After believing all these years that Arabic script derives from
Aramaic script via the Nabateans, who linked the letters together with a more cursive style, I encountered Gerard Troupeau's "Reflexions sur l'origine syriaque de l'ecriture arabe" (pp.
11-36) deals with the use of the paleo-Hebrew script, the adoption of the
Aramaic script by the Jews, and the Samaritan alphabet.
Naveh, "The Development of the
Aramaic Script," Proceedings of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities 5.1 (1970): 36-37.
Al-Theeb noted that among the most important writings are the Nabatean scripts in the Kingdom's Al-Qassim region; Al-Safa'i writings in the country's northern region; Aldadaniyah writings in Al-Ula region; along with the
Aramaic scripts, which are among the most important writings in the world.
107-9), as well as the diagnostic differences between Old Hebrew, Phoenician, and
Aramaic scripts, will very likely be passed over by the "non-technical" audience to whom he devotes this book.
The first must see is Madain Saleh north of Madinah; it is home to 131 tombs, 45 of which carry inscriptions in late
Aramaic scripts. A permit is required to visit but is not difficult to get.
Despite the prevailing controversy among scholars concerning the religious background of magic text formulas in various
Aramaic scripts and dialects, certain bowl texts show undoubtable Jewish contents and lore, although not all Aramaic square-script bowl texts contain Jewish themes.