3/3

結論

　IV. Conclusion

　Given the above analyses of Linear A texts, we are consistently led to the conclusion that these texts can be deciphered and interpreted in the Japanese language and make sense in a context consistent with and fulfilling expectations on inscriptions on tablets, artifacts or commodities, each with their utility, purpose and design.

　At the same time, scrutiny of each of the Linear A symbols has demonstrated that they were invented by people who spoke Japanese, apt to create symbols derived from simple drawings of animals, plants, objects and ideas that represented the sound of the first syllable of their names in Japanese.

　Consequently, it is most probable that the underlying language of Linear A is Japanese, i.e. the ancient Minoans spoke the Japanese language, no matter how absurd it may sound on first impression.

　When and how the ancient Minoans ever reached Japan to settle down and leave the legacy of their language is another question, and here are some of the more basic points that need to be covered.

1. Classical Japanese in Literary Style

　It may appear quite strange that the ancient scripts from Crete can be deciphered simply with the knowledge of modern Japanese and classical Japanese taught in high school, from the 8th century CE, and this may be explained as follows:

(1) The researcher, Shichiro Murayama contends in "Origin of the Japanese Language" (1973) that, because there was no significant influx of superior ethnic groups into the Japanese archipelago, the rate of change in the Japanese language has been gradual, and the further back in time one goes, the more gradual becomes the change. Thus, there is no significant discontinuity between modern Japanese and 8th-century (Nara period) Japanese, and it should be possible to capture and estimate the Japanese language from 2000-2500 years ago (late Jomon to Yayoi period).

(2) In Japanese high schools, classical literature is studied from texts in classical Japanese, based on the literary language dating back to the 8th century.

　When the ancient texts from Crete are read, generally based on the sound values of Linear B, they can be read as classical, literary Japanese, that has not changed over the centuries.

　There are no significant changes in word order or grammar between classical and modern Japanese in the literary style; the main differences are in pronunciation, vocabulary, and word endings. Consequently, when the sound values are reconstructed, the general message in the texts can be grasped and, with knowledge of classical Japanese, they may eventually be restored in more precise Japanese, in the literary style.

(3) Due to differences in pronunciation, there is the possibility of consistent errors, as the symbols are read with modern sound values and, as a result, one might mistakenly recognize unintended homophones. However, if the context is understood correctly, one may meticulously refer to pronunciation from the Nara period, to grasp the proper meaning of words.

　In case there are strange words that do not sound Japanese, one should explore the possibility of words borrowed from ancient languages spoken in lands close to Crete, such as classical Greek. Through repeated review, one should arrive at the intended meaning that is in line with the general context or message.

2. Migration

　On first impression, the island of Crete may be unimaginably remote from the Japanese isles, but given present day theories on the origins of mankind in the African rift valley and the diaspora into Europe and Asia via the Middle East, it may be reasonable to consider that the origin and pathway of the different human languages must have followed a more or less similar course as they branched out, i.e. from the African rift valley, to Asia minor, the choke point where all races and tribes had to pass through, and farther onwards to the different continents.

(1) The ancient civilizations that developed around the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea are known to have traded with one another, and the Minoans were prolific traders who exchanged goods with diverse nations including ancient Egypt. They must also have had commercial relations with such peoples as the Hittites in Anatolia and the Assyrians and Babylonians in Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamians in turn are known to have carried out trade with people of the Indus civilization.

　If so, the Minoans may have known that the civilized world was already expansive enough to reach the Indus valley.

(2) The Minoans may have been gradually pressured into and compelled to emigrate from Crete to distant lands for the following reasons:

(a) A cataclysmic earthquake on Thera (circa 1628 BCE) caused huge tsunamis to reach Crete, causing great havoc and destruction on the island, so that the Minoans were faced with the loss of their merchant fleet and other seagoing vessels that were key to their prosperity based on international trade and commerce. This may have encroached upon their livelihood, as they could no longer compete with other nations in the Eastern Mediterranean region as before.

(b) The Mycenaean Greeks came into Crete circa 1450 BCE to become the new rulers, as evident in the change of inscriptions from Linear A to Linear B that recorded ancient Greek.

　According to some researchers, by the time the Mycenaeans came into Crete, the Minoans had already left, and so they just took over deserted palaces and infrastructure.

