The Iberian scripts are types of Paleohispanic scripts used to write the Iberian language, which is no longer spoken. These scripts are unusual because they use symbols to represent both sounds and syllables, rather than only individual letters. The earliest known Iberian writings date back to around 500 BCE or possibly as early as 600 BCE. The latest writings were created near the end of the 1st century BCE or the beginning of the 1st century CE.
Variants
There are two main types of writing systems and geographic areas within the Iberian script family. The Greco-Iberian alphabet, a version of the Greek alphabet adapted for the Iberian language, was used mainly in Alicante and Murcia. The southwestern script, which is similar to the southeastern Iberian script but used to write the Tartessian language, and the Celtiberian script, a version of the northeastern Iberian script used for the Celtiberian language, are not technically considered Iberian scripts.
The northeastern Iberian script is often called simply the Iberian script because it appears in 95% of known Iberian writings. These writings were mostly found in the northeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula, especially along the coast from Languedoc-Roussillon to Alicante, with some also found in the Ebro valley.
The southeastern Iberian script is less well documented, and some symbols are missing, such as those for /gu/, /do/, and /m/. Unlike the northeastern script, the meaning of many symbols in the southeastern script is still unclear because some signs have not been agreed upon. These writings were mostly found in the southeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula, including Eastern Andalusia, Murcia, Albacete, Alicante, and Valencia.
There are many differences in the symbols used in the Iberian scripts. Over the past few decades, scholars have noticed that some of these differences, especially in the northeastern Iberian script and more recently in the Celtiberian script, may have special meanings. It seems that early letters were used for specific sounds, such as the voiced consonants /b/, /d/, and /g/, while the voiceless consonants /t/ and /k/ were created by adding a line to symbols for /d/ and /g/. This idea is called the dual signary model. If this is correct, it would be similar to how the Latin letter G was created by adding a line to the letter C.
Typology
The Iberian scripts, except for the Greco-Iberian alphabet, are unusual in how they are structured. They used both letters for sounds and symbols for syllables. Sounds called continuants, such as /s/ and /l/, /m/, and vowels, were written with separate letters, similar to the Phoenician or Greek alphabets. Sounds called non-continuants, such as /b/, /d/, /t/, /g/, and /k/, were written with symbols that combined consonants and vowels, like the Japanese kana system. For example, the written forms of "ga" and "ge" looked different, and "bi" and "bo" had no connection. This unique system is called a "semi-syllabary."
The southeastern script was written from right to left, like the Phoenician alphabet, while the northeastern script was written from left to right, like the Greek alphabet.
Origins
The Iberian scripts are grouped as Paleohispanic scripts for ease of study and because they share some similar features. However, the exact connections between these scripts and others from the same time, such as the Greco-Iberian script, are not clearly understood. Most scholars agree that these scripts were influenced partly by the Greek alphabet and/or the Phoenician alphabet, as they share many symbols that look alike. Some experts say the northern and southern Iberian scripts originally came only from the Phoenician alphabet, while others believe the Greek alphabet also played a role. A few suggest that the Old Italic alphabet may have had an influence as well. It seems that either the symbols themselves were changed or they were given new meanings. For example, the southern symbol for the sound /e/ likely came from the Phoenician letter ‘ayin or the Greek letter Ο, while the northern symbol for /e/ resembles the Phoenician letter he or the Greek letter Ε. In southern Iberian, this symbol may have represented the sound /be/ instead. Despite these differences, it is clear that the scripts had a shared origin. The most widely accepted idea is that the northeastern script developed from the southeastern script.