SHORTHAND - A BRIEF INTRODUCTION
Shorthand is an abbreviated, symbolic writing method that improves speed of writing or brevity as compared to a normal method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is stenography, from the Greek stenos (narrow, close) and graphos (writing). Many forms of shorthand exist. Typical shorthand systems provide symbols or abbreviations for words and common phrases, which allow someone well trained in the system to write as quickly as people speak.
Shorthand was used more widely in the past, before the invention of recording and dictation machines. Until recently, shorthand was considered an essential part of secretarial and journalist training. Although the primary use of shorthand has been to record oral dictation or discourse, some systems are used for compact expression. For example, health-care professionals may use shorthand notes in medical charts and correspondence. Shorthand notes are typically temporary, intended for later transcription to longhand.
The earliest known
indication of shorthand systems is from Ancient Greece, namely the
Akropolis stone (Akropolisstein) from mid-4th Century BC. The marble
plate shows a writing system primarily based on vowels and which uses
certain modifications to indicate consonants.
The Hellenistic
tachygraphy is reported from the 2nd Century BC onwards, though there
are indications that it might be older. The oldest datable reference is
a contract from middle Egypt stating that Oxyrhynchos gives his Greek
slave to the "semeiographer" Apollonios for two years to be taught
shorthand writing. The Hellenistic tachygraphy consisted of word stem
signs and of word ending signs. Over the time, many syllabic signs were
developed.
TEELINE
Teeline was developed in 1970 by the Pitman teacher James Hill as a streamlined way to transcribe the spoken word quickly by removing unnecessary letters from words and making the letters themselves faster to write. Vowels are often removed when they are not the first or last letter of a word, and silent letters are also ignored. It differs from many shorthand systems by basing itself on the alphabet as opposed to phonetics, making it more simple to learn but also carrying the speed limitations of the alphabet when compared to other systems. Still, speeds above 140 words-per-minute are not uncommon. For a full online course, check out the excellent http://www.geocities.com/coursesite/teeline.htm
PITMAN
Pitman
shorthand was developed by Sir Isaac Pitman who unleashed it on the
world in 1837. In common with most systems it is phonetic, meaning the
symbols do not represent letters, but rather sounds, and words are, for
the most part, written as they are spoken.
Another distinguishing feature is that there is more than one way of
indicating vowels. The main vowel of a word or phrase is indicated by
the position of the stroke with respect to the rules of the notebook.
(For example, a small circle drawn above the line translates to as/has
and the same circle drawn on the line translates to is/his.) However,
there is a more straightforward way of indicating vowels, which is to
use dots or small dashes drawn close to the stroke of the preceding
consonant. The type of vowel is dependent on the relative position of
the dot or dash to the stroke (beginning, middle, or end).
There are at least three "dialects" of Pitman's shorthand: the original Pitman's, Pitmanā019s New Era and Pitman 2000.
The later versions dropped certain symbols and introduced other
simplifications to earlier versions. For example, strokes "rer" (heavy
curved downstroke) and "kway", (hooked horizontal straight stroke) are
present in Pitman's New Era, but not in Pitman's 2000. Pitman, once the
most popular shorthand system learnt, has now been matched or
superceded by Gregg in the US, and rivaled by Teeline in the UK.
GREGG
Pitman,
once the most popular shorthand system learnt, has now been matched or
superceded by Gregg in the US, and rivaled by Teeline in the UK. Gregg
Shorthand is phonetic, which means it records the sounds of the
speaker, not the English spelling. It uses the f stroke for the f sound in funnel, telephone, and laugh. All silent letters are omitted.
Throughout the history of Gregg shorthand, numerous different forms of
Gregg have been created. All the systems are similar and use the same
alphabet, but they differ in memory load and speed. Pre-Anniversary is
the fastest, and most condensed version, but it is also has the largest
memory load. Series 90 Gregg has the smallest memory load, but it is
also the slowest version of Gregg. For an excellent guide to Gregg (and
free books from which to learn) see http://gregg.angelfishy.net/ or sign up to the Gregg forum at http://groups.msn.com/GreggShorthand/