interpreting the evidence that remains from ancient times.

If it feels like history is “made up” or “rebuilt,” it’s often because scholars are constantly revising their understanding based on new evidence, and history is complex, full of interactions between different cultures and languages. It’s less about inventing things from scratch and more about interpreting the evidence that remains from ancient times.

The Etruscan language, spoken in ancient Italy before the rise of the Roman Empire, remains another mystery of the ancient world. The Etruscans flourished between the 8th and 3rd centuries BCE, and while their civilization had a profound influence on early Rome—particularly in terms of religion, architecture, and urban planning—Etruscan remains poorly understood because its origins and linguistic relatives are obscure. The Etruscan alphabet, derived from the Greek script, has left behind numerous inscriptions, particularly on tombs and religious objects. One of the most intriguing finds is the Cippus of Perugia, a long legal inscription that seems to discuss a land dispute, shedding light on Etruscan law and society. The tombs of Etruscan nobles, decorated with vivid wall paintings of banquets and sporting events, speak to a people who valued the pleasures of life and the rituals of death. Etruscan society was highly religious, and their funerary rites included elaborate ceremonies meant to ease the deceased’s transition into the afterlife. The Tomb of the Leopards, located in the Necropolis of Tarquinia, is one such example, where colorful frescoes depict feasts and dancing, emphasizing the importance of family, honor, and tradition. The Etruscans’ influence on Roman religion, particularly the practice of augury (interpreting the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds), is just one of the many ways this enigmatic people shaped the Roman world.

Moving further afield, the Nubian language family, spoken in Nubia (modern Sudan and southern Egypt), gives us another example of an exotic, lesser-known linguistic tradition. Nubia, a region rich in gold and other resources, was home to the Kingdom of Kush, which periodically ruled Egypt during the 25th Dynasty (known as the Nubian Dynasty) and later built a thriving civilization centered around the city of Meroë. While we’ve already mentioned the mysterious Meroitic language, Nubian history stretches back even further, with evidence of the earlier Old Nubian language preserved in inscriptions and religious texts. The Kushite kings, like Piye and Taharqua, often clashed with the Assyrians and Egyptians for dominance over the Nile Valley. One particularly fascinating historical episode is King Piye’s invasion of Egypt, during which he took the title of Pharaoh and restored Egyptian temples that had fallen into disrepair. His victory stele, written in Egyptian hieroglyphs, describes how he marched north, defeating rivals and imposing his rule, all the while adhering to strict religious observances. The Kushites had a distinctive royal burial tradition, building pyramids at Nuri and Meroë—smaller than their Egyptian counterparts but equally impressive. These pyramids stand today as a testament to the grandeur of Nubian kingship.

Heading east, the Indus Valley Civilization gives us another tantalizing linguistic mystery: Indus script, a language that remains undeciphered. The Indus Valley Civilization, which flourished around 2500 BCE in what is now Pakistan and northwestern India, left behind thousands of inscribed seals and tablets. These seals typically depict animals, possibly connected to religious or clan identities, and contain short sequences of symbols that may represent a form of writing. The lack of any Rosetta Stone equivalent has left scholars puzzled about the meaning of the Indus script. The people of the Indus Valley were master urban planners, building the cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro with sophisticated drainage systems, granaries, and standardized brick sizes. One seal depicts a figure seated in a meditative posture, often interpreted as a proto-Shiva or yogic figure, suggesting an early religious tradition that might have influenced later Indian spirituality. Despite their technological and cultural advancements, the civilization eventually declined, possibly due to climate change or shifting river patterns, and the meaning of their script remains one of the great unsolved riddles of ancient history.

