A period of writing on wood or other perishable material prior to the preserved monumental inscriptions needs to be assumed, sufficient for the loss of the phonemes represented by úath ("H") and straif ("Z" in the manuscript tradition, but probably "F" from "SW"), gétal (representing the velar nasal "NG" in the manuscript tradition, but etymologically probably "GW"), all of which are clearly part of the system, but unattested in inscriptions. Although the use of "classical" ogham in stone inscriptions seems to have flourished in the 5th and 6th centuries around the Irish Sea, from the phonological evidence it is clear that the alphabet predates the 5th century. It is generally thought that the earliest inscriptions in Ogham date to about the 4th century AD, but James Carney believed its origin is rather within the 1st century BC. Caucasian Albanian (origin uncertain) c.Cherokee (syllabary letter forms only) c.Graphical descent from Egyptian hieroglyphs Origins Carving of Ogham letters into a stone pillar – illustration by Stephen Reid (1873 – 1948), in: Myths & Legends of the Celtic Race by T. One possible origin is from the Irish og-úaim 'point-seam', referring to the seam made by the point of a sharp weapon. The etymology of the word ogam or ogham remains unclear. For this reason, ogam is sometimes known as the Celtic tree alphabet. The vast majority of the inscriptions consist of personal names.Īccording to the High Medieval Bríatharogam, the names of various trees can be ascribed to individual letters. The largest number outside Ireland are in Pembrokeshire, Wales. There are roughly 400 surviving orthodox inscriptions on stone monuments throughout Ireland and western Britain, the bulk of which are in southern Munster. Each month is associated with a different tree, making 13 Celtic zodiac signs, and the symbol for each sign is the first letter of that tree in the Irish language written in Ogham.Ogham ( / ˈ ɒ ɡ əm/ OG-əm, Modern Irish: Middle Irish: ogum, ogom, later ogam ) is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 4th to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish language ( scholastic ogham, 6th to 9th centuries). There is also one extra day, December 23, that is called Nameless day. The year is broken into 13 months, each containing 28 days. Celtic Astrology uses the cycle of the moon to create the zodiac. For example, the symbol for the letter “B” in Ogham is identified as Beithe which means Birch. Each letter of the Ogham alphabet is strongly connected to a particular tree. As Ogham existed in Ireland for over 500 years, this was the main form of communicating through a script format and written/carved into both stone and wood. Dating at around 400 Ad with some claiming it goes back to the 1st century BC. The Ogham is an ancient Celtic alphabet consisting of twenty characters. It is believed that the Celts and Druids observed that a child born in a certain season developed certain human qualities. Celtic tree astrology is based on the idea that the time of our birth is important when it comes to the development of our personalities. There is some debate about whether their new year began in midwinter or midsummer, after the solstices. According to these glyphs, the Celts and the Druid priestesses used a thirteen month lunar calendar. Since the Celts passed on their traditions orally rather than writing them, there are few written records of anything other than the Ogham or Glyphs. A while back researchers started looking into the astrological theories of the Celts. It is hard to believe that there are astrologies other than that of the Chinese and Western zodiac signs.
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