Cuneiform

Hello. My name is Cuneiform, and I am the very first writing. Long, long ago, before there were any books or letters, people lived in a warm, sunny place called Sumer. They had to remember everything in their heads. They remembered how many fluffy sheep they had and how many jars of yummy grain were in the kitchen. But remembering everything was very, very tricky. Their heads felt so full, and sometimes they would forget. They wished they had a way to remember things outside of their minds so they wouldn't have to worry so much.

Then one day, the clever Sumerian people had a wonderful idea. It was around the year 3500 BCE. They decided to create me to help them. They needed a way to keep track of all their important things. First, they took some soft, squishy clay from the riverbank, just like play-doh. They patted it into a flat little pillow. Then, they took a pointy stick, called a stylus, and gently pressed it into the clay. Poke, poke, poke. They made little wedge shapes that looked like tiny triangles. Those little shapes were me. At first, I looked like simple pictures, but soon my shapes became special marks that stood for words and sounds. I was so happy to help them count and remember.

I was so useful for counting that soon the people wanted me to do more. They used my special shapes to write down their favorite stories about heroes and magical animals. They sent clay messages with me on them to friends who lived far away. They even wrote down the rules for their city to help everyone be kind and fair to each other. I was the first way people could save their words forever. I am the great-great-grandparent of all the books you read and all the letters you see. I helped people share their amazing ideas for a long, long time, and I am so proud.