Lost Languages: The Enigma of the World's Undeciphered Scripts

This is the first book I've ever bought (or read) that deals solely with the deciphering of scripts. I'm going to try not to get into a really long and elaborate review, like several other people have already done, but I did really enjoy the book. Someone said that it's basically a rehash of information that had already been published, but I personally didn't know most of the things in the book, so I found it to be extremely informative and fascinating. However, while I enjoyed the chapters on the "deciphered" scripts (Egyptian hieroglyphics, Linear B, and the Mayan glyphs), it's UNdeciphered scripts that I'm most interested in, so it's "Part Two" of the book that fascinates me most. I especially like the chapters on rongorongo and the Phaistos Disc. (Even if the Phaistos Disc does turn out to be a hoax, whoever came up with it sure did a good job of making it seem "real," at least to me!) I am a bit disappointed, though, by the chapter on the Proto-Elamite script, because I don't care so much about how ancient people counted, and it seems as though "noting economic records" (to quote the book) MAY (I stress MAY) be all that Proto-Elamite was used for. (I have to say also that I got lost while trying to read about how the Mayan calendar worked! It was too much for me to be able to follow!) Several times through the course of the book, the author reminds us of the dangers of script decipherment, and what approaches should and should NOT be taken; he gives many examples of crackpot theories and "decipherments" that have been put forward, and explains how they're flawed. (I even found the chapter on rongorongo to be good for a few laughs!) Personally, I really don't think I'm ever going to try deciphering any scripts, but like I said, I did really enjoy this book! I think it's great overall; I give it five stars!

If I could have any one thing come to pass (within reason) in linguistics, it would be a decipherment of the Indus Valley script. But no matter what your personal obsession - Rongorongo, perhaps, or Linear "A", or maybe just a basic interest in how linguists try (and sometimes succeed) to decipher the unknown writings of the world - there is likely to be much in "Lost Languages" that will interest and entertain you. It is primarily an introduction to the subject for the general reader, although it seems likely that even a specialist will not necessarily be familiar with all the languages included here.Robinson begins with the story of three formerly undeciphered scripts that have now been (more or less) successfully deciphered: Egyptian hieroglyphs, Linear B, and (to a somewhat lesser extent) Mayan glyphs. This sets the stage for short chapters on important but so-far undeciphered scripts: Meroitic, Etruscan, Linear A, Proto-Elamite, Rongorongo, Zapotec, Isthmian (Mexico), Indus Valley, and the Phaistos Disc. Robinson shows how the principles of decipherment have been applied to these scripts, explains why they remain largely undeciphered at present, and offers a reasoned estimate of their chances for successful decipherment in the future.As an introduction to the field of decipherment this is, I think, a very successful book. Naturally it lacks the details to be found in more specialized studies, but Robinson clearly articulates the basic principles of decipherment and their application to these very interesting scripts. Examples are given for the reader to work out, and other examples show how would-be decipherers, both famous and not-so-famous, have sometimes gone wrong. One could only wish for the inclusion of more scripts (why not cunieform?) and more in-depth coverage, but as an introduction, "Lost Languages" fulfills its purpose admirably. Maybe someone who reads this book will "catch the bug," go on to more advanced study, and - who knows? - someday find the key to one of these enigmatic writings.

Like Robinson's previous book, The Story of Writing, this is good reading.In the first part of the book, Robinson describes the various types of writing systems people have developed over time. Many of the ancient writing systems are no longer in use. He explains the techniques used to decipher three of them, as well as some of the dead-end approaches which led nowhere. These chapters are interesting in their own right, but also provide an excellent foundation for the subsequent chapters.In the second part of the book, Robinson describes a number of unsolved scripts. He provides enough information on each script for the reader to get a feel for the writing system and to understand the challenges involved. He also describes various attempts to decode the scripts.Throughout the book Robinson describes the sometimes eccentric and obsessive personalities who have worked on deciphering the various scripts, along with some of the more far-fetched explanations offered up by some researchers.The book is full of excellent graphics.I don't agree - on either a technical or substantive level - with Robinson's thought-provoking comments in the introductory and concluding chapters that deciphering lost scripts is on a par with cracking the genetic code and other great scientific discoveries. The topic of lost scripts is fascinating, but let's not overdo it! This is a minor quibble because he spends only a few pages on these ideas.The book will be of interest to people who are curious about things or who like to solve puzzles, and would be a good starting point for getting into further research if you are so inclined.