(c) There was a general collapse of Bronze age civilizations in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East around 1200BCE that adversely affected the Egyptians, Hittites, Canaanites, Cypriots, Minoans, Mycenaeans, Assyrians and Babylonians, and which led to the collapse of the Minoans, Mycenaeans, Hittites and Babylonians. He lists the causes that may have worked together, including drought, famine, the aggressive “sea peoples,” and earthquakes.

　To this may be added the possibility of a terrible plague that swept across the region, compelling survivors to flee and never come back. This may explain why there was a loss of written records over hundreds of years. Egypt may have been affected but spared because of warmer weather.

(3) An important objective would be to reach distant lands with a similar natural setting as Crete, including the configuration of stars and planets. This meant that the new settlement should be on a similar latitude as Crete, preferably with easy access to the ocean.

　 Chronology of Events from Ancient Crete （Estimated）

　3500 BCE～　 Pre-palatial Period

　1900 BCE～　　　Proto-palatial Period (Use of Linear A begins）

　1700 BCE～　　　Neo-palatial Period

（1600 BCE　　 Cataclysmic volcano eruption on Santorini.）

　1450 BCE～　　　Post-palatial Period（Mycenaean Period）(Transition from Linear A to Linear B）

　1300 BCE　　　　Peak of Mycenaean civilization.

　1200 BCE　　　Simultaneous fall of Bronze Age civilizations in the eastern Mediterranean.

　1100～1000 BCE　　North Star shifts from Draco to Ursa Minor.

3. Comparative Mythology

　Given the understanding that an old form of Japanese was spoken by the Minoans in ancient Crete and recorded in Linear A inscriptions, we may start exploring for links between the Minoan and Japanese civilizations, for relics of the Minoan past that may be preserved in present day Japan. It may be a good idea to begin with mythology, as the oldest cultural tradition to be handed down from prehistoric times.

(1) Crete

(a) Minotaur

　There was a monster called the Minotaur, with a human body and the head of a bull, kept in a labyrinth in Crete. It was the horrible offspring of the queen of King Minos, to which the city of Athens had to offer 7 boys and 7 girls as offerings at the end of every 7 year cycle. Theseus, son of Aegeus, King of Athens, goes to Crete and kills the Minotaur with the aid of Ariadne, daughter of King Minos.

(The idea of a monster with a bull’s head and man’s body may somehow recall the monster in Japanese folklore called the Oni, that is a gigantic monster with a man’ body, often red, with horns on its head, and living on an island. It is known for cruelty and wrongdoing, causing people to suffer, so Japanese folktales are full of episodes describing how they were conquered by different heroes.)

(b) Birth of Zeus

　Zeus’ father, Chronos, had the habit of gulping down all of his children as soon as they were born, for fear of being toppled from power by one of them, as he had been warned.

　So when Zeus was born, he was hidden in a cave on the sides of Mt Ida, the highest peak in Crete. To protect the newborn baby, supporters created an enormous din and commotion outside the cave by banging on their shields with their spears whenever it cried, to prevent Chronos from noticing.

(2) Japan

(a) 8 Headed Snake (Yamata-no-Orochi)

　In Shimane Prefecture (that is located very close to Crete in terms of latitude) the hero Susanoo-no-Mikoto (Valiant Intrepid Raging Male Deity), ruler of the oceans and younger brother of the sun goddess Amaterasu (the Sun Goddess ), comes to meet Kushinada-hime (Rice Paddy Princess of the Comb), for whom the parents are crying with grief. They had had 8 children, but the monster Yamata-no-Orochi, a gigantic snake with 8 heads, had come to devour one of them every year and, this way, they had lost 7 children already. This year, it would come for Kushinada-hime, the last one. Susanoo-no-Mikoto decides to put an end to this.

　To protect Kushinada-hime, he turns her into a comb that he secures in his hair and prepares 8 urns filled with sake. The monster Yamata-no-Orochi arrives and, finding the sake, starts to drink from each of the urns with its 8 heads. After it is completely drunk, Susanoo-no-Mikoto beheads all the 8 heads, kills the monster, and marries Kushinada-hime.

