Testerian is a pictorial

writing system A writing system is a method of visually representing verbal communication, based on a script and a set of rules regulating its use. While both writing and speech are useful in conveying messages, writing differs in also being a reliable fo ...

that was used until the 19th century to teach

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

doctrine to the

indigenous peoples of Mexico Indigenous peoples of Mexico ( es, gente indígena de México, pueblos indígenas de México), Native Mexicans ( es, nativos mexicanos) or Mexican Native Americans ( es, pueblos originarios de México, lit=Original peoples of Mexico), are those ...

, who were unfamiliar with

alphabet An alphabet is a standardized set of basic written graphemes (called letters) that represent the phonemes of certain spoken languages. Not all writing systems represent language in this way; in a syllabary, each character represents a syllab ...

ic writing systems. Its invention is attributed to

Jacobo de Testera Fray Jacobo de Testera or Jacobo de Tastera was a Franciscan Friar of the 16th century who worked as a missionary to the indigenous peoples of New Spain. Born into a noble family in Bayonne, France he entered the Franciscan order around 1500 and ...

, a

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

who arrived in Mexico in 1529.

Bibliography

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Catecismo pictórico Otomí
{{Writingsystem-stub Auxiliary and educational artificial scripts Writing systems of the Americas