Phyllis Carol Olive
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In recent years it was discovered that the MicMac Indians of northeastern America had
a written languagee with ties to Egypt. In reference to this discovery, Pat Morgan claims “their mixed or reformed Egyptian hieroglyphs
depended on their European or Mediterranean origin.”1
Literally hundreds of inscribed tablets have been found in the northeast, many of which are inscribed with
Egyptian hieroglyphics. Unfortunately, most have been deemed frauds by the academic world who find them impossible to decipher. Now,
this fact alone should raise eyebrows among the LDS community, for they know from the scriptures that the writing of the Nephites
would not be discernable by anyone without the aid of the Urim and Thummim.
Mormon writes:
But the Lord knoweth the things which we have written, and also that none other people knoweth our language; and
because that none other people knoweth our language, therefore he hath prepared means for the interpretation thereof. (Mormon 9:34.)
Joseph Smith informs us that the Urim and Thummim, or interpreters, would be needed to decipher the records
of the ancient Nephite people.
He said:
Also, that there were two stones in silver bows--and these stones, fastened to a breastplate, constituted what
is called the Urim and Thummim--deposited with the plates; and the possession and use of these stones were what constituted "seers"
in ancient or former times; and that God had prepared them for the purpose of translating the book. 2
In an effort to learn what we can of the language and writing of the Nephite Nation we must once again turn to the scriptures.
Both Nephi and Mormon say their language was patterned after the learning of the Jews and language of the Egyptians.
Nephi said:
Yea, I make a record in the language of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians. (1
Nephi 1:2.)
Mormon informs us:
And now, behold, we have written this record according to our knowledge, in the characters which are called among us
the reformed Egyptian, being handed down and altered by us, according to our manner of speech.
And if our plates had been sufficiently large we should have written in Hebrew; but the Hebrew hath been altered by us
also; and if we could have written in Hebrew, behold, ye would have had no imperfection in our record. Mormon. (9:32-33.)
Interestingly, the epigrapher Barry Fell, author of America B.C. notes a definite connection between the Algonquians
and Egypt which made him speculate that perhaps certain colonies of Egyptians visited ancient America. In fact, so remarkable is the
connection between the hieroglyphic writing of the Algonquins and the Egyptians that he was surprise to note that “no one until now
seems to have noticed it.” We might also wonder how LDS researchers could have missed such a significant matter so long?
His first encounter with the similarities between the writings of the Algonquins and the Egyptians came about
as he studied a document found on a sheet of paper in a book written by Eugene Vetromile, containing The Lord’s Prayer written in
Micmac Hieroglyphs. Now, the Micmac are a tribe of the Algonquin Indians that inhabit eastern Canada and are closely related to the
Wabanaki tribes in Maine. It is now believed their writing system and also part of their language is derived from ancient Egyptian.
Being an authority on ancient languages, Fell was not only surprised but mystified to note that the meaning of
the “signs in Egyptian matched the meaning assigned them in the English transcript of the Micmac text given on the document.”3 He
had been informed earlier that many of the missionaries to the Indians had invented such signs in an effort to teach them more effectively,
but the evidence before him convinced him that someone with a definite understanding of Egyptian had taught the Micmac how to write.
Unfortunately, in Schoolcraft’s great work on the American Indians, mention was made that the Algonquins could neither read nor write.
This, coupled with the claim by a priest named Pierre Maillard, that he invented the Micmac hieroglyphics, laid the foundation for
the continuing supposition that none of the tribes could read or write before his time.
Fell was not convinced, however. After studying literally hundreds of Egyptian hieroglyphics Fell was totally
convinced “the Micmac writing system, (and also part of their language), was derived from ancient Egyptian. Yet how could this be,
Fell wondered? Surely Maillard had not deciphered the Egyptian language himself, for he had never even been to Egypt nor had ever
been involved in any such activity. Moreover, Maillard died in 1762, a full 61 years before Champollion published his first decipherment
of the Egyptian hieroglyphics. Further, it was quite apparent that the Micmac writing system was not a modern invention but had been
among the natives for “who knows how long.”