In the highlands of the Caucasus, the Colchian and Kartvelian languages, spoken in the ancient kingdom of Colchis (modern-day Georgia), also provide an exotic linguistic heritage. The Colchians were famed in Greek mythology as the people who guarded the Golden Fleece, sought by Jason and the Argonauts. While the story of Jason’s journey may be myth, the ancient kingdom of Colchis was very real, and the evidence of their existence comes from inscriptions in the Georgian script and archaeological remains that indicate they were skilled metalworkers and traders. The Kartvelian languages, which include modern Georgian, are part of a unique language family unrelated to Indo-European or Semitic languages, making them a linguistic island in the region. Ancient Colchis, located along the Black Sea, was a crucial trade hub, and its wealth may have inspired the legends of untold riches guarded by a mythical dragon. Today, Georgian remains a vital language with a rich literary tradition, but its roots stretch back to the time of Colchis, when its speakers were known for their defiance against Persian and Greek incursions.

One more fascinating example comes from the Pacific, where the Rapa Nui people of Easter Island used the mysterious Rongorongo script. This script is unique to Easter Island and is one of the few instances of pre-contact writing in Polynesia. Carved into wooden tablets and artifacts, the Rongorongo symbols remain undeciphered, and their exact purpose is still debated by scholars. Some believe the script recorded genealogies, religious texts, or calendrical information, while others suggest it may have been purely symbolic or ritualistic. The isolation of Easter Island and the subsequent decimation of its population due to European contact, slave raids, and ecological collapse have left us with little evidence to unlock the secrets of Rongorongo. However, the moai statues, those iconic stone heads that gaze out to sea, provide a silent witness to a once-thriving society that left behind a unique and enigmatic script.

In learning about these lesser-known languages and the civilizations they belonged to our meta culture increases adding complexity and depth to our understanding of the rich layers to our understanding of human history. From the mountain fortresses of Urartu to the trade routes of Colchis, and from the pyramids of Nubia to the seals of the Indus Valley, each language offers a glimpse into worlds that, though largely forgotten, played important roles in the cultural and political dynamics of their time. Their languages may be poorly understood or even undeciphered, but the evidence they left behind—whether in stone, clay, or wood—invites us to continue exploring and imagining the stories they still have to tell.

Urartian was the language of the kingdom of Urartu, a powerful and strategically important state that existed in the Iron Age between the 9th and 6th centuries BCE. Centered around Lake Van in modern-day eastern Turkey, Urartu was a rival to the mighty Assyrian Empire, and much of our knowledge of Urartian comes from inscriptions found on rock faces and fortifications, written in a script adapted from Assyrian cuneiform. The Urartians were great builders, and their capital, Tushpa (modern-day Van), was a fortified city with towering walls and a royal palace. One fascinating story from this period is the constant skirmishes between the Urartians and their Assyrian neighbors, as both empires sought control over the fertile lands and trade routes of the Upper Tigris River. Inscriptions on Urartian fortresses speak of kings like Sarduri I, who boasted of his victories over Assyrian armies and his ability to defend his people against the south’s imperial ambitions. These inscriptions give us a sense of the Urartian pride and resilience in the face of Assyria’s dominance.

The Elamite language, spoken in the region of ancient Elam (modern-day southwestern Iran), offers an intriguing example. Elamite existed from around 2800 BCE to 300 BCE and was used primarily in the administrative records of the Elamite civilization and the Achaemenid Persian Empire. Elamite texts are found on clay tablets in Linear Elamite and cuneiform scripts. One of the key pieces of evidence for Elamite is the inscriptions found at Persepolis, where it was used alongside Old Persian and Babylonian. Despite its significant presence in Persian royal inscriptions, Elamite remains largely undeciphered in its earlier form, which adds to the mystery surrounding this language.

The Hurrian language, spoken by the Hurrians in the ancient Near East (particularly in present-day Turkey, Syria, and northern Iraq), is another lesser-known example. The Hurrians were influential in the 2nd millennium BCE, and their language was used in the kingdom of Mitanni. Evidence of Hurrian is found in clay tablets, especially in diplomatic texts between the Mitanni rulers and their contemporaries. The most famous Hurrian text is a set of religious hymns, including the Hurrian Hymn No. 6, the oldest known piece of written music. The language is documented in the Amarna letters as well, where Hurrian rulers communicated with Egyptian pharaohs, but it is mostly known through texts written in Akkadian cuneiform.

