19th century – 21st century
Liberia and the Guinea coast
The Vai writing system is presented as an African graphic tradition that was known in Europe during the nineteenth century and may have developed from an earlier pictographic system. Its signs could represent images, plurals, and later phonetic values. The passage associates Vai writing with a wider constellation of West African graphic practices.
Continue exploring
The Story
Vai writing is described as a graphic system used in Liberia and associated with an earlier pictographic tradition recorded on strips of bark. A nineteenth-century account explains how a running figure could express victory over an enemy, while an adjacent dot indicated a large number of fleeing men and a routed army. The example shows how image and convention could work together in the recording of meaning.
The passage states that Vai writing became known in Europe through the discoveries of Eric Bates in 1834 and Koelle in 1849. It also reports that Momolu Masakwo, a nineteenth-century Liberian consul in England, described the principles of the system. These references place Vai writing within a documented nineteenth-century history of observation and description.
The system is interpreted as having moved toward phonetic transcription, although the passage leaves its earlier development uncertain. Vai is grouped with writing traditions associated with Malinke, Mande, Bassa, Guerze, and Kpelle communities, while Wolof and Serer are also said to have received graphic systems based on similar principles. The broader argument presents writing as a persistent feature of African intellectual and political history.
19th century – 21st century
Liberia and the Guinea coast
The Vai writing system is presented as an African graphic tradition that was known in Europe during the nineteenth century and may have developed from an earlier pictographic system. Its signs could represent images, plurals, and later phonetic values. The passage associates Vai writing with a wider constellation of West African graphic practices.
Continue exploring
The Story
Vai writing is described as a graphic system used in Liberia and associated with an earlier pictographic tradition recorded on strips of bark. A nineteenth-century account explains how a running figure could express victory over an enemy, while an adjacent dot indicated a large number of fleeing men and a routed army. The example shows how image and convention could work together in the recording of meaning.
The passage states that Vai writing became known in Europe through the discoveries of Eric Bates in 1834 and Koelle in 1849. It also reports that Momolu Masakwo, a nineteenth-century Liberian consul in England, described the principles of the system. These references place Vai writing within a documented nineteenth-century history of observation and description.
The system is interpreted as having moved toward phonetic transcription, although the passage leaves its earlier development uncertain. Vai is grouped with writing traditions associated with Malinke, Mande, Bassa, Guerze, and Kpelle communities, while Wolof and Serer are also said to have received graphic systems based on similar principles. The broader argument presents writing as a persistent feature of African intellectual and political history.