The gutenberg galaxy 139 once used by the ancient Hebrews, Phoenicians, Aramaeans, Greeks, Etruscans and Romans. Thanks to the simplicity of the alphabet, writing has become very common; it is no longer a more or less exclusive domain of the priestly or other privileged classes, a it was in Egypt, or Mesopotamia, or China. Education has become largely a matter of reading and writing, and is possible for all. The fact that alphabetic writing has survived with relatively little change for three and a half millennia, notwithstanding the introduction of printing and the typewriter, and the extensive use of shorthand-writing, is the best evidence for its suitability to serve the needs of the whole modern world. It is this simplicity, adaptability and suitability which have secured the triumph of the alphabet over the other systems of writing. Alphabetic writing and its origin constitute a story in themselves; they offer a new field for research which American scholars are beginning to call