What's That Noise?

Of all the places I have been, the things I have seen and the experiences I have had the most amazing "thing" is the human race.  For people to get along or get anything done there must communication.

On one of our travel adventures I was waiting for my family and I heard this "noise."  After a moment I recognized the sound as two people having a conversation in the local language.  My mind's eye saw something it had not seen before.  Where, when and how I do not know but all over the world throughout time groups of people have developed patterns of sounds which represent letters, words, concepts, etc.  Across the river or over the mountains another group of people have their own sounds and associated meanings.  When I visit a foreign country their language may sound like clicks, clearing a throat, sucking of teeth, nasal vocalizations, or whatever, yet to those who make those sounds they are words, sentences, paragraphs, thoughts, etc.  Amazing!  Conversely the languages I speak are a collection of garble to a non-speaker.

To add to the wonderment of the mind consider that as groups of humans we have assigned seemingly random collections of squiggles, scratches, dashes, dots and chicken tracks, assigned them to our sounds and called it an alphabet.  The alphabet of some languages represent words/ideas/concepts and are "pictures" of what they represent--that makes sense.  How and why did the English alphabet evolve?  Who decided a vertical line with an attached large semi-circle to the right is capital "D" while a vertical line and small semi-circle attached to the left is a lower case "d"?  Would the alphabet have made just as much sense if different markings had been chosen?

When I have completed the composition of this post the thoughts in my mind which were transformed into sounds and represented by lines and scratches will be converted into a digital language consisting of on/off switches sent around the world with and without wires finally ending up on the screen of my wonderful readers.  Technology is great, but it is people and their minds that impress me more.  I am amazed how language and writing came about.  What great things we have been created with--minds and the spirit to learn, grow and move on.