thomas Carlyle, “Symbols”, in Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh. […], London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, 3rd book, page 155:

(nonstandard, lax) Any of the ancient Germanic languages which were written using runes.


Cyrillic

Cyrillic script
Saints Cyril and Methodius

From the name Cyril + -ic, from Medieval Latin Cȳrillus, from Ancient Greek Κῡ́ρῐλλος (Kū́rĭllos), denoting Saint Cyril, who devised a predecessor to the Cyrillic script, the Glagolitic alphabet, and whose students later devised the Cyrillic script itself.

Old Church Slavonic
Old Church Slavonic#English

Denoting an alphabet devised for writing the Old Church Slavonic liturgical language, and its adaptations used for several languages of Eastern Europe and Asia; of or relating to this writing system.


Cyrillic

Russian is typically written in Cyrillic.

The Cyrillic alphabet or writing system.


ICAO spelling alphabet

Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu.

The ICAO radiotelephony spelling alphabet of the International Civil Aviation Organization. This alphabet assigns names to letters of the alphabet for clearer enunciation (and for the same reason pronounces the numeral 9 as "niner"):


phonetic alphabet

en-noun

phonetic alphabet (plural phonetic alphabets)

International Phonetic Alphabet

A writing system used to unambiguously transcribe the sounds of human speech.


Latin alphabet

A a, B b, C c, D d, E e, F f, G g, H h, I i, J j, K k, L l, M m, N n, O o, P p, Q q, R r, S s, T t, U u, V v, W w, X x, Y y, Z z

The 26-letter alphabet consisting of the following letters (presented in majuscule and minuscule pairs):

Any relatively minor variation of the 26-letter Latin alphabet.


Latinize

en-verb

Latinize (third-person singular simple present Latinizes, present participle Latinizing, simple past and past participle Latinized)

Latinizes (present singular third-person)
Latinizing (participle present)
Latinized (participle past)
Latinized (past)
Latinise (alternative)
latinize (alternative nonstandard)

From Latin latīnizō. By surface analysis, Latin + -ize.

Guglielmus is a Latinized form of William.

(transitive) To translate something into the Latin language; or make a word similar in appearance or form to a Latin word.

latinalaistaa

to make a word similar in appearance or form to a Latin word

The Cyrillic letter Л can be Latinized as L.

(transitive) To transliterate something into the characters of the Latin script; to Romanize

to Latinize the Church of England

(transitive) To render or become Roman Catholic in form or style or to diffuse Roman Catholic ideas in something.


alphabetically

en-adv

alphabetically (comparative more alphabetically, superlative most alphabetically)

more alphabetically (comparative)
most alphabetically (superlative)

(sequence) Arranged in the order of the alphabet.

أَبْجَدِيًّا

arranged in the sequence of the alphabet


Latin

Jamaican Creole: Latn

From Middle English Latyn, Latyne, Latin, from Old French latin, latyn, from Latin latīnus, from Latium (“the region around Rome”) + -īnus (adjective suffix). Displaced or merged with Old English Lǣden. Doublet of Ladino.

The Serbo-Croatian incunabula printed in Latin letters are indubitably the products of a very modest establishment.

1968, Mladen Bošnjak, A Study of Slavic Incunabula, page 62:

Of or relating to the script of the language spoken in ancient Rome and many modern alphabets.


Latin

en-proper noun

Latin (countable and uncountable, plural Latins)

From Middle English Latin, Latyn, from Old English Lǣden, from Vulgar Latin *ladinum (“Latin”) and Old French latin (“Latin”); all from Latin Latinus (“belonging to Latium”). Later influenced in form by the Latin word. Compare Dutch Latijn (“Latin”), German Latein (“Latin”), Swedish Latin (“Latin”).


Samaritan

/səˈmæɹɪtən/

/səˈmɛɹɪtən/

From Latin Samarītānus, from Ancient Greek Σαμαρείτης (Samareítēs), from Σαμαρεία (Samareía, “Samaria”), derived from Biblical Hebrew שֹׁמְרוֹנִים (Šōmərôním) and שֹׁמְרוֹן (Šōmərôn) respectively. Attested in Old English.

Many of these despised people built a rival temple on Mount Gerizim in the central Palestinian territory known as Samaria, and hence they were called Samaritans (a word of contempt to Jews); in very reduced numbers, they still live round their sacred mountain now.

