jeroglífico

A jeroglífico is a written language that uses pictorial symbols. The term comes from the Greek words hieros (sacred) and glyphein (to carve). Ancient Egyptians famously used a system of hieroglyphs, which could be written in rows or columns and read from left to right, right to left, or top to bottom. The direction of reading was determined by the orientation of the animal or human figures within the script; they would generally face the beginning of the line.

Egyptian hieroglyphs were a complex system, combining logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements. Some signs represented whole words, others represented sounds, and some were determinatives, which clarified the meaning of a word without being pronounced. This system was used for monumental inscriptions, religious texts, and administrative documents for over 3,000 years. The understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs was lost for centuries until the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, which provided a key to decipherment.

While Egyptian hieroglyphs are the most well-known example, other cultures have also employed similar pictorial writing systems. These systems varied greatly in their structure and usage. The complexity and artistic nature of hieroglyphic scripts have long fascinated scholars and the public alike, representing a significant achievement in human communication and cultural expression.