(b) Sun Goddess Hides behind Huge Rock (Amano Iwato)

　When Amaterasu (Sun Goddess)was born, she was assigned to rule the Plain of High Heaven. Her younger brother, Susanoo-no-Mikoto (Valiant Intrepid Raging Male Deity) was told to rule the oceans, but he was not satisfied, and went to the Plain of High Heaven in a fit of uncontrollable rage, then committed such obnoxious acts of atrocity there that the Sun Goddess, in unspeakable distress and sadness, decided to hide herself inside the Heavenly Rock Cave, sealed herself in with a huge rock, and refused to come out. The entire Plain of Heaven became devoid of light and pitch dark, as did the earth, that was Japan.

　To resolve this intolerable situation, the gods gathered and made a plan. One female deity began to dance in front of the cave in hilarious attire and in an uninhibited manner. All the gods laughed at this and created such din and raucous commotion that the Sun Goddess, becoming curious, decided to take a peek from behind the seal rock.

　At this moment, one of the deities who was known for inordinate physical strength, opened the cave and pulled the Sun Goddess out, so that light was restored to shine on heaven and earth. Then a sacred rope was hung at the cave’s entrance, so that the Sun Goddess could never lock herself in again.

　There is a deity in Japan called Gozu Tenno (牛頭天王) in the form of a man with the head of a bull, who is the embodiment of Shintoism and Buddhism converged together, and worshipped as a deity that protects people from diseases. He is said to have arrived in Japan from a mountain to the east of Seoul called Soshi-mori, i.e. bull’s head in Korean.

　This deity is worshipped in Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto and considered to be Susanoo-no-Mikoto in another likeness. Yasaka Shrine, meaning 8 hills, evokes the myth of the snake Yamata no Orochi with 8 heads, eradicated by Susanoo-no-Mikoto.

　One may infer that the roots of the deity Gozu Tenno, who protects people from diseases, is the Minotaur, as he symbolizes the Minoan people who escaped from Crete and the eastern Mediterranean, one important reason being, a terrible plague that struck the region during the Bronze age collapse.

(3) Octopus of the North

　In the Harappan civilization, where they also spoke an ancient form of Japanese, people believed in a colossal entity that made the night sky revolve around the North Star, and this was the Octopus of the North. Situated beyond the North Star, this giant spaceship of an octopus encompassed the universe with its 8 legs, stretching them onto the sky as onto the bones of an umbrella, and made the universe revolve. They may also have believed that when someone dies, their soul will ascend to heaven, to become part of the Octopus.

　There are signs that this mythology was shared in ancient Greek islands, as follows:

(a) From the Cycladic civilization, considered older than the Minoan, Cycladic “frying pans” have been excavated. These are artifacts that resemble circular “octopus” heads equipped with a "neck." They often feature abstract designs on the surface associated with the "Northern Octopus."

(b) In the Minoan civilization, the myth of the Octopus of the North is also depicted in artistic designs and motifs that feature octopi.

　- The throne of Knossos Palace has a backrest with 9 wave-like patterns, one in the center and the rest on each side, in the image of the Octopus of the North. The central peak should correspond to North Star.

　- Pottery jars, famous for their bold octopus designs, featuring large-eyed octopi with arms raised high on both sides of their heads. Some of them have heads that boast 3 peaks, possibly indicating high status. There are also octopi with elongated and stylized heads, to denote "Tako-Hachi" (octopus- 8/bee, as Hachi can mean either 8 or bee), with a pointed tail that must pierce North Star.

　- Clay coffins, known as Larnax, resembling bathtubs, were used to store bones or ashes, and the octopi that frequently adorn them likely represent the Octopus of the North, where the deceased were believed to eventually reach.

　In this vein, Italian researcher Lucia Alberti, in "The Funerary Meaning of the Octopus in LM IIIC Crete" identifies the octopus as a significant funerary symbol, with numerous octopus-design pots found in Minoan cemeteries. Her paper includes a photo of the megaron floor in the Palace of Nestor at Pylos, and this shows an octopus design in front of the throne, suggesting a strong link to power.

　- In grave circle A (grave 4) in Mycenae, gold plates with octopus design were found, and these are housed in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. They came to a total of 53 identical plates, believed to have been imported from Crete.

　The anthemion/palmette design in ancient Greek pottery and architectural decoration seems to be based on the "Northern Octopus" motif. Following Alexander's eastern campaign, this emblem must have spread widely among the Hellenistic states. For example, at Ai-Khanoum in northern Afghanistan, on the eastern edge of the Seleucid Empire, the left foot of a Zeus statue was discovered, with the image of an octopus carved into the sandal.

