View source for Lycian alphabet

{{Short description|Alphabet used to write the Lycian language}}
{{Other uses|Lycian (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox Writing system
| name        = Lycian
| languages   = [[Lycian language]]
| type        = Alphabet
| time        = {{circa}}500 – {{circa}}200 BC
| fam1        = [[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]]
| fam2        = [[Greek script|Greek]]
| sisters     = [[Carian alphabets|Carian]], [[Lydian alphabet|Lydian]], [[Phrygian alphabet|Phrygian]]
| sample      = 
| imagesize   = 270px
| unicode     = [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U10280.pdf U+10280&ndash;U+1029F]
| iso15924    = Lyci
}}
[[File:Decree of Pixodaros.jpg|thumb|right|The ''Decree of [[Pixodaros]]'' in the Lycian script]]
{{Contains special characters|Uncommon Unicode}}
The '''Lycian alphabet''' was used to write the [[Lycian language]] of the [[Asia Minor]] region of [[Lycia]]. It was an extension of the Greek alphabet, with half a dozen additional letters for sounds not found in Greek. It was largely similar to the [[Lydian alphabet|Lydian]] and the [[Phrygian alphabet]]s.

==The alphabet==

The Lycian alphabet<ref>Adiego (2007) page 764.</ref><ref>Bryce (1986) pages 56-57.</ref> contains letters for 29 sounds. Some sounds are represented by more than one symbol, which is considered one "letter". There are six vowel letters, one for each of the four oral vowels of Lycian, and separate letters for two of the four nasal vowels. Nine of the Lycian letters do not appear to derive from the Greek alphabet.

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+The Lycian alphabet
|-
!Lycian letter!!Transliteration!![[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]!!Notes
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊀}}||a|| {{IPA|[a]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊂}}||b||{{IPA|[β]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊄}}||g||{{IPA|[ɣ]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊅}}||d||{{IPA|[ð]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊆}}||i|| {{IPA|[i]}}, {{IPA|[ĩ]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊇}}||w|| {{IPA|[w]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊈}}||z||{{IPA|[t͡s]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊛}}||h||{{IPA|[h]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊉}}||θ||[θ]||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊊}}||j or y|| {{IPA|[j]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊋}}||k||{{IPA|[kʲ]}}||align=left| {{IPA|[ɡʲ]}} after nasals
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊍}}||l|| {{IPA|[l]}} and {{IPA|[l̩]}}~{{IPA|[əl]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊎}}||m||{{IPA|[m]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊏}}||n||{{IPA|[n]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊒}}||u|| {{IPA|[u]}}, {{IPA|[ũ]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊓}}||p|| {{IPA|[p]}}||align=left| {{IPA|[b]}} after nasals
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊔}}||κ or c|| {{IPA|[k]}}? {{IPA|[kʲ]}}? {{IPA|[h(e)]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊕}}||r|| {{IPA|[r]}} and {{IPA|[r̩]}}~{{IPA|[ər]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊖}}||s|| {{IPA|[s]}} ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊗}}||t|| {{IPA|[t]}}||align=left| {{IPA|[d]}} after nasals. ''ñt'' is {{IPA|[d]}} as in {{Script|Lyci|𐊑𐊗𐊁𐊎𐊒𐊜𐊍𐊆𐊅𐊀}} / {{lang|xlc-Latn|Ñtemuχlida}} for Greek {{lang|el|Δημοκλείδης}} / ''{{lang|el|Dēmokleídēs}}''.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Bryce|first=T. R.|title=The Pronunciation of Delta in Greek and Lycian|journal=Classical Philology|volume=81|issue=1|pages=56–58|date=January 1986|doi=10.1086/366958|jstor=269877|s2cid=162200292 }} First page displayable no charge.</ref>
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊁}}||e||{{IPA|[e]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊙}}||ã||{{IPA|[ã]}}||align=left| {{Script|Lyci|𐊍𐊒𐊖𐊙𐊗𐊕𐊀}} / {{lang|xlc|Lusãtra}} for Greek {{lang|el|Λύσανδρος}} / ''{{lang|el-Latn|Lúsandros}}''.<ref>Bryce (1986) page 58.</ref>
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊚}}||ẽ||{{IPA|[ẽ]}}||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊐}}||m̃|| {{IPA|[m̩]}}, {{IPA|[əm]}}, {{IPA|[m.]}} ||align=left| originally perhaps syllabic {{IPA|[m]}}, later coda {{IPA|[m]}}
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊑}}||ñ|| {{IPA|[n̩]}}, {{IPA|[ən]}}, {{IPA|[n.]}} ||align=left| originally perhaps syllabic {{IPA|[n]}}, later coda {{IPA|[n]}}
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊘}}||τ|| {{IPA|[tʷ]}}? {{IPA|[t͡ʃ]}}? ||
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊌}}||q|| {{IPA|[k]}} ||align=left| {{IPA|[ɡ]}} after nasals
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊃}}||β||{{IPA|[k]}}? {{IPA|[kʷ]}}?||align=left| voiced after nasals
|-
| {{Script|Lyci|𐊜}}||χ||{{IPA|[q]}}||align=left| {{IPA|[ɢ]}} after nasals
|}

