Changes

Perhaps the most important cultural innovation of the Phoenicians was the development of the alphabet around 1000 BC. It appears that the Canaanites had developed the first phonetic alphabet and it was used by several peoples such as the Moabites. Based on the evidence it would appear that the Phoenicians contributed to the development of this alphabet and it appears that they used it widely in their commercial enterprises. They helped to popularize the use of the alphabet and many cultures including the Greeks and Hebrews adopted it. Over time, many national languages used their writing system. This alphabet was one of the most important inventions in all of human history. It was different from hieroglyphs, used by many societies in the Levant as it was not based on signs, but on the sounds of speech that people made. The consonants were combined with vowels to form words and sentences and allowed individuals to engage in much more complex communications than previously. This allowed bureaucrats and others to keep more effective records and made governments more efficient. Ordinary people, such as traders could learn the alphabet and become literate, which revolutionized many aspects of life. The impact of this system for writing was to have a profound impact on the Greeks, they adopted it, as they emerged from their Dark Ages. Scholars believe that the Hebrew alphabet is a regional variant of the one used in Phoenicia. Today, the script developed and transmitted by the inhabitants of cities such as Sidon, Tyre and Byblos, forms the basis for most of the globe’s alphabets<ref>Diringer, David, and H. Freeman. A History of the Alphabet (London, Unwin Brothers, 1977), p. 8, 89, 112</ref>.

As was the case with other urban and mercantile societies Phoenicia developed sophisticated political systems. The governments of these city-states was initially organized around kings, the priesthood and a council of elders. These increasingly became oligarchic in nature over time. The Phoenicians were among the first to develop political institutions other than that of monarchy in the Levant. There are those who claim that they introduced a limited form of democracy, centuries before the Greeks. There is evidence that during religious festivities that citizens of cities such as Sidon would vote for candidates for the assembly. These democratic practices were transmitted to outposts such as Carthage. We can have a better understanding of the nature of Punic institutions by studying the constitution of Carthage. It was an oligarchical republic where citizens could elect two presidents called Suffetes. It even had a popular assembly and trade unions. The Phoenician’s political system is deemed to have been very influential in the development of governments in the Classical period. There are those who claim that Greek city-states such as Athens were influenced by the governments of cities such as Sidon and Tyre. It is also possible that they also introduced democratic institutions and practices to the Etruscans who later transmitted them to the Romans <ref>Stockwell, Stephen. "Before Athens: Early popular government in Phoenicia and Greek city-states." In The Secret History of Democracy, pp. 35-48. Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2011</ref>.