A TRIP DOWN THE TRANSCRIPTION HISTORY LANE

Transcription can be described as writing out text from audio to readable texts. The art has been around
as long as humanity invented civilization. Here is a little backstory on how transcribing grew into the
industry it is today.

The History of Transcription

History class may have taught you about hieroglyphics, the form of writing that has adorned the walls of
Egypt as far back as 3400 BCE. This is one of the earliest known forms of transcription. Young Egyptians
would attend schools where they would spend an immense amount of time trying to learn how to
correctly write up the shapes and symbols to write them on the wall. The learning was so intensive, it
could take at least 5 years to master it.

Around this time and well, religion was quickly spreading and the demand for scribes who could
preserve the teachings into something solid that could be read for generations. Judaism was one of the
religions that invested a lot in having qualified scribes who could help them spread the gospel of their
belief. The scribes then transcribed a lot more than just religious teachings. They wrote stories brought
by travelling merchants, laws passed on by the government and more.

Transcription Goes East

In China, diviners trained to become scribes so that they could write the messages of the gods. They
wrote them initially on tortoise shells before they invented paper later during the Common Era.

In separate areas of the world, philosophy was catching on fast and philosophers like Aristotle and Plato
were spreading their philosophies to everyone who wanted to follow. In areas where they could not go
to, words of their philosophies got there in time.

Due to the large amount of talking that required transcription, scribes invented writing shorthand.
Shorthand is a form of writing that uses shortened words. While this is more common today and has
been spread more by the adaptation of text messages, its entry into the transcription industry was an
adaptation tactic by the scribes.

Shorthand helped increase the transcription speed for many scribes, enabling them to write more
content faster.

Essentially, this was the Twitter of the old age and through the texts transcribed education was elevated
from just oral teachings to readable texts.

Digital Technology Meets Transcription

The 80s were a golden era in transcription as computers were made available to the public. People were
able to incorporate computers to help them transcribe better and faster.

Today, digital tools allow scribes to do their jobs better and with a lot more expertise.

Today, transcribing has evolved into a big industry that enables people to create a lot. From subtitles on
movies to enabling people with hearing abilities to read and understand videos, the amount of change
that the simple art of transcription has done is extensive all over the world.
Experts today are using transcription to aid in the preservation of education, business prospects,
articles, video content and more. As the content field grows bigger and bigger each day, transcription
becomes more of a necessity.

If you are looking for transcription services, ensure you enlist with the experts.