When the first Christian missionaries began their instructions to the Micmacs, they noticed the children were making
signs on birchbark, which they explained was an attempt to record what the priests were saying. The Wabenaki Indians in Maine were
apparently doing the same thing. The Indians claim that “by these signs they could express any idea with every modification, just
as we do with our writings.” They informed them further that all the various Indian tribes used this same method of writing to communicate
with others, both sending and receiving back answers in the same way. It was said their chiefs often sent circulars to various regions
to either ask for or give advice to other chiefs, especially in time of war. Now, while their ancient Nephite ancestors engraved their
major secular and religious histories on metal plates to withstand the passage of time, they sent and received messages on a daily
basis in much the same way the Micmacs did throughout the centuries since.
We might remember the time King Benjamin caused his words to be written for those who had traveled to the
Temple in Zarahemla to hear his last speech, but were too far away from his speaking tower to hear him.
And it came to pass that he began to speak to his people from the tower; and they could not all hear his
words because of the greatness of the multitude; therefore he caused that the words which he spake should be written and sent forth
among those that were not under the sound of his voice, that they might also receive his words. (Mosiah 2:8.)
The mystery of how the Micmacs and others came to read and write in Egyptian hieroglyphics so intrigued Fell,
that he began an intensive study of the matter. The librarians at Harvard helped him gather every available book and paper written
on the Micmac and Wabanaki Indians. The Indians themselves had libraries of stone tablets and pieces of bark, and their medicine men
had large manuscripts of these peculiar hieroglyphs which they read over the sick. After careful study of everything available, Fell
concluded that:
"When the missionaries arrived in this country they made use of these signs as they found them, in
order to instruct the Indians. Father Mainard {Maillard} and Le Loutre improved them, and others were added in order to express the
doctrine and mysteries of the Christian religion."4
Fell went on to say that; “From this evidence it is clear that we have for long been mistaken in thinking the Micmac
writing system as a modern system, and hence unworthy of serious study by epigrapher interested in the history of the writing systems
in ancient times.”
Father Vetromile records that similar writing was employed by all the northern Algonquin tribes not just the Micmacs,
the Wabanakis, including those in northern New England such as the Etchemis. He says that he has met older people among the Indians
at Oldtown, Maine, who remember a time when the writing was inscribed vertically, and also horizontally (as today) but in either direction.”5 Warren said {1852} that in 1842 he saw a circular copper plate that Ojibway chiefs kept buried which recorded their family history
in hieroglyphics.6
In responding to the next obvious question as to whether Micmac and related Algonquins were the descendants of
ancient settlers from Egypt, Fell had to say no, for their language was uniquely Algonquin, although there were certain vocabulary
similarities with the Egyptian.7 In regards to the writing system of the Algonquin he could only conclude, after extensive research,
that it was very ancient, especially for those in the northeast.
Because the Nephites wrote in the manner of the Egyptians, or in other words, in hieroglyphics, we should
not be surprised to learn the Algonquin language is alike in many ways to the Nephites, for the Algonquins have provento be the descendants
of the Nephites, those who moved northward and ultimatly became Lamanites. (That story can be found in the book "We Are Israel, the
American Indian & the Book of Mormon." )
It should also be no surprised to discover that many of
the artifacts found in the northeast appear to have been written in Hebrew. While such writing matches in every respect both ancient
and modern Hebrew, not many can be deciphered. This also parallels the scriptures which tell us the Nephites altered the Hebrew just
as they had their Egyptian script.
1- Pat Morgan,“Algonquin Traditions and Other Ancient American Enigmas,” Ancient American # 60, p. 27.
3-Barry Fell, America B.C. p, 253.
4-Ibid., p. 259.
5-Ibid., p. 259.
6-Cyclone Covey, Ancient American # 53, p. 30.
7-Barry Fell, America B.C. p. 260.
Note the similarties between MicMac inscriptions and those taken from the caracters transcript from which the gold plates were
translated. (Illustration courtesy Vincent Coon)
2- Joseph Smith History 1: 35
Hieroglypic Writing
Among the Indians
The bat Creek Stone found in 1865, once thought to be ancient cherokee, is now thought to be Paleo Hebrew, the same type Hebrew Lehi
would have been familiar with before the scattering of Israel