Letters

The constituent parts of an alphabet, distinguished by form, name, and sound. The primitive forms of early letters have been traced by some to picture writing, and the objects so represented are said to have originated the early names: thus, the ox—“aleph,” used as a symbol, has become letter A; “beth”—a house, has become B; “ghimel”—a camel, has become G, or C, and so on. See Phonology .