2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin, published 2010, page 62:

A native, or inhabitant of Samaria; especially one practising certain ethnoreligious traditions indigenous to that region.

A charitable person, one who helps others (from the Bible story in Luke 10:30–37).

(UK) A person who works for the Samaritans telephone helpline, taking calls from suicidal members of the public.


Samaritan

/səˈmæɹɪtən/

/səˈmɛɹɪtən/

Of, or relating to Samaria or Samaritans.

samarità

of or relating to Samaria or the Samaritans


Samaritan

/səˈmæɹɪtən/

/səˈmɛɹɪtən/

The ancient language of Samaria: a dialect of Hebrew.


NATO phonetic alphabet

ICAO spelling alphabet
ICAO spelling alphabet


Phoenician

Phoenicians (plural)
Phœnician (alternative obsolete)

Attested as a noun in Middle English as phenicienes (only plural); from Ancient Greek Φοῖνιξ (Phoînix, “Phoenician”).

der

Wiktionary’s coverage of Phoenician terms and Phoenician script

The ancient civilisation of Phoenicia, and its empire

2007 28 July–3 August, "Phoenix: Into the ashes: A city that once won prizes is now a crime-ridden mess", in The Economist, The Economist Newspaper Ltd, ISSN 0013-0613, volume 384, number 8539, page 33,
Locals also moan that Phoenicians are becoming more antisocial.


Devanagari

/ˌdeɪvəˈnɑːɡ(ə)ɹɪ/

/ˌdɛvəˈnɑːɡ(ə)ɹɪ/

/ˌdeɪvəˈnɑɡəɹi/

Borrowed from Sanskrit देवनागरी (devanāgarī), compound of देव (deva, “deity, divine”) + नगर (nagara, “town, city”).

bor+

The etymologies gave words from Hindustani in the Devanagari script accompanied by transliterations in parentheses.

2018, James Lambert, “Anglo-Indian slang in dictionaries on historical principles”, in World Englishes, volume 37, page 251:

Of the Devanagari script or of a Devanagari alphabet.


Devanagari

/ˌdeɪvəˈnɑːɡ(ə)ɹɪ/

/ˌdɛvəˈnɑːɡ(ə)ɹɪ/

/ˌdeɪvəˈnɑɡəɹi/

An abugida script used to write many languages originating in India and Nepal, including Sanskrit, Hindi, Marathi, Kashmiri, Sindhi, Maithili, Bhili, Konkani, Bhojpuri, and Nepali.


Glagolitic

/ˌɡlæɡəʊˈlɪtɪk/

/ˌɡlæɡəˈlɪtɪk/

Learned borrowing from New Latin glagoliticus, from Old Church Slavonic глаголица (glagolica), from глаголъ (glagolŭ, “word, speech”), Glagolitic spelling ⰳⰾⰰⰳⱁⰾⰻⱌⰰ (glagolica).

der

The Slavic, and Illyric language has two alphabets. The first is called Glagolitic…, and in our times, is only used in the sacred books.

1778, Alberto Fortis, Travels Into Dalmatia: Containing General Observations on the Natural History of that Country and the Neighboring Islands; the Natural Productions, Arts, Manners and Customs of the Inhabitants, page 401:

Of or written with the Glagolitic alphabet.

glagolític

of or pertaining to the Glagolitic alphabet


Lycian

An extinct Indo-European language in the Anatolian group.


Greek alphabet

Α α, Β β, Γ γ, Δ δ, Ε ε, Ζ ζ, Η η, Θ θ, Ι ι, Κ κ, Λ λ, Μ μ, Ν ν, Ξ ξ, Ο ο, Π π, Ρ ρ, Σ σ ς, Τ τ, Υ υ, Φ φ, Χ χ, Ψ ψ, Ω ω

The 24-letter alphabet of the Greek language, first adopted by Athens in 403 BC and now consisting of the following upper- (majuscule) and lower-case (minuscule) pairs:

Wiktionary:Greek transliteration and Ancient Greek romanization and pronunciation


Deseret

From the Book of Mormon, in which the word is said to mean honey bee in the language of the Jaredites.

A script, invented in Utah, conceived of as a radical reform and replacement of the Latin script, intended for writing English phonetically. Example: the word seven in Deseret is 𐑅𐐯𐑂𐐮𐑌.


hornbook

Yes, yes, he teaches boyes the Horne-Booke: […]

c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Loues Labour’s Lost”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i], page 136:

HO′RNBOOK. n.ʃ. [horn and book] The firſt book of children, covered vvith horn to keep it unſoiled.

