ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Oracle bone script

Oracle bone script is a very old way of writing that was used in China over 3,000 years ago. People at that time used it to record questions they had about the future, like if they would have a good harvest or if their family would be healthy.

The way they wrote with oracle bone script is quite different than the way we write now. Instead of using letters like we do, they made marks on bones. These bones were usually from animals and were used again and again until they were completely covered in marks.

The marks that people made in oracle bone script were very special because they were used to communicate with the gods. The marks looked like pictures of different things, like animals, people, or plants, and each one had its own meaning. The people who wrote with oracle bone script could ask the gods questions by making different marks on the bones and then they would heat the bones up until they cracked. The lines of the cracks showed the answer to the question they asked.

Although oracle bone script is very different from the writing we use today, it was the beginning of the Chinese writing system. People continued to develop and change the way they wrote until they got closer and closer to the way we write now. Isn't that fascinating, little one?