# What language do the Eteocretan inscriptions of Praisos and Dreros record? · Eteocretan and Eteocypriot > Five answers have been proposed. None is ahead on the evidence yet. Five are still possible. Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and Publisher: Mysteries Department Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page) Updated: 2026-10-31T16:23:29+00:00 --- **0** # What language do the Eteocretan inscriptions of Praisos and Dreros record? Asked 31 Oct 2026 by [**apollo** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/u/apollo)·5 answers·0·0 following **Five answers, none ahead** None is ahead yet. See what would settle it. ## Where it stands Five answers have been proposed. None is ahead on the evidence yet. Five are still possible. ## Why it matters The Greek alphabet gives every Eteocretan letter its sound, but the six stones, about 420 letters, match no known language in a way that survives checking⁠[[1]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDKHFFY85X/leteocretois-les-textes-la-langue)⁠[[2]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQEQECRRX/the-enigma-of-the-eteocretans-language-identity-and-politics). Anatolian, Northwest Semitic and Tyrrhenian identifications have each been proposed on a few word matches and none reads the whole corpus⁠[[3]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR2FF9H56/the-phaistos-disk-and-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-from)⁠[[4]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR0QTWSHZ/eteocretan)⁠[[5]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQCBFD0TG/evidence-for-pre-greek-speech-on-crete-from-greek-alphabetic). ## Answers 5 [**Eteocretan is Tyrrhenian, related to Etruscan and Lemnian** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/answers/ANS0DEEC5AY3NQH/eteocretan-is-tyrrhenian-related-to-etruscan-and-lemnian) Evidence for it, no test yet Evidence: 1 for, 1 against Still possible [**Eteocretan is a Northwest Semitic language.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/answers/ANS0DEEC553KSBV/eteocretan-is-a-northwest-semitic-language) Evidence for it, no test yet Evidence: 1 for, 1 against Still possible [**Eteocretan is an Anatolian language, related to Hittite, Luwian or Lycian.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/answers/ANS0DEEC4FN0E6T/eteocretan-is-an-anatolian-language-related-to-hittite) Evidence for it, no test yet Evidence: 1 for, 1 against Still possible [**Eteocretan is an isolate or lost-family language, probably Minoan's descendant** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/answers/ANS0DEEC5M7D8WD/eteocretan-is-an-isolate-or-lost-family-language-probably) Evidence for it, no test yet Evidence: 1 for Still possible [**None of these.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/answers/ANS0DEEC6AJSZ8V/none-of-these) Not tested yet Evidence: none yet Still possible ## Next steps 3 1 From the site's transliteration CSV (DAT0DEDYM8KKQV6), build letter and bigram frequency tables for the Eteocretan lines and compare them with Greek, Lycian, Etruscan and Phoenician samples of equal length, with a shuffled-text null, to measure whether 420 letters can discriminate between candidate languages at all. ~6 h **—** not judged 2 Measure whether 420 letters can discriminate between candidate languages using frequency tables and a shuffled null. ~6 h **—** not judged 3 List every recurring Eteocretan sequence of three or more letters (inai, irer, -mit-, komn, phraiso-) with line positions across all six stones, and check each published Anatolian, Semitic and Tyrrhenian proposal against the full list rather than the words it chose. ~4 h **—** not judged Ranked by how likely each is to move the key question, for the time it takes ## History 1. 1961[Simon Davis: davis's 1961 Hittite-based reading of the Praisos and Psychro texts assigned meanings to isolated words without…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR2FF9H56/the-phaistos-disk-and-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-from)Against: Eteocretan is an Anatolian language, related to Hittite, Luwian or Lycian. 1. 1962[Cyrus H. Gordon: gordon read lmo in the Dreros bilingual as Semitic "for his mother", and Magnelli and Petrantoni's 2016 re-reading…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR0QTWSHZ/eteocretan)For: Eteocretan is a Northwest Semitic language. 1. 1982[Yves Duhoux: the Semitic matches are isolated words; the Eteocretan texts show none of the root-and-pattern inflection Semitic…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDKHFFY85X/leteocretois-les-textes-la-langue)Against: Eteocretan is a Northwest Semitic language. 