Alphabetic Literacy and Brain Processes

Abstract

Several relationships are explored in this paper to support the hypothesis that writing systems affect cognitive strategies at a deeper level of human information-processing than is generally accepted in present-day psychology. It appears reasonable to claim that the structure of orthographies is strongly correlated with the specific linguistic features of the language they represent. The Greek alphabet developed in the high density area of different Mediterranean cultures and its lineage combines features of the Sumerian and the Egyptian scripts. However, it was worked out as an adaptation to the specific needs of the Greek language. The word "alphabet" presents enough ambiguity to warrant a category distinction between consonantal and vocalic types of alphabetic systems. Both types require different processing strategies. Among the indicators of such differences, it has been observed that both orthographies adopted different orientations. In almost all varieties of alphabets and syllabaries, consonantal systems have been written leftwards while vocalic ones have been written to the right. Why? The answer to this question may be found in different neurophysiological constraints imposed on the brain by different types of orthographies.