== Numbers ==
Lycian uses the following number symbols: I (vertical stroke) = 1, < ("less than" sign) (or, rarely, ''L'' or C or V or Y) = 5, O (circle) = 10; a horizontal stroke — is one half;<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Laroche |first1=Emmanuel |title=L'inscription lycienne |journal=Fouilles de Xanthos |date=1979 |volume=VI |pages=51–128: 100–101}}</ref> a symbol somewhat like our letter H may mean 100.<ref name="Melchert19">{{cite web |last1=Melchert |first1=H. Craig |title=The Trilingual Inscription of the Létôon. Lycian Version |url=http://www.achemenet.com/pdf/lycian/lyletoon.pdf |website=Achemenet |access-date=2021-03-04}}</ref>

The number 128½ would therefore be expressed as HOO<III—.

==Unicode==
{{Main|Lycian (Unicode block)}}

The Lycian alphabet was added to the [[Unicode]] Standard in April, 2008 with the release of version 5.1.
It is encoded in Plane 1 ([[Supplementary Multilingual Plane]]).

The Unicode block for Lycian is U+10280&ndash;U+1029F:

{{Unicode chart Lycian}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Asia}}
<!-- [[WP:NFCC]] violation: [[File:LycianScripture GeorgeEBean.jpg|thumb|400px|right|An inscription in Lycian in example <br> 𐊁𐊂𐊚𐊑𐊏𐊚:𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀𐊇𐊒:𐊎𐊚𐊏 <br> 𐊁𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀𐊇𐊀𐊗𐊚:𐊛𐊀𐊏𐊀𐊅𐊀𐊈𐊀:𐊛𐊕𐊓𐊓𐊆𐊍𐊀𐊅𐊆:𐊁𐊛𐊂𐊆:𐊖𐊁𐊗𐊆𐊅𐊁𐊆𐊎𐊁]] -->
*[[Letoon trilingual]]
*[[Lycian language]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{Cite book|last=Adiego|first=I. J.|others=Chris Markham (trans.)|contribution=Greek and Lycian|year=2007|title=A History of Ancient Greek From the Beginning to Late Antiquity|editor-last=Christidis|editor-first=A. F.|editor2-last=Arapopoulou|editor2-first=Maria|editor3-last=Chriti|editor3-first=Maria|publisher=Cambridge University press|isbn=978-0-521-83307-3}}. Translator Chris Markham.
* {{cite book|first=Trevor R.|last=Bryce|author-link=Trevor R. Bryce
|title=The Lycians - Volume I: The Lycians in Literary and Epigraphic Sources|location=Copenhagen|publisher=Museum Tusculanum Press|year=1986|isbn=87-7289-023-1}}
* Roger D. Woodard, 2007, ''The Ancient Languages of Asia Minor''.

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{cite web|last=Everson|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Everson|title=N3019R2: Proposal to encode the Lycian and Lydian scripts in the SMP of the UCS|publisher=ISO/IEC JTC1/SC2/WG2|date=2006-02-05|url=https://www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n3019.pdf|access-date=2024-06-25}}

{{Anatolian languages}}
{{list of writing systems}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lycian Script}}
[[Category:Writing systems]]
[[Category:Obsolete writing systems]]
[[Category:Lycian language]]