However, some of the earliest known writing systems that used left-to-right directionality include:
* Proto-Sinaitic: This system, from around 1800 BCE, is considered a precursor to the Phoenician alphabet. It was written from right to left, but later evolved to use left-to-right directionality.
* Phoenician: Around the 11th century BCE, the Phoenician alphabet emerged, definitively written from left to right. This alphabet greatly influenced the development of later alphabets, including Greek, Latin, and ultimately many of the alphabets used today.
* Early Greek: While some early Greek writing systems used a boustrophedon (alternating directions) style, by the 8th century BCE, left-to-right writing became the dominant standard.
Therefore, while we can't definitively say which language was the first, Phoenician is a strong contender, as it is one of the earliest known alphabets written exclusively from left to right, and its influence on later writing systems is undeniable.
It's important to note that other writing systems, like Egyptian hieroglyphs, used a variety of directions (right to left, left to right, and even vertical) depending on the context.