6/25/2023 0 Comments Ogham fewsHowever, its lack of prevalence at known burial sites now suggests that ogham stones marked the boundaries of property or were monuments to celebrated heroes. Most examples denote a person’s name, causing some scholars previously think that it was used largely for grave markers. Due to the nature of its letters and the medium being used, inscriptions were short by necessity. The earliest known Christian settlements correspond on the same timeline as the oldest surviving ogham stones. A second popular opinion is that the script was created by the first Christians in Ireland, on account that the sounds in primitive Irish were difficult to capture in the Latin alphabet. Those in Ancient Ireland were concerned over the threat of invasion, and so it was postured that ogham allowed the religious and political rulers a way to secretly communicate. During the time which early examples of the letters appear, southern Britain was ruled by Roman authorities. Some scholars suggest that it was a cryptic language employed by those native to the island. Why was It Invented? There are competing theories on the motivation behind using Ogham. James Carney, a noted Medieval Irish language researcher, instead points to early linguistic similarities with the Roman language and insists that Ogham was likely created one century BCE. Currently, most scholars, using the assumption that ogham was based on the Latin alphabet, refer to the alphabet’s similarity to the recorded teachings of Donatus, a 4th century grammarian. This puts most surviving examples of ogham between the 5th and 7th century AD. Instead, researchers study the linguistic developments in the early Irish language to estimate when the inscriptions were created. When was Ogham Used? Ogham stone in Dunloe Lower, Kerry It is difficult to date ogham stones, especially since very few names written in the script have been linked to known figures in history.
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