Question

Why were manuscripts written by hand? ​

Answer 1

The noun manuscript evolved from the Latin manu scriptus, meaning "written by hand." Manu is "hand" and scriptus is "to write." It refers to old documents actually written by hand before books were made, but it can also refer to a writer's unpublished work whether it's handwritten or typed.

Answer 2

Answer:

There were no printing press in those days to write or copy. So, scribes wrote and copied manuscripts by hand.  

                                                              - NCERT Textbook Class 7 History