[1755 April 15, Samuel Johnson, “HO′RNBOOK”, in A Dictionary of the English Language: […], volume I (A–K), London: […] J[ohn] and P[aul] Knapton; […], →OCLC, column 1:

By way of the hornbook Shakespeare would have learned to read, […]

1913, Katharine Lee Bates, Lilla Weed, Shakespeare: Selective Bibliography and Biographical Notes, page 41:

Infants learned their letters from a hornbook, a square of wood shaped like a table-tennis bat on which were pasted the alphabet, syllables and the Lord's Prayer […]

1999, Nigel Wheale, Writing and Society: Literacy, Print, and Politics in Britain, 1590-1660, page 43:

The hornbook is the first piece of instructional material specifically mentioned in American records.

2002, Nila Banton Smith, American Reading Instruction, page 14:

Not only is it difficult to extract just the right doozy of an adjective out of the hornbook, but the maneuver can be performed at most twice in the course of an article or chapter.

2008, Ben Yagoda, When You Catch an Adjective, Kill It, Crown, →ISBN, page 30:

(historical) A single page containing the alphabet, covered with a sheet of transparent horn, formerly used for teaching children to read.


Elbasan

Borrowed from Albanian Elbasan, itself likely from Ottoman Turkish ايلبصان.

A mid 18th-century alphabet created for the Albanian language Elbasan Gospel Manuscript.


battledore

battledores (plural)
battledoor (alternative)

[ˈbæɾɫ̩ˌdoɹ]

From Middle English batildore, batylledore, batildure, batyldoure, batyndore, probably as a blend of Middle English betel (“bat, club”) and Old Occitan batedor (“beater, bat”).

battledore and shuttlecock
battledore and shuttlecock

A game played with a shuttlecock and rackets (properly battledore and shuttlecock); a forerunner of badminton.

Seven or eight of them, standing in a circle, were engaged in a game of shittlecock. They had in their hands no battledores. They did not employ the hand or arm, any way, in striking it. But, after taking a short race, and springing from the floor, they met the descending shittlecock with the sole of the foot, and drove it up again, with force, high into the air.

1797, George Staunton, “Cochin-china”, in An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China; […] In Two Volumes, […], volume I, London: […] G[eorge] Nicol, […], →OCLC, page 339:

There were nights when it seemed to me that our position could be stormed by twenty Boy Scouts armed with airguns, or twenty Girl Guides armed with battledores, for that matter.

1938 April, George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], chapter III, in Homage to Catalonia, London: Secker & Warburg, →OCLC:

You will also pardon the errors of the Work, for you know I was not bred to letters; but, that the battledore, at an age not exceeding six, was the last book I used at school.

1802, William Hutton, The History of the Roman Wall, preface:

(obsolete) A child's hornbook for learning the alphabet.

There is a large basin near the fountain, where numbers of women may be seen every day, kneeling at the edge of the water, and beating the clothes with heavy pieces of wood in the shape of battledores.

1563, John Foxe, chapter 21, in The Book of Martyrs:

The laundry process of the time [1665] consisted of boiling textiles with lye or soap and then beating them with a battledore, a rustic version of a cricket bat.

2018 October 25, Matthew Taub, “Why England Once Forced Everyone to Be Buried in Wool”, in Atlas Obscura:

(historical) A wooden paddle-shaped bat or beetle used to wash clothes by beating, stirring, or smoothing them.


futhark

futharks (plural)
futharc (alternative)
Futharc (alternative)
Futhark (alternative)
fuþark (alternative)
Fuþark (alternative)

From the first six letters of the runic alphabet, ᚠ (“f”), ᚢ (“u”), ᚦ (“þ”), ᚨ (“a”), ᚱ (“r”), ᚲ (“k”).

The Germanic runic alphabet; especially specifically the Elder or Younger futhark alphabet (of Scandinavia and the European mainland), as contrasted with the Anglo-Saxon futhorc.


Coptic

Of or pertaining to the Copts, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria or to the Coptic language.

kopt

of or pertaining to the Copts, Coptic Orthodox Church or to the Coptic language

ⲣⲉⲙⲛⲭⲏⲙⲓ m (remǹkhēmi, literally “Man of Egypt”) (bohairic)


Coptic

The Afroasiatic language traditionally spoken by the Copts in Egypt, now extinct and used only as a liturgical language.


