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  • Africa: African Stars, Stories Honored at the Oscars March 11, 2010
    This year, the 82nd annual Academy Awards ceremony, known as the Oscars, reflected the growing influence of African artists -- and issues -- on the American movie industry. […]
  • Somalia: U.S. Should Accept Islamist Authority, Report Says March 11, 2010
    The United States should accept an "Islamist authority" in Somalia as part of a "constructive disengagement" strategy for the war-torn country, according to a new report released here by the influential Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) on Wednesday. […]
  • Rwanda: Human Rights Under Scrutiny Ahead of Polls March 11, 2010
    Rwanda's upcoming presidential elections has cast a spotlight on its democratic credentials, with observers warning that allegations of intimidation of opposition leaders could mar the process. […]
  • Kenya: Minister Flees As Crowds Protest Police Killings March 11, 2010
    Public Health Minister Beth Mugo was on Thursday forced to flee as her constituents held chaotic demonstrations to protest the killing of seven people by the Police. […]
  • Uganda: ICC Petition Backed by Mengo March 11, 2010
    The Mengo establishment has supported a recent petition lodged with The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC), seeking the indictment of President Museveni over the September 2009 riot killings in Kampala and parts of Buganda. […]
  • Nigeria: Protesters Demand to See Yar'Adua March 11, 2010
    Protesting Save Nigeria Group (SNG) has said it is unacceptable that ailing President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua has been incommunicado since he left the country for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia on November 23, 2009. […]
  • Ghana: Volta Chiefs Put Mills On the Carpet March 11, 2010
    Two chiefs in the Volta Region - Togbe Brentua Asafo IV of the Mafi traditional area and Togbe Dzegblade of Adaklu-Kodzobi - have called on President Mills to fulfill all the promises he made to them during his campaign tour of the area in 2008. […]
  • Africa: Copenhagen Accord - What Future for the Climate? March 11, 2010
    As the dust settles after what appeared to be a failed climate change convention in Copenhagen, leaders, delegates and experts have gone back to the drawing board to look at what went wrong and how to avert such in the future. […]
  • Africa: Region Imports U.S.$33 Billion Food Annually March 11, 2010
    Africa imports $33 billion worth of good annually. The continent also gets about $3 billion food aid annually to bridge the gap between domestic food supply and demand, the Secretary General, UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has said. […]
  • Nigeria: Gunmen Kill Two Nollywood Stars March 11, 2010
    Two Edo State Nollywood stars were late Tuesday killed in Benin by gunmen suspected to be hired killers.Mr Erhauyi Ogbeide a.k.a Ukeke and Eghosa Idehen a.k.a Erejiro were killed at the home of Ukeke's father-in-law located at 39, Ore-Oghene Street in Benin at about 8pm. […]

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Africa Linguistics : African scripts, Berber and Tifinagh

The Ancient Scripts website has illustrations and information about old writing systems. The Berber or Tifinagh script is one of the most ancient still in use today. You can find the full script on the website.

The “Berber” script has a very interesting story behind it. Ancient Berber is thought to have sprung off the Punic script roughly around the 6th century BC. It was used throughout North Africa until the 3rd century AD. Strangely though, the inscriptions remain unread, as linguists cannot link the written language to any of the dozen modern Berber languages spoken in North Africa. However, it is widely accepted by scholars that it was a Berber language given the continuity of the population.

Ancient Berber disappeared after the 3rd century AD, first supplanted by the Roman alphabet, and then later by the Arabic alphabet brought by Islam. But by some strange miracle, it is preserved, and still used today mainly by women in Tuareg society. The modern form is called Tifinagh, which scholars believe to mean “Phoenician/Punic letters”. Tifinagh is not used widely for literature or history, but instead for recreation (like for composing letters).

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