4. Geographic Names in Japan

　There are geographic names that may link Crete and Japan, such as the following:

(1) Linear A symbol for WA and MIWA Mountain (Nara Prefecture)

　In Nara Prefecture, there is a small mountain called Miwa-San, known for prospectively the oldest Shinto shrine in Japan, O-o Miwa Shrine, said to date from the Yayoi era. Here, they worship O-o Mono Nushi no O-o Kami.

　According to the old texts, the Izumo people, based in Shimane Prefecture and led by O-o Kuni-Nushi (son of the deity who slew the 8 headed snake), used to be most powerful in Japan, but they eventually agreed to cede this position to the Yamato people. Thus, the center of power in Japan moved from Shimane to the Nara region in the 1st half of the 4th century CE.

　In retrospect, Izumo may have been the region where Minoans first settled in Japan and there, they wielded power in the Yayoi age, but the Izumo people ceded power peacefully to the Yamato people. The Yamato people then established their capital in and around Miwa-San (Miwa Mountain) in Nara Prefecture.

　It may be hypothesized that the Yamato people were also Minoans, but a group that had arrived in Japan later than the Izumo people. In forming a truce, these two peoples introduced the spirit of WA, or peace and harmony, with recourse to the Linear A symbol for WA (*054) in the image of a tripod, i.e. a square supported by 3 legs.

　The Izumo and Yamato peoples agreed that the word MI-WA should symbolize peace and concord, as the Linear A symbol for WA can be analyzed and read as MI-WA, MI meaning 3, for the 3 legs, and WA denoting the square, for the container part of the tripod.

　Accordingly, it was agreed that the new capital should be established on Miwa Mountain, where O-o Miwa Shrine was established to become symbol of truce between the Izumo and Yamato people. The deity revered in this shrine is said to be a reincarnation of the deity revered by the Izumo people.

(2) MINOS

(a) MINO, or Mino-no-Kuni is the name of a geographic region from ancient times (with mention in the Koji-Ki) in the southern part of Gifu Prefecture, on a latitude close to Crete, i.e. 35~36 degrees north. Because of its location toward the center of Honshu Island, it may correspond to the area encompassing Knossos palace, in central Crete.

(b) In the city of Mino (Gifu Prefecture), an annual festival is held in memory of the hero Susanoo-no-Mikoto (Valiant Intrepid Raging Male Deity) who slew the monster snake that was tormenting farmers, just as in the legend from Shimane Prefecture.

(3) IDA (Mount Ida is the highest mountain in Crete, known for the cave where Zeus was born.)

(a) HIDA

(i) HIDA, or Hida no Kuni, is also an old geographical name, mentioned in texts from the 4th century CE, and known for kofun tumuli. The region corresponds to the northern part of Gifu Prefecture, just to the northeast of what used to be MINO.

(ii) It is known for the Hida Highlands, located north of Mino City in Gifu Prefecture, and leading north-northeastwards to the Hida Mountain Range that covers Nagano, Toyama and Niigata Prefectures. This area is known as the Northern Alps.

(b) IIDA City

　This city in Nagano Prefecture is surrounded by mountains, with the Ina Mountains toward the east, and wonderful scenic views evoking the surroundings of Mount Ida on Crete. This includes Hijiri Take, meaning sacred mountain.

(4) SUWA

　This is a region in Nagano Prefecture, known for SUWA Lake and SUWA Taisha, an important shrine near the shores of the Lake.

　This shrine is said to have been founded in ancient times by people who had fled from Izumo, as they were strongly against the decision in Izumo to concede power to the Yamato people, who thereupon established their capital in Nara Prefecture. For this reason, SUWA Taisha is known to be a center of worship for Susanoo-no-Mikoto, whose roots are in Izumo, and a stronghold and sanctuary for people with anti-establishment views and behavior patterns.

　The name SUWA may have come from DWA in the Minoan language, represented as the symbol of an upright dragon in Cretan hieroglyph (25). In fact, the SUWA region is known for the legend of the dragon deity that lives in SUWA Lake, and which has given rise to festivals held every year in its honor.

5. Tracing Similar Languages and Cultures

(1) Tamil Language

(a) In making the proposition that Linear A can be deciphered through the Japanese language simply because Japanese was heavily influenced by Minoan immigration, it should help enormously if languages related or close to Japanese can be found somewhere between the island of Crete and the Japanese isles, especially along a sea route.