Ugaritic

From Ugarit + -ic, via a Semitic medium from Sumerian 𒀀𒃼 (a-gar₃ /agar/, “arable land”).

uder

The Northwest Semitic language of the ancient city of Ugarit in Syria. Extinct since 1100 B.C.E., it was written in cuneiform.


Latin script

en-noun

Latin script (countable and uncountable, plural Latin scripts)

This comes to us from the writing tradition of two Slavic languages which normally use the Latin script—namely, Polish and Czech.

1880, John Michels, “Science”, in American Association for the Advancement of Science, page 485:

In 1924 the Soviets held a Conference at Baku to consider this question, and it was decided there to adopt the Latin script for the various Tartar languages of central Asia.

1942, Jawaharlal Nehru, Glimpses of world history; being further letters to his daughter, written in prison, and containing a rambling account of history for young people, The John Day Company, page 710:

Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan have adopted Latin script, whereas Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan intend to use the Cyrillic alphabet.

2001, Marie Smyth, Gillian Robinson, INCORE, Researching Violently Divided Societies: Ethical and Methodological Issues, United Nations Univ. Press, page 139

Currently the dominance of Internet-based tools and interfaces that accommodate only Latin scripts limits content diversity, the development of local content, and intercultural exchange and collaboration.

2004, Bonilla, Marcelo, International Development Research Centre (Canada), Internet and Society in Latin America and the Caribbean, page 424

(more precisely) The script (set of symbols) rooted in the Latin alphabet of ancient Rome and adapted over the centuries to form the alphabets of scores of other languages; like Cyrillic script, it corresponds to a family of alphabets rather than a single alphabet.


analphabet

analphabets (plural)
analphabete (alternative)

From Late Latin analphabetus (“unable to read and write; illiterate”), from Ancient Greek ἀναλφάβητος (analphábētos, “illiterate”), from ἀν- (an-, “un-”) + ἀλφάβητος (alphábētos, “alphabet”); analysable as an- + alphabet. The English word was probably influenced by cognate words in other languages such as French analphabète (adjective), German Analphabetus, Analphabet (nouns), analphabeten (adjective), Italian analfabeta (adjective, noun), analfabeto (adjective, noun), Portuguese analfabeto (adjective, noun), Spanish analfabeto (adjective, noun).
The adjective was derived from the noun.

der

In 1861, out of a total population of 21,777,331, there were no less than 16,999,701 "analphabetes," or persons absolutely unable to read.

1896, J[ohn] M[orrison] Reid, J. T. Gracey, “Part XI. Mission to Italy.”, in Missions and the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church […] In Three Volumes, volume III, New York, N.Y.: Hunt & Eaton; Cincinnati, Oh.: Cranston & Curts, section 7 (Annual Conferences, 1886–1887), page 327:

The governor of a distant province receives a telegram from the Ministry asking how many analphabets (illiterates) there are in his area. Neither he nor his colleagues know what an analphabet is, but as anarchism also begins with 'an' they guess that an analphabet must be a dangerous enemy of the state, and report that they have only one—the schoolmaster.

1960, Opera, volume 11, London: Rolls House Publishing Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 281:

The Beckettian progression appears occasionally: while Miss Counihan (static) is an omnivorous reader and Murphy (transitional) a strict non-reader, Cooper is an analphabete.

1968, Robert [Ligon] Harrison, Samuel Beckett’s Murphy: A Critical Excursion (University of Georgia Monographs; no. 15), Athens, Ga.: University of Georgia Press, →OCLC, page 57:

As to [Paulo] Freire's methods, we should keep in mind that they were primarily developed to teach adult analphabets their own language, as a part of a 'conscientization' process.

1985, Jacob L[ouis] Mey, “Language Manipulation”, in Whose Language?: A Study in Linguistic Pragmatics, Amsterdam, Philadelphia, Pa.: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN, section 1.3 (Concluding Remarks), paragraph 66, page 84:

The porter was an analphabete, but together / we found your name, down among the Os, / and there you were, my brave love, / in a loose hospital gown that covered nothing; […]

1986, Michael Hofmann, “From A to B and Back Again”, in Frank Ormsby, Robert Johnstone, editors, The Honest Ulsterman, number 82, Belfast: Michael Stephens, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 16; reprinted in Mark Ford, editor, London: A History in Verse, Cambridge, Mass., London: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2012, →ISBN, page 704:

(1) What is the impact of not learning written language on the aphasic semeiology of an analphabet? (2) How do physiological mechanisms relate to the production of language in an analphabet? (3) What relationships, if any, can be discerned between an adult analphabet and the aphasia of a child before learning how to write.

