On the uses of writing in ancient Arabia and the role of palaeography in studying them

Abstract

Literacy was widespread in large areas of ancient Arabia, as shown by the\nhuge numbers of graffiti by both settled people and nomads. But, it is still\nextremely difficult to establish a reliable chronology for the literate periods\nof pre-Islamic Arabian history. This has led to a misuse of palaeography\nin an attempt to create chronological sequences based on letter forms from\nundated inscriptions and documents, on widely different kinds of surface,\nwith different purposes, and often separated by large distances. This practice\nis not confined to Arabian inscriptions but is widespread in Semitic\nepigraphy.\nThis article offers a new taxonomy for inscriptions and graffiti, examines\nthe misuse of palaeography in Semitic epigraphy and suggests some\nmore useful ways in which palaeography could be used in this field.