　In this regard, the Japanese researcher Susumu Ohno made the claim that Japanese is rooted in the Tamil language spoken in southern India, based on vocabulary and grammar. He even pointed out that, in ancient times, earthenware urns were used as sarcophagi in southern India as in Yayoi age Japan.

　However, the ensuing criticism led to inconclusive arguments and the idea seems discarded for the moment among Japanese academics.

(b) Recently, in a somewhat parallel phenomenon, people have pointed out that the Korean language resembles the Tamil language in everyday vocabulary and that the two peoples share common customs and traditions. In fact, Koreans and Tamils seem to find this a casual topic of amusement and bewilderment, judging from the many YouTube programs devoted to this issue.

　Thus, the Korean language seems far closer to the Tamil language compared to Japanese, because Japanese tourists who travel to southern India may not be given to such a strong impression, and so far there seem to be no similar games or antics among Japanese with regard to the Tamil language.

(c) At the same time, however, it is common knowledge that the Japanese and Korean languages show resemblance in vocabulary and grammar, and are closely related in comparison with other languages in East Asia.

　Accordingly, if it can be established that Korean and Tamil are related, then, logically speaking, Japanese must also be related to Tamil, and there could be a case for a revival of professor Ohno’s views.

(2) Wa People in China

　In searching for cultures with strong similarities with the Japanese that lie along a sea route from Crete, one cannot help mentioning the Wa people who live in an autonomous region in the Chinese province of Yunnan.

(a) The name Wa matches the name given to the Japanese country, Wa (倭), in old Chinese texts.

(b) The Wa people are settled in Yunnan (雲南, south of the clouds) Province in China, whose kanji is evocative of Izumo (出雲, from the clouds), known as a political and military center in the Yayoi age.

(c) The houses and architecture of the Wa people have many points in common with Shinto Shrines in Japan, notably the use of Tori-I structures at the entrance and, on the sloping roofs, diagonal beams that cross at the top and extend out farther, so that the sharpened ends stand out like antlers against the sky.

(d) The bull’s skull with horns is an unmistakable tribal symbol of the Wa people and is used frequently as an adornment, rather like a national flag in their villages. This custom is suggestive of the Minoan symbol of horns of consecration.

　Furthermore, one is persuaded that the bull’s skull is intentionally used (instead of a bull’s head, in black) to symbolize a white bull, because the story enacted in a traditional Wa group dance has strange parallels with the birth of the Minotaur.

　On center stage, there is the head of a white bull. A woman dances provocatively to excite the white bull, whose part is played by a man. Sometimes the woman jumps over the bull, as if she were practicing the sport of bull-leaping from Minoan Crete. Finally, in the climax scene, the white bull couples with the woman.

　According to Greek mythology, the Minotaur was born because King Minos of Crete had broken a promise with Poseidon. He had prayed for a bull to appear, to be sacrificed to Poseidon, and then a white bull emerged from the sea. However, Minos found the white bull so beautiful that he decided to keep it for himself and sacrificed another instead.

　This provoked Poseidon’s wrath, and he makes Pasiphae, queen of Minos, fall in love with the white bull. Daedalus builds a contraption for Pasiphae, for her to make love with the white bull, and this causes Pasiphae to give birth to the Minotaur, a monster with a bull’s head.

　Thus, if this group dance is based on the story of the Minotaur, it may be clear evidence that the Wa people have roots in ancient Crete.

(e) Otherwise, the traditional music and dances of the Wa people look similar to their Japanese counterparts, notably Bon-odori, a festive dance by a multitude of men and women in circular movement.

(f) The typical attire of Wa women includes a skirt with horizontal stripes in 2 main colors, one of which is black, and the other, usually yellow or red. This bee-type design may be derived from skirts worn by Minoan court ladies as depicted on frescoes on the walls of Knossos palace and by the snake Goddess.

(g) The Wa people call themselves Awa, and this name coincides with Awaji-shima, supposedly the very first island created in Japan by the deities Izanagi and Izanami, according to the ancient myths recorded in the Koji-Ki.

(h) Although there is no evidence that the Minoans called themselves Awa, this may have started as a nickname that Minoan migrants gave themselves after leaving Crete, because Awa means bubble, and they may have identified themselves with bubbles drifting in water. Another possible origin is from Ahi-Awa, the name given to Achaean Greeks.

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