1989, David Yau-Fai Ho, John A. Spinks, Cecilia Siu-Hing Yeung, editors, Chinese Patterns of Behavior: A Sourcebook of Psychological and Psychiatric Studies, New York, N.Y., London: Praeger, →ISBN, page 380, column 2:

A person who does not know the letters of the alphabet; a partly or wholly illiterate person.

analfabet

person who does not know the letters of the alphabet — see also illiterate


analphabet

en-adj

analphabet (comparative more analphabet, superlative most analphabet)

more analphabet (comparative)
most analphabet (superlative)

[…] Vincentius Pinelli’s Books, which after his death, being ſhipped by his Heirs for Naples, and taken by the Turks, were many of them thrown overboard by thoſe Analphabet Rogues, who looked for other merchandiſe than Books. Yet many of them were recovered again for Money, […]

1686, Richard Lassels, “The Description and Voyage of Italy”, in The Voyage of Italy: Or, A Compleat Journey through Italy. In Two Parts. […], London: Printed for R. C. J. R. and A. C. and are to be sold by Charles Shortgrave […], →OCLC, part I, page 81:

And of the Mohammedan population nearly all the women are analphabet.

1908, John P[rice] Jones, “Islam in India”, in India: Its Life and Thought, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC, section III (What is the Character of the Mohammedan Population in India?), page 329:

All these love tales are in verse, transmitted up to this day, through countless generations of oral tradition by an analphabete people with an inborn, unerring sense of art.

1965, Commonweal, volume 82, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 325, column 1:

The illustrious bookstore has nothing for helping analphabets. The sales assistant looks like a pontificating doctor, and informs Édith that there is a difference between analphabet and illiterate: […] The two encyclopedias Édith and Gilles have at home do not make any distinction between illiterate and analphabet.

2013, Laurence Cossé, chapter 2, in Alison Anderson, transl., Bitter Almonds, New York, N.Y.: Europa Editions, →ISBN:

To present myself, I gave the contractor my business card. He gave it twenty seconds of concentrated attention and then passed it to his secretary. The contractor joked that his secretary would give it the high level of attention it deserved. He was analphabet. I could have confused the package with the product and rapidly concluded that I had nothing to expect for our business from an analphabet contractor and gently blow up the meeting. I didn't.

2016 April 7, Thami J. Khalil, Faith, Growth and Success, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN:

Ignorant of the letters of the alphabet; partly or wholly illiterate.


Proto-Canaanite alphabet

An abjad of twenty-plus acrophonic glyphs, found in Levantine texts of the Late Bronze Age (from ca. the 15th century B.C.E.), by convention taken to last until a cut-off date of 1050 B.C.E., after which it is called Phoenician.


aett

aettir (plural)
aetts (plural)
ætt (alternative)

1984 Fortune -Telling By Runes, David & Julia Line, The Aquarian Press, →ISBN page 15.
Known as aettir, these basic divisions were sometimes named after Norse deities: Freya's eight, Hagal's eight and Tiu's eight.

1993 The Elements of The Runes, Bernard King, Element, →ISBN, page 110.
When we examined runic divination, we related, in passing, the phases of the moon to the three ættir of the Common Germanic Futhark.

The runic futhark is usually divided into three aetts.

1998, The Norse Tradition a beginners guide, Pete Jennings, Headway, →ISBN, page 36:

Each aett is named after the rune that begins it, which may be regarded as the patriarch of the family it heads. This trine of families was so important that it survived the increase of the runes in England and the decrease in their number […]

2009, Donald Tyson, Runic Astrology: Chart Interpretation Through the Runes, Llewellyn Worldwide, →ISBN:

Each Aett contains certain runes that cover similar concepts. For example each has a rune for light, as in Kanauz the torch, Sowelo the sun, and Dagaz the day. The light becomes greater in power as we progress through the Aettir.