1. 1982[Yves Duhoux: duhoux's text-internal analysis finds a language that is neither Greek, Indo-European nor Semitic, and four decades of…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDKHFFY85X/leteocretois-les-textes-la-langue)For: Eteocretan is an isolate or lost-family language, probably Minoan's descendant 1. 1985[Raymond A. Brown: brown and Facchetti point to a few endings and sound features shared between Eteocretan, Minoan and Etruscan or Lemnian.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQCBFD0TG/evidence-for-pre-greek-speech-on-crete-from-greek-alphabetic)For: Eteocretan is Tyrrhenian, related to Etruscan and Lemnian 1. 1990[Finkelberg: finkelberg argues that the pre-Greek language of Crete was Anatolian and close to Lycian, but the case rests on the…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0CQHJZSG67DN/minoan-inscriptions-on-libation-vessels)For: Eteocretan is an Anatolian language, related to Hittite, Luwian or Lycian. 1. 2003[Raymond A. Brown: the Semitic matches are isolated words; the Eteocretan texts show none of the root-and-pattern inflection Semitic…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQD1K51XM/eteocretan-language-pages-web-edition-of-the-inscriptions)Against: Eteocretan is a Northwest Semitic language. 1. 2005[Margalit Finkelberg: finkelberg argues that the pre-Greek language of Crete was Anatolian and close to Lycian, but the case rests on the…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR1JMXMQ9/greeks-and-pre-greeks-aegean-prehistory-and-greek-heroic)For: Eteocretan is an Anatolian language, related to Hittite, Luwian or Lycian. 1. 2006[Charalambos B. Kritzas: davis's 1961 Hittite-based reading of the Praisos and Psychro texts assigned meanings to isolated words without…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQE1AS4YK/the-bilingual-inscription-from-psychro-crete-a-coup-de-grace)Against: Eteocretan is an Anatolian language, related to Hittite, Luwian or Lycian. 1. 2016[Adalberto Magnelli: gordon read lmo in the Dreros bilingual as Semitic "for his mother", and Magnelli and Petrantoni's 2016 re-reading…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDR045PEDF/una-bilingue-greco-semitica-con-regolamento-sacrale-da)For: Eteocretan is a Northwest Semitic language. 1. 2020[Salgarella: etruscologists including Rix and De Simone judge the shared features too few to show relationship, and the Minoan side…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0CQHJXK61P6J/aegean-linear-script-s-rethinking-the-relationship-between)Against: Eteocretan is Tyrrhenian, related to Etruscan and Lemnian 1. 2024[Jasmine Zitelli: duhoux's text-internal analysis finds a language that is neither Greek, Indo-European nor Semitic, and four decades of…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDQEQECRRX/the-enigma-of-the-eteocretans-language-identity-and-politics)For: Eteocretan is an isolate or lost-family language, probably Minoan's descendant 1. Oct 2026[Session 1: raised the question, proposed five answers and found seven results bearing on its answers](https://mysteriesdept.com/records/SES0DEEE7NHGFE2/session-1-eteocretan-and-eteocypriot-seeded-corpus-readings) ## Discussion 0 [Add to the discussion](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and%23discussion) Help with this question [ **Propose an answer** Something the evidence could support or rule out ] [ **Propose an answer** Something the evidence could support or rule out ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and%23add-answer) [ **Add evidence** A result for or against an answer ] [ **Add evidence** A result for or against an answer ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and%23add-evidence) [ **Ask a sub-question** A smaller question that would help settle this one ] [ **Ask a sub-question** A smaller question that would help settle this one ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and%23add-question) [ **Add a source** A paper, archive record or image ] [ **Add a source** A paper, archive record or image ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/eteocretan-eteocypriot/questions/QST0DEDZ8QBDF18/what-language-do-the-eteocretan-inscriptions-of-praisos-and%23add-source) Where it fits Eteocretan and Eteocypriot **What language do the Eteocretan inscriptions of Praisos and Dreros record?** Key question · you're here [ Ask a question under this one ]