Who wrote the first letter in the world?

Who wrote the first letter in the world? This query might have bothered many. Well, the answer is Queen Atossa of the Persian Empire. Though there is no solid proof regarding who wrote the first letter in the world, most evidence available points towards this Persian queen.

Writing a letter in today’s time seems rather archaic since we now live in a world dominated by social media. Today, all our loved ones are just a phone call or an e-mail away. Yet, have you ever wondered when the world’s first letter was written?

There was a time when people had no choice but only to write a letter if they wanted to convey a message. May it be their distant relatives or friends, they were needed to scribe a few words (or in some cases even figures) to send it to the receiver. Then, either special messengers were being sent to physically visit the place of the receiver to hand over the writing, or in some cases, even birds were being used. Yet, this process usually took days, months, and even sometimes years.

While there is no concrete proof regarding when the world’s first letter was written or by whom, evidence of the first ever written letter points towards the Persian Empire. This historic beginning of a new genre commenced around 500 BC.

It is generally believed that Queen Atossa of the Persian Empire wrote and sent the first ever letter in recorded history.

She was only 28 years old when she ascended the throne and became the queen. Atossa, the eldest daughter of Cyrus the Great, was born in 550 BC.

The meaning of her name is ‘bestowing very richly’ or ‘well granting’. She was well-educated and could read and write. She was also a powerful and influential queen.

According to ancient historian Hellanicus, Atossa wrote the first letter in history. However, the contents of this letter are extinct. Despite this fact, Professor Brid McGrath of Trinity College in Dublin says it is the most important letter in history since it established a genre.

It influenced people to be just as literate as Queen Atossa and made letters a regular and effective way of communication. It led to the evolution of industries that produced writing materials. Besides, it became the precursor for the postal services of today’s world.

We might consider writing letters as old-fashioned, but we cannot deny its significance and influence on modern long-distance communication.

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