2016, Kim Farnell, Runes, Plain & Simple: The Only Book You'll Ever Need, Hampton Roads Publishing, →ISBN, page 38:

(sometimes paganism) A division of the runic alphabet containing eight runes.


Zhuyin fuhao

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 注音符號 /注音符号 (zhùyīn fúhào, literally “symbol(s) for annotation of sounds”).

bor

A phonetic alphabet used to transcribe Mandarin for students of that language and for inputting Chinese, now used primarily only in Taiwan. Variants also exist for other Chinese lects spoken in Taiwan.

注音符号

ちゅういんふごう, chūin fugō, ちゅうおんふごう, chūon fugō


Zhuyin alphabet

en-noun

Zhuyin alphabet (plural Zhuyin alphabets)

ㄅ ㄆ ㄇ ㄈ ㄉ ㄊ ㄋ ㄌ ㄍ ㄎ ㄏ ㄐ ㄑ ㄒ ㄓ ㄔ ㄕ ㄖ ㄗ ㄘ ㄙ ㄚ ㄛ ㄜ ㄝ ㄞ ㄟ ㄠ ㄡ ㄢ ㄣ ㄤ ㄥ ㄦ ㄧ ㄨ ㄩ ㄪ ㄫ ㄬ ㄭ

The 37/40 letter alphabet consisting of the following letters:

any relatively minor variation of the 37-letter Zhuyin alphabet


Lydian

And all the while sweet Musicke did diuide
 Her looser notes with Lydian harmony […]

1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:

(music) Designating a mode of ancient Greek music, reputed to be light and effeminate.


Carian

/ˈkɛː.ɹɪ.ən/

/ˈkɛə.ɹɪ.ən/

An extinct Indo-European language in the Anatolian subgroup.


Ol Cemet'

An alphabet with 30 letters, used for the Santali language.


Sogdian

An extinct Middle Iranian language spoken around Sogdiana.


Asomtavruli

Borrowed from Georgian ასომთავრული (asomtavruli, “capital letters”), from ასო (aso, “letter, type”) + მთავარი (mtavari, “main, chief, principal, head”).

bor

One of three forms of the Georgian alphabet. Asomtavruli, a monumental script, is the oldest form of the Georgian alphabet, but it is no longer used for writing the language. Due to its design, it is still sometimes used for headlines and titles.


Mkhedruli

Borrowed from Georgian მხედრული (mxedruli, “cavalry, military; secular, worldly”).

One of three forms of the Georgian alphabet. Mkhedruli, a unicameral script, is the form of the Georgian alphabet that is now used for writing the Modern Georgian language.


Chorasmian

Choresmian (alternative)
Chorezmian (alternative)
Harezmian (alternative)
Horezmian (alternative)
Khoresmian (alternative)
Khorezmian (alternative)
Khwarazmian (alternative)
Khwarizmian (alternative)
Khwarezmian (alternative)

an extinct Eastern Iranian language once spoken in Chorasmia


Jawi

The Arabic alphabet or writing system used for Malay or related languages.


Rumi

Unadapted borrowing from Malay Rumi, ultimately derived from Persian رومی (rumi, “Roman”).

The Latin alphabet or writing system used for Malay and Indonesian.


Pahlavi

en-prop

Pahlavi (countable and uncountable, plural Pahlavis)

Pahlavis (plural)
Pahlevi (alternative)
Pehlevi (alternative)
Pehlvi (alternative)

From Persian پهلوی (pahlavi, “Parthian, of or relating to the age of the Iranian heroes before Islam”).

bor

The Pahlavi script, a writing system derived from the Aramaic script and used to write several Iranian languages, the most common form of which was the Book Pahlavi.

Pahlavi literature traditionally defines the writings of the Zoroastrians in the Middle Persian language and Book Pahlavi script which were compiled in the 9th and the 10th centuries CE.

2009, Carlo Cereti, "Middle Persian Literature I: Pahlavi," Encyclopedia Iranica (online edition)

The Middle Persian language rendered in Book Pahlavi.

Pehlewi

the Middle Persian language rendered in Book Pahlavi


Nabataean

Nabataeans (plural)
Nabatean (alternative)
Nabathean (alternative)
Nabatæan (alternative archaic)

Latin Nabataeus, Ancient Greek Ναβαταῖος (Nabataîos), ultimately from the same root as Arabic أَنْبَاط (ʔanbāṭ)

uder

Arabic أَنْبَاط (ʔanbāṭ)

Any of a group of people who once lived around modern Jordan.

