Ancient Greek Alphabet Paperweight in Gold-Plated BrassThe Greek writing system was developed in Greece about 1000 BCE. It is the direct or indirect ancestor of all modern European alphabets. Before the 5th century BCE the Greek alphabet could be divided into two principal branches: the Ionic (eastern) and the Chalcidian (western). Differences between the two branches were minor. The Chalcidian alphabet probably gave rise to the Etruscan alphabet of Italy in the 8th century BCE and hence indirectly to the