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From: deb5@midway.uchicago.edu (Daniel von Brighoff)
Subject: Re: Linear A
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Date: Sat, 19 Jul 1997 22:47:14 GMT
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In article <5qrbgb$mhb$1@halcyon.com>,
pyotr filipivich <pyotr@halcyon.com> wrote:
>deb5@midway.uchicago.edu (Daniel von Brighoff) writes:
>>In article <33CA6E91.C841C58B@eexi.gr>,
>>Spyridon S.Zengos <zeng26@eexi.gr> wrote:
>>>
>>>Daniel von Brighoff wrote:
>>>
>>>>   I don't think we have
>>>> any idea what the Minoans spoke.
>>>
>>>After the decipherment of the [Kretan] Linear
>>>Writing B, by Michael Ventris and John Chadwick,
>>>in 1952, we now know that the Minoans spoke Greek
>
>>Mr. Zengos and I have been discussing this over e-mail.  While it is true
>>that Linear B is, in fact, Archaic Greek, its predecessor, Linear A has
>>never been deciphered.  Mr. Zengos claims that linguists have been able to
>>decipher a few names and, on this basis, theorise that Linear A represents
>>an even earlier form of Greek, but I'm not aware of any breakthroughs in
>>this direction.  So I think it's still safe to say we don't know what the
>>pre-Mycenaean Cretans spoke.
>
>	They spoke "language" of course.  Jst as they lived on "dirt"
>and were the "human beaings".
>
>	Oh - you meant what did the language sound or read like.
>
>	Never mind...

	Actually, if you had been keeping up with the traffic on this
newsgroup, you would've discovered that they communicated either through
telepathy or some sort of sign language.  I suppose the latter is more
likely, given the pictographic nature of Linear A.

-- 
	 Daniel "Da" von Brighoff    /\          Dilettanten
	(deb5@midway.uchicago.edu)  /__\         erhebt Euch
				   /____\      gegen die Kunst!