Nabateër

any of a group of people who once lived around modern Jordan


Nabataean

Arabic أَنْبَاط (ʔanbāṭ)

Nabatean (alternative)
Nabathean (alternative)
Nabatæan (alternative archaic)


Nabataean

en-adj

Nabataean (comparative more Nabataean, superlative most Nabataean)

more Nabataean (comparative)
most Nabataean (superlative)
Nabatean (alternative)
Nabathean (alternative)
Nabatæan (alternative archaic)

uder

Arabic أَنْبَاط (ʔanbāṭ)

2014, Paul Salopek, Blessed. Cursed. Claimed., National Geographic (December 2014)https://web.archive.org/web/20150212214621/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2014/12/pilgrim-roads/salopek-text
We tug our hammer-headed mules along the tourist trails of Petra, the fabled Nabataean capital cut from rock the color of living muscle.

Relating to the Nabataean people or their language.

Nabatees

pertaining to the Nabataean people or their language


Pazend

From Zoroastrian Middle Persian pʾcnd (pāzand), from Avestan 𐬞𐬀𐬌𐬙𐬌 𐬰𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬙𐬌 (paⁱti zainti, “according to understanding”); see Zend for more.

der

𐬞𐬀𐬌𐬙𐬌 𐬰𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬙𐬌

A variant of Avestan alphabet used to write Middle Persian.

પાજંદ

variant of the Avestan alphabet to write Middle Persian


Palmyrene

Palmyrenes (plural)
Palmirene (alternative)

From Latin Palmȳrēnus, from Ancient Greek Παλμυρηνός (Palmurēnós). By surface analysis, Palmyra + -ene.

The importance of the Palmyrenes was as merchants, and it is as merchants that they become known to us in our earliest Roman reference.

1995, Richard Stoneman, Palmyra and Its Empire: Zenobia's Revolt Against Rome, University of Michigan Press, page 31:

For in the course of the campaign the Roman provincial capital of Bostra fell to the Palmyrenes – whether by accident or design - along with a Roman force.

2000, Warwick Ball, Rome in the East: The Transformation of an Empire, Taylor & Francis (Routledge), page 80:

There is no surviving contemporary account of the war between the Palmyrenes and the Emperor Aurelian.

2008, Pat Southern, Empress Zenobia: Palmyra's Rebel Queen, Continuum Books, page 131:

(historical) A native or inhabitant of ancient Palmyra or Palmyrena.


Khutsuri

An ecclesiastical Georgian writing system, combining Nuskhuri script with Asomtavruli illuminated capitals, principally used in hagiography, and currently supported by a few supporters.


Euclidean alphabet

Named after Euclid, the archon of Athens responsible for its adoption.

The classical Greek alphabet, a modified form of the Ionic alphabet adopted by Athens in 403 BC following its defeat in the Peloponnesian War.


Musnad

From Arabic مُسْنَد (musnad), from Old South Arabian 𐩣𐩯𐩬𐩵 (ms³nd).

With a stretch of imagination, some Nabataean shapes can be made to resemble those of Jazm, but so do many Musnad shapes. Still, as stated earlier, shape's similarity is not the only indication of a script origin, especially since Nabataean, Aramaic, and Musnad, share the same roots.

2011, Saad D. Abulhab, DeArabizing Arabia, →ISBN:

But he wrote a message in the Himyar script (Musnad) with his knife on the saddle of a passing camel, and the message eventually reached his tribe in Hadhramaut.

2011, Freya Stark, The Southern Gates of Arabia: A Journey in the Hadhramaut, →ISBN, page 203:

Since the characteristics of Musnad handwriting is not famous, and some of the readers may be unfamiliar with these scripts, a brief description of the important aspects of Musnad will be presented in this section.

2011, Mohammed A. Qatran, Template matching method for recognition Musnad characters based on correlation analysis:

Ancient South Arabian
Ancient South Arabian

The Ancient South Arabian alphabet, which branched from the Proto-Sinaitic alphabet in about the 9th century BC.


'Phags-pa

From Tibetan འཕགས་པ ('phags pa, literally “noble”).

Phags-pa (alternative)
ḥPʻags-pa (alternative literary)
ḥP'ags-pa (alternative literary)

An alphabet designed in the 1200s by the Tibetan monk and State Preceptor Drogön Chögyal Phagpa for Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan dynasty.