Ugaritic, a Semitic language spoken in the ancient city of Ugarit (modern-day Ras Shamra, Syria), is a particularly exotic find because of its unique alphabetic script, which is one of the earliest examples of an alphabet rather than a syllabary or logogram system. Ugaritic was spoken around 1400–1200 BCE, and its texts, found on clay tablets, cover a wide range of topics, including administrative records, religious hymns, and epic literature. The Ugaritic alphabet had 30 letters and was written in cuneiform, making it an important bridge between earlier cuneiform writing systems and later alphabetic scripts like Phoenician and Greek. One of the most significant discoveries in Ugaritic is the Ba’al Cycle, a series of mythological poems that offer insights into the religious beliefs of the ancient Levant.

The Hattic language, spoken by the Hattians in central Anatolia before the rise of the Hittite Empire, remains poorly understood due to the scarcity of written evidence. Hattic texts are found only in ritual contexts, as the Hittites, who conquered the Hattians, incorporated the Hattic language into their religious ceremonies. Hattic survives mainly in the form of glosses in Hittite texts, but the language itself is not Indo-European, and it predates the Hittite civilization by several centuries. The evidence we have, primarily religious and ceremonial texts, provides a glimpse into the pre-Hittite culture of Anatolia.

Luwian, another ancient language of Anatolia, is slightly better known than Hattic due to the discovery of several inscriptions in Hieroglyphic Luwian. Spoken by the Luwians, a group closely related to the Hittites, Luwian was used between 1400 BCE and 700 BCE. The language is known from inscriptions in Cuneiform Luwian and a unique hieroglyphic script found on monuments in modern-day Turkey and Syria. One of the most famous Luwian inscriptions is the Yazılıkaya relief, a rock-cut monument near the Hittite capital of Hattusa. Luwian texts, including royal inscriptions and religious texts, give us insights into the politics and religion of Late Bronze Age Anatolia.

In the South Asian context, Old Tamil provides a fascinating example of an ancient language with a rich literary tradition that dates back to at least the 2nd century BCE. Tamil is one of the oldest continuously spoken languages in the world, and the earliest Old Tamil texts are found in Sangam literature, a collection of poems that deal with themes of love, war, and kingship. Although Tamil has evolved significantly over the centuries, its early literary corpus provides invaluable insight into the Dravidian-speaking peoples of southern India and Sri Lanka. Old Tamil inscriptions, such as those found on rock edicts and hero stones, further provide evidence of its use in governance and commemoration.

The Meroitic language, spoken in the kingdom of Meroë in what is now Sudan, is another example of an exotic language with much still to be learned about it. Meroitic was used between 300 BCE and 400 CE, and while many inscriptions have been found, particularly on funerary monuments and temples, the language remains largely undeciphered. Meroitic script consists of two forms: Meroitic hieroglyphs and Meroitic cursive, both of which were used to record the administrative and religious life of the kingdom. The evidence for Meroitic comes mainly from temple inscriptions and funerary texts, but the meaning of much of the language is still unknown, despite some efforts to interpret it based on its similarities to Egyptian.

Ancient languages provide a window into human civilization’s development, offering us a glimpse into the cultures, politics, and beliefs of societies long gone. Our knowledge of these languages comes from various forms of evidence, such as inscriptions, manuscripts, and other archaeological findings. Each language carries a unique history, deeply tied to the region where it originated.

Sumerian, one of the earliest known languages, was spoken in Mesopotamia, in what is now modern-day Iraq. The evidence for Sumerian primarily comes from thousands of clay tablets inscribed with cuneiform script, found in ancient cities like Ur and Uruk. These tablets cover a wide range of topics, from administrative records to religious hymns. One of the most famous literary works from this era, the Epic of Gilgamesh, was originally written in Sumerian. Even after it ceased to be a spoken language, Sumerian was used in scholarly and religious contexts for centuries.

