Dr Zalloua and his researchers taking DNA samples from fishermen in Byblos the Phoenicians can also be seen in mythology – the god Adonis was Phoenician, originating in Byblos, before he became a part of Greek mythology. The city of Byblos supplied papyrus for writing – it was so well-known for this that the Greeks came to use the name of the city for their books, giving us the words “Bible” and “bibliography”. Yet the Phoenicians and their trading empire would mysteriously vanish from history. Could any traces of these “forgotten” people be found among the modern Lebanese, or their descendants in the lands they colonised? The latest discoveries in genetic profiling were used to solve the riddle.
Phoenician alphabet, unlike the vast number in other systems such as hieroglyphics, made the art of writing easier to learn, and greatly advanced the spread of knowledge. The letters of the Phoenician alphabet were adopted by the Greeks, and through them were passed down to become our modern alphabet. The creation of the alphabet is perhaps the greatest and most enduring legacy of the Phoenicians – a true cornerstone in world culture. Connecting East and West, the Phoenicians helped to carry much of the knowledge of eastern civilizations, such as Egypt and Babylon, to the world of the Greeks, who would benefit from it in giving birth to their Classical Age, and the beginning of Western civilization. The influence of