The Curious Manuscript

In today’s digital world, note-taking is effortless thanks to technology. We can record meetings, conversations, and ideas using various apps or traditional recording methods. However, before these modern conveniences, note-taking was more challenging and relied on a technique known as shorthand.

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, shorthand was initially created by the Greek historian Xenophon. Its widespread use, however, began in the Roman Empire, where it allowed people to write quickly as they spoke. This Latin shorthand system was in use for over a thousand years before it nearly vanished during the Middle Ages.

Shorthand saw a resurgence during the Victorian Era and was also employed during the Reformation to facilitate the transcription of Bible translations. The need for stenographers during the Industrial Revolution led to the development of modern shorthand systems.

In 1837, Sir Isaac Pitman introduced a modern version of shorthand, which his brother later brought to the United States in 1852. While Pitman’s system was popular in Britain, it was eventually superseded in the U.S. by John Robert Gregg’s system, originally known as Light-Line Phonography (1888) and later renamed Gregg Shorthand.

The term “longhand” refers to the traditional writing method with extended strokes, whereas shorthand simplifies letters to make note-taking faster. Because shorthand symbols often bear little resemblance to the actual words they represent, they can look like an ancient script. The various dots and loops used to abbreviate letters and sounds can sometimes make shorthand appear more similar to Arabic than to English.

With Gregg Shorthand, users could transcribe up to 280 words per minute once they became proficient. Although less common today, shorthand is still utilized in fields such as law, medicine, and secretarial work.

What are your thoughts on shorthand? Have you used it or do you know someone who has? Share your experiences and help others learn more about this fascinating method of writing!