data/linear_b/README.md

Linear B (Mycenaean Greek) Dataset

Structured dataset for Linear B inscriptions and Mycenaean Greek vocabulary, compiled from CC-BY-SA compatible open sources.

Files

• linear_b_signs.tsv — Full sign inventory (211 signs: 88 syllabograms + 123 ideograms)
• sign_to_ipa.json — 74 syllabogram transliterations mapped to IPA values
• linear_b_words.tsv — 2,478 words with transliterations, IPA, glosses, and source attribution
• README.md — This file

Sign Inventory (linear_b_signs.tsv)

Columns: Codepoint, Unicode_Char, Bennett_Number, Name, Type, Transliteration, IPA

• 88 syllabograms (U+10000-U+1007F): 74 with confirmed phonetic values, 14 undeciphered symbols
• 123 ideograms (U+10080-U+100FF): logograms for commodities, animals, vessels, etc.
• Bennett numbers follow the standard Mycenological numbering system
• Source: Unicode Character Database (Unicode Terms license, permissive)

Sign-to-IPA Mapping (sign_to_ipa.json)

74 syllabogram transliterations mapped to IPA phonetic values based on the Ventris decipherment (1952) and CIPEM standard conventions.

Key systematic mappings (Reference: Ventris & Chadwick 1973, Hooker 1980):

• q-series → labiovelars /kʷ/ (e.g., qa → kʷa)
• z-series → affricates /ts/ (e.g., za → tsa)
• j → palatal glide /j/
• w → labio-velar glide /w/
• r-series covers both /r/ and /l/ (Linear B does not distinguish)
• Variant signs: a2 → ha (aspiration), pu2 → pʰu (aspirated), ra2 → rja (palatalized)

Word List (linear_b_words.tsv)

Columns: Word, IPA, SCA, Source, Concept_ID, Cognate_Set_ID, Gloss, Word_Type, IPA_Source

Statistics

Metric	Count
Total words	2,478
Common nouns	674
Anthroponyms (personal names)	1,285
Toponyms (place names)	209
Unknown meaning	~250
Theonyms (deity names)	~27
Expert IPA (Wiktionary/IE-CoR)	81
Transliteration-derived IPA	2,397

IPA Sources

IPA transcriptions come from three tiers of quality:

1. Expert (81 words): Scholarly reconstructions from Wiktionary ts= parameter and IE-CoR cognate pair data. Examples: a-ke-ro → áŋɡelos, a-ku-ro → árguros
2. Transliteration conversion (2,397 words): Systematic application of the Ventris grid IPA mapping to each syllable in the transliteration
3. IE-CoR cognate data (42 words): 42 Mycenaean Greek words from the IE-CoR (Indo-European Cognate Relations) database with expert IPA reconstructions, linked to Concepticon concept IDs

Word Types

• common: Words with identifiable meanings (nouns, verbs, adjectives)
• anthroponym: Personal names attested on Linear B tablets
• toponym: Place names (Knossos administrative records)
• theonym: Deity names (e.g., di-wo = Zeus, po-se-da-o = Poseidon)
• ethnic: Ethnic/geographic adjectives
• unknown: Words of unknown or uncertain meaning

Sources

Source	License	Entries	Description
Unicode UCD	Unicode Terms (permissive)	211 signs	Definitive sign inventory
jhnwnstd/shannon	MIT	2,272 words	Linear B Lexicon based on Chadwick & Ventris 1973
Wiktionary (gmy)	CC-BY-SA-3.0+	170 words	Mycenaean Greek lemmas with IPA and etymologies
IE-CoR	CC-BY-4.0	42 words	Expert Mycenaean Greek cognate pairs

Academic References

• Ventris, M. & Chadwick, J. (1973). Documents in Mycenaean Greek. 2nd edition. Cambridge University Press.
• Hooker, J.T. (1980). Linear B: An Introduction. Bristol Classical Press. (IPA mapping for z-series, p.68)
• Palmer, L.R. (1963). The Interpretation of Mycenaean Greek Texts. Oxford University Press.
• The Unicode Consortium. The Unicode Standard, Chapter 8: "Linear B Syllabary" (U+10000-U+1007F).

Limitations

1. IPA quality varies: Only 81 words have expert IPA reconstructions. The remaining 2,397 use systematic transliteration conversion, which captures the syllabic structure but not phonological details like aspiration, vowel length, or accent.
2. Glosses are noisy: The Shannon lexicon definitions contain scholarly concordance notes, not clean dictionary glosses. Parsing extracts the primary meaning but some entries retain bibliographic noise.
3. Name-heavy: 73% of entries are proper nouns (names, places), reflecting the administrative nature of Linear B tablets (palace inventories, tax records). Only 27% are common vocabulary.
4. No tablet corpus: The dataset includes individual words but not full tablet texts. DAMOS (CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0) and LiBER (non-profit only) provide tablet corpora but are license-incompatible.
5. r/l merger: Linear B uses a single r-series for both /r/ and /l/. The IPA mapping uses /r/ throughout, but the actual Mycenaean pronunciation distinguished the two.