Why do Arabs write from right to left

Arabic script is very different from Cyrillic and Latin. And this difference is not only in the form of the letters themselves. In Arabic, words cannot be split and transferred to another line. There are no capital letters in this script and because of this, even the names look like ordinary words. But the main feature of this language remains that the Arabs do not write from left to right, as we do, but from right to left. Why did this happen?

Scientists still cannot come to a consensus on the origin of the direction of Arabic writing. Its formation took place over centuries and was influenced by many different factors. It was based on the Nabataean letter, which appeared on the basis of Aramaic and Phoenician.

The very first writing system that has common features with Arabic was Proto-Sinai. This letter included 30 characters and was distributed in the Sinai Peninsula in 1500 BC. From him came the Phoenician and Canaanite scripts used between 1500 and 1050 BC.

On the basis of the Phoenician script, Aramaic, Hebrew, Greek and Nabataean arose. From the latter, the modern Arabic originated. There were 22 characters in the Nabataean alphabet and it was used from the 2nd century BC to the 4th century AD. Then this language, like many others, simply ceased to exist.

All the listed ancient languages, with the exception of Greek, had one thing in common. The first entries on them were made on stones and at the same time from right to left. They wrote with a hammer and chisel and the process was very noisy and time-consuming. It was the hammer, according to some scientists, that played a major role in shaping the direction of the letter. To date, this is the most plausible version.

Most people, both today and in ancient times, are right—handed. It is quite obvious that it is more convenient to carve something on stone, holding a hammer in your right hand, from right to left. Later, when more technological media such as parchment and papyrus appeared, it was too late to change anything - writing was formed and became familiar to everyone.

In general, the inscriptions in Arabic look unusual and very attractive. Even a simple "ha-ha-ha" in this language looks exquisite.