Bukvitsa

The hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church declared Slavic writings (Bukvitsa, Runes, etc.) to be black magic and demonic writings; the result of which was the loss by the Slavic people of the ability to learn the ancestral experience of their Ancestors.

2016, Dmitriy Kushnir, Slava Rodu Magazine: Issue #1, page 49:

A pseudohistorical alphabet based on Cyrillic, created by Russian neopagan esoteric A. Yu. Khinevich, founder of Ynglism, but having no connection with historical Slavic writings.


Book Pahlavi

A smooth form of the Pahlavi script in which letters are joined to each other and often form complicated ligatures.


Ancient North Arabian

Attested since 1904. Calque of German Alt-Nord-Arabisch (itself from 1870s), which corresponds to Altnordarabisch in modern orthography

One of them, a limestone-ostracon found in the debris which covered the remains of a late Roman fortress, is of special significance for Ancient North Arabian palaeography and dialectology.

1985, Ernst A. Knauf, “A South Safaitic Alphabet from Khirbet Es-Samrāʾ”, in Levant, volume 17, page 204:

related to the Ancient North Arabian script or language(s)

nord-arabique

related to homonymous script or language


zetabetical

Whether the reader wants to know what a googol is (it's an extremely large number, written out in full: one, followed by one hundred zeros); something about game theory; about serendipity; series; stochastic processes; Z charts or zetabetical sequences (in reverse alphabetical order) - or countless useful bits of statistical and business mathematical information, they are all to be found here.

1974, Accountancy - Volume 85, page 120:

The stories might be arranged in alphabetical (or zetabetical!) order.

1989, Virginia A. Arnold, Connections: language arts/reading - Volume 1, →ISBN, page 32:

I'd cleaned the bathroom and washed the kitchen floor, taken out the recycling and arranged all the tins in the cupboard so that the labels were facing forwards in zetabetical order.

2017, Gail Honeyman, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, →ISBN, page 96:


Caucasian Albanian

en-noun

Caucasian Albanian (countable and uncountable, plural Caucasian Albanians)

The extinct Northeast Caucasian language once spoken by these people, and from which Udi is descended.


Yañalif

From Tatar яңалиф (yañalif), which is a contraction of яңа (yaña, “new”) and әлифба (älifba, “alphabet”).

The first Latin alphabet used during the Soviet epoch of Latinization from 1928 until 1938.


Takri

First, “it may be connected with the word ṭankā, which suggests its origins as a commercial alphabet.” Second, it may be connected with ṭhakur, “in which case it may originally have been the script used by Rajput landlords.” George A. Grierson writes that the name means “the alphabet of the ṭakkas”, who “ruled the greater part of the northern Panjāb.

An abugida script (nearly extinct) used to write many languages originating in India, including Jammu Dogri, Chambeali, Kangri, Kahluri, Mandeali, Kullui, Gaddi, Mahasui, Kashtwari, Churahi, and Bhateali.


Dogra

From Dogri डोगरा (ḍogrā), from Sanskrit द्विगर्त (dvigarta). The script was officially referred to as Sanskrit द्विगर्त अक्षर (dvigarta akṣara, “Dogra letters”). Another indigenous name for the script is Dogri [script needed] (dogra akkharor, “New Dogra letters”).

m+

द्विगर्त अक्षर

An abugida script (nearly extinct) used to write Dogri, a language originating in India.


Sundanese script

writing system used for Sundanese language, derived from Old Sundanese script


Ancient South Arabian

Related to the Ancient South Arabian script.


ḥPʻags-pa

Since the language of the ḥPʻags-pa is different from Written Mongolian, it cannot be discussed in this grammar.

1954, Nicholas Poppe, Grammar of Written Mongolian, page 6:


Hatran

The extinct dialect of Middle Aramaic spoken in Hatra and Assur from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century CE..


Nuskhuri

Borrowed from Georgian ნუსხური (nusxuri, “small letters”), from ნუსხა (nusxa, “inventory, schedule”).

bor

One of three forms of the Georgian alphabet. Nuskhuri, a monumental script, is the 2nd form of the Georgian alphabet, but it is no longer used for writing the language.


Arwi

Borrowed from Tamil அற்விய்யு (aṟviyyu).

The arabic writing system used for Tamil.