Akkadian, which replaced Sumerian as the dominant language of Mesopotamia, is another significant ancient language. It too was written in cuneiform and has been found on numerous clay tablets. Akkadian was the language of the Assyrian and Babylonian empires, and its use is documented in legal codes, letters, and monumental inscriptions. The famous Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest legal codes, is written in Akkadian. The Amarna Letters, a collection of diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian pharaohs and their neighbors, were also written in Akkadian, showing its use as the international diplomatic language of the time.

In Egypt, the Egyptian language developed its own writing system, which includes hieroglyphs, hieratic, and demotic scripts. The earliest hieroglyphic texts date back to around 3200 BCE and are found on tomb walls, temples, and monuments. One of the most famous pieces of evidence for the Egyptian language is the Rosetta Stone, which includes inscriptions in three scripts: Greek, Demotic, and Hieroglyphic. This artifact was key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs. Egyptian texts, such as the Book of the Dead, which contains spells for the afterlife, have been preserved on papyri and temple walls. Over time, the Egyptian language evolved into Coptic, which is still used in the liturgy of the Coptic Orthodox Church today.

In the region of modern-day Israel and Palestine, Hebrew emerged as the language of the ancient Israelites. The Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, is the most well-known evidence of ancient Hebrew, containing religious texts that span several centuries. Inscriptions such as the Gezer Calendar and the Siloam Inscription, as well as the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, further provide evidence of the language’s use in daily life and religious contexts. The Dead Sea Scrolls, in particular, contain some of the oldest known copies of the Hebrew Bible and offer insight into the language and religious practices of Jewish communities before the destruction of the Second Temple.

Aramaic, a closely related Semitic language, became a dominant language in the Near East after the Babylonian exile. Evidence for Aramaic includes the Targums, which are Aramaic translations of the Hebrew Bible, and parts of the books of Ezra and Daniel, which are written in Aramaic. Aramaic inscriptions have been found throughout the ancient Near East, and it is believed that Aramaic was the language spoken by Jesus. The language continued to evolve, and some dialects of Aramaic are still spoken today.

In the Mediterranean, Greek was another significant ancient language, with its earliest evidence found in the form of Linear B tablets from Mycenaean Greece. These tablets date back to around 1500 BCE and record inventories and administrative details. The Iliad and Odyssey, epic poems attributed to Homer, were written in Classical Greek and have survived as some of the most important works in Western literature. The New Testament of the Christian Bible was written in Koine Greek, which was the lingua franca of the Eastern Mediterranean during the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

Latin, the language of ancient Rome, provides a wealth of evidence through inscriptions, literature, and legal texts. Inscriptions on Roman monuments, tombstones, and temples, as well as works by writers like Cicero, Virgil, and Ovid, document the history, politics, and culture of Rome. Roman law, preserved in Latin, influenced legal systems throughout Europe for centuries. Although Latin evolved into the Romance languages, it remains the liturgical language of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Phoenician language, spoken in the ancient coastal cities of the Eastern Mediterranean, is primarily known from inscriptions found in places like Byblos, Tyre, and Sidon. Phoenician settlers founded Carthage, and texts from this period also provide evidence of the language. Perhaps the most significant contribution of Phoenician is its alphabet, which influenced the development of the Greek and Latin alphabets.

Sanskrit, the classical language of ancient India, is one of the oldest languages still in use today in religious contexts. The earliest texts in Sanskrit, the Vedas, date back to around 1500 BCE. Sanskrit was used to compose the great Indian epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, and was also employed in philosophical and religious texts such as the Upanishads. Early inscriptions in the Brahmi script, which was used to write Sanskrit and other Indian languages, provide further evidence of its use in ancient India.

Old Persian, the language of the Achaemenid Empire, is known from inscriptions such as the Behistun Inscription, which records the achievements of King Darius I. Written in cuneiform, Old Persian provides evidence of the administrative and royal language of the Persian Empire.

Each of these languages left behind a rich record in the form of texts, inscriptions, and monuments, giving us a detailed understanding of the ancient world. While some languages, like Latin and Sanskrit, have survived in liturgical and academic contexts, others have evolved into modern languages or left behind only remnants of their once-thriving existence. These records, whether carved into stone or written on papyrus, form the foundation of our knowledge about ancient civilizations.