Knowra Logogram Logogram A written symbol that represents a word or morpheme rather than a sound or syllable. Logograms can coexist with signs that encode pronunciation in the same writing system.
Grapheme : The smallest functional unit of a writing system, which may represent sound, meaning, or both. Logograms are graphemes whose primary function is to represent words or morphemes.
Chinese characters : Written characters used to represent morphemes and words in Chinese and other languages. They are a large, living example of a writing system with extensive logographic use.
Alphabet : A writing system whose basic signs generally represent individual consonants and vowels. Alphabetic writing primarily encodes speech sounds rather than words or morphemes.
Chinese characters and literacy : The relationship between knowledge of Chinese characters and reading and writing proficiency. Character recognition and production are major parts of literacy education in Chinese.
Morpheme : The smallest linguistic unit that carries meaning or grammatical function. A logogram can represent a morpheme even when it is not a complete spoken word.
Egyptian hieroglyphs : The formal writing system of ancient Egypt, combining signs with logographic, phonetic, and determinative functions. Some hieroglyphs functioned as word signs alongside signs for sounds.
Abjad : A writing system whose basic letters primarily represent consonants, with vowels often omitted or marked secondarily. An abjad encodes consonantal sounds, not lexical units as logograms do.
Literacy : The ability to read and write in a language or writing system. Learning logographic systems involves linking written forms to meaning and language.
Phonogram : A written sign that represents a speech sound or sequence of sounds. Phonograms encode pronunciation, unlike logograms, which represent linguistic meaning.
Sumerian cuneiform : An ancient writing system developed in Mesopotamia, whose signs could represent words, syllables, and other functions. Its early signs included word representations before phonetic uses expanded.
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