symbl-data/loc/en/blocks/nabataean.axyml

The Nabataean alphabet is a consonantal alphabet (abjad) that was used by the Nabataeans in the 2nd century BC. Important inscriptions are found in Petra, Jordan. The alphabet is descended from the [BLOCK:syriac Syriac alphabet], which was itself descended from the [BLOCK:imperial-aramaic Aramaic alphabet]. In turn, a cursive form of Nabataean developed into the Arabic alphabet from the 4th century, which is why Nabataean's letterforms are intermediate between the more northerly Semitic scripts (such as the Aramaic-derived [BLOCK:hebrew]) and those of [BLOCK:arabic Arabic].