CHAR 



tfiauctrr. those marks or figures originated, which are proper- 

 s -"-r~ " Jy known by tin- ti mi (ii\u.\( i I.KS, which are, in 

 fact, conventional signs, more or lesH general in their 

 application, invented and employed for denoting and 

 suggesting such objects of thought aft it is found 

 either impracticable or inconvenient to exhibit by 

 picture or immediate delineation. 



In every branch of knowledge, therefore, CHARAC- 

 TERS may be introduced and employed. To multi- 

 ply them, however, too much, would impede instead 

 of facilitating the means of mutual communication : 

 their number and varieties will be determined by the 

 necessity or convenience which may render this aid 

 to oral language desirable. When a series of cha- 

 racters have been invented and brought into use, sus- 

 ceptible of very general application, the necessity of 

 other classes of more limited use is in a great measure 

 superseded. When characters adapted to express 

 all the words of a language have been formed, it will 

 not often be necessary to devise or retain separate 

 sets for denoting the terms of each particular sci- 

 ence. Experience, however, has shewn, that even 

 where general characters are in use, there are parti- 

 cular subjects, in which vast advantage will be found 

 from employing appropriate and distinctive charac- 

 ters ; convenience or habit may likewise, in certain 

 branches of knowledge, occasionally bring into, or 

 keep in use, peculiar symbols, which, though not ab- 

 solutely necessary, may be useful, as furnishing means 

 of easy and expeditious expression. Different species 

 of characters will thus arise, none of them without 

 their appropriate use. It is, however, always to be 

 wished, that, in every case, the characters employed 

 be distinct and clear in their form, easily recognised 

 and understood, and never so extended or multiplied 

 as to fatigue and encumber, instead of aiding the me- 

 mory and understanding. 



It would be an almost endless task to go through 

 all the various kinds and classes of characters, invent- 

 ed and employed for denoting the objects of thought ; 

 it will be sufficient to take notice of such as, from 

 their intrinsic importance and general use, particularly 

 merit attention. 



The species of characters most commonly in use, 

 may be arranged under the heads of LITERAL CHA- 

 RACTERS, NUMERAL CHARACTERS, and SYMBOLICAL 

 CHARACTERS. 



1. LITERAL CHARACTERS, including all such as 

 are used for den .ting language in general. 



These may be distinguished into alphabttic charaC' 

 ters, used for denoting the elemental sounds of lan- 

 guage, and, by combination, expressing all the vari- 

 eties of words ; and real characters, employed or in- 

 tended as the signs of things or ideas independent of 

 sounds. For a hill account of both, in regard to 

 their nature, origin, and use, see ALPHABET. Of 

 these two kinds of character, alphabetic characters 

 art by far most generally in use. The adoption of the 

 real or ideal characters appears to be confined to the 

 Chinese, or the nations immediately connected with 

 China. Judging no les> from reason than experience, 

 we are fully warranted in asserting the immense su- 

 periority of alphabetic writing. 



The form of alphabetic characters differs much 

 amoiig different people. The Hebrew, or some of 

 its kindred dialects, may pmb.ibly cl.'tnn the highest 

 antiquity; from its cognate tiie Piicemciun, arose 



ACTER. 719 



tin- old Pclasgic and Grecian alphabet*; from the*c O>- 

 was formed the Latin character, in common UK through ^""V^ 

 the greater part of Europe to the present day. Toe 

 iSyriac, Chaidee, and Arabic character, were evident* 

 ly formed from the ancient Hebrew, which was in 

 use before the BabylonUh captivity, and is mil found 

 on some medals, commonly termed Samaritan, 

 square Hebrew at present in use, was only introdu- 

 ced among the Jews subsequent to the captivity. The 

 Greek character, in more ancient times, consisted en- 

 tirely of majuscule letters, or capitals; and it is this 

 mode of writing alone which in found in all the an* 

 cient inscriptions and medals, as well as in those ma- 

 nuscripts that are not of modern date. The smaller 

 Greek character is comparatively a recent invention. 

 Medalists observe, that the Greek character preser- 

 ved its uniformity down to the time of Gallienus, af- 

 ter which it appears weaker and rounder. From the 

 time of Const-inline to Michael, the Latin character 

 chiefly prevails ; the Greek characters then recom- 

 mence, though altered, in some respects like the lan- 

 guage, by the mixture of Latin. The Latin medals 

 preserved their character, as well as language, till the 

 translation of the empire to Constantinople. Before 

 the time of Decius, the Latin character began to lose 

 its roundness and beauty ; and after the time of Jus* 

 tin gradually degenerated into the Gothic. The mo- 

 dern European character, formed from the Latin, is 

 too well known to require any particular notice. It 

 is used in most parts of Europe. The Germans, how- 

 ever, have a peculiar character, compounded of the 

 Gothic and Latin ; but of late, even among them, 

 the Roman character used in the other European 

 countries has been gaining ground, and may proba- 

 bly in time supersede the other. The modern Greeks 

 still adhere to the proper Greek character ; and the 

 Russians make use of a charac'er of their own, for- 

 med in part from the Greek capitals, though in se- 

 veral of the letters considerably altered. The Orien- 

 tal alphabets are numerous, and their characters ex- 

 tremely diversified. The figures of the letters are 

 frequently complicated and inelegant, and may, in 

 general, be pronounced inferior, both for beauty and 

 convenience, to the ancient Greek or the modem Eu- 

 ropean character Specimens of different kinds of 

 character, as well ancient as modern, are given under 

 the article already referred to. 



The REAL CHARACTER is constructed on different 

 principles from the alphabetic. The object of the 

 latter is to express, by figures, \\iejumlamcntal sounds 

 of speech, separately, or in their vanoua combinations. 

 The object of the former, or real character, is to ex- 

 press only things or ideas, without regard to the par- 

 ticular sounds by which these are communicated in 

 speech, so that persons, whose oral language is total- 

 ly dissimilar, may, by the ue of this species' of charac- 

 ter, at once understand and communicate with each 

 other, though their sjiCtch may be mutua>ly unintelli- 

 gible. Such is actually the case with the written 

 characters of the Ctiinese and Japanese ; and such, 

 though in a morehmittd degree, is the case in regard 

 to the numeral characters of the inhabitants of mo- 

 dern Europe. For an account of the RKAI. CHARAC- 

 TER see the above mentioned article ALi'iiAin 



The only people among whom the rcJ character 

 appears to have come into actual use, are the Chi- 

 nese, and those immediately connected with them > 



