12. cunneiform

Short Answer: Cuneiform is one of the first systems of writing that was developed by the Sumerians of Mesopotamia.

Long Answer: Cuneiform was the writing system developed by the Sumerians of Mesopotamia around the time of 3500-3000 BCE. The cuneiform system of writing is considered one of the greatest achievements of the Sumerians and especially the city of Uruk, one of the main Sumerian cities. When using cuneiform a stylus is implemented to press into a soft clay tablet and create wedge-like carvings that created the cuneiform style of writing. After all, the word "cuneiform" comes from the Latin word cuneus meaning "wedge." At first, these carvings represented pictographs but later they became more similar to the modern idea of the word. Not only was this intricate style of writing used by the Sumerians but other advanced civilizations of this time including the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians and Hurrians, etc. This form of writing was the most well used until the idea of alphabetic writing came at about 100 BCE and replaced this form of writing. The earliest cuneiform writing tablets, called proto-cuneiform, displayed more pictures rather than words since it was portraying more concrete ideas that later developed into a system of writing to portray more detailed thoughts. Now, instead of having to cope with the meaning of the pictograph, one could read a word-concept which was much more developed and more easily understood by the reader. As cuneiform developed further and further, it was then able to express feelings and states of mind. Many of the great works of the Sumerians were written in cuneiform and were undecipherable until George Smith and Henry Rawlinson, brilliant translators, translated this ancient text into the English language. Overall, the idea of cuneiform led to the development of many styles of writing, even our modern alphabet, and without it, the languages of writings that we have today would not have been possible.

SOURCES: 1) Origins Manual pg. 89 2) http://www.ancient.eu/cuneiform/ 3)http://history-world.org/cuneiform_writing.htm