Owens, Gareth Alun; (1993) From linear A to linear B. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

This study aims to construct a coherent framework within which the scripts of Late Minoan Crete can be related to each other. This is achieved by a combination of archaeological, epigraphical and philological evidence. If the scripts of Late Minoan Crete can be studied diachronically and related to each other, then a better understanding can be gained working from the known i.e. the Mycenaean Greek of Linear B to the unknown i.e. the Minoan language of the Linear A script. The development of writing on Late Minoan Crete is clarified by combining the archaeological and epigraphical evidence, and the transition from Linear A to Linear B is thus better understood. An interdisciplinary study of the material creates a better understanding of the Late Minoan period on Crete. This study builds upon the scholarship of the last 40 years since the decipherment of Linear B, as well as taking into account recent archaeological discoveries of inscriptions written in the Cretan scripts. The transition from Linear A to Linear B is better understood as a result of considering the c.3000 Linear B tablets and fragments rediscovered in 1984, and the more than 30 Linear A inscriptions discovered since the 1985 publication of the Linear A corpus. This new material allows observations to be based on more information than hitherto possible. The study of Minoan Linear A is therefore based upon an accurate reading of an enlarged corpus. Finally philological observations and conclusions are drawn concerning the Minoan language recorded by the Linear A script. This is necessary before a future decipherment can be undertaken with any prospect of success.

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