The Scythian languages (/ˈsɪθiən/ or /ˈsɪðiən/ or /ˈskɪθiən/) are a group of Eastern Iranic languages of the classical and late antique period (the Middle Iranic period), spoken in a vast region of Eurasia by the populations belonging to the Scythian cultures and their descendants. The dominant ethnic groups among the Scythian-speakers were nomadic pastoralists of Central Asia and the Pontic–Caspian steppe. Fragments of their speech known from inscriptions and words quoted in ancient authors as well as analysis of their names indicate that it was an Indo-European language, more specifically from the Iranic group of Indo-Iranic languages.
 | It has been suggested that this article be split into a new article titled Pontic Scythian language. (discuss) (November 2024) |
| Scythian | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Central Asia, West Asia, Eastern Europe |
| Ethnicity | Scythians, Sarmatians, and Alans |
| Linguistic classification | Indo-European
|
| Subdivisions |
|
| Language codes | |
| Glottolog | sogd1247 (Sogdic-Ossetic)saka1303 (Saka-Wakhi) |
.png) The approximate distribution of Eastern Iranic languages and peoples in 100 BC appears in green. | |
| Notes | |
| Pontic Scythian | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Sarmatia, Scythia, Scythia Minor |
| Region | West Asia, Eastern Europe |
| Ethnicity | Scythians and Sarmatians |
| Era | Classical antiquity, late antiquity |
Indo-European
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xsc – Scythian |
xsc Scythian | |
| Glottolog | None |
The approximate distribution of Eastern Iranic languages and peoples in 100 BC appears in green. | |
Most of the Scythian languages eventually became extinct, except for modern Ossetian (which descends from the Alanian dialect of Scytho-Sarmatian), Wakhi (which descends from the Khotanese and Tumshuqese forms of Scytho-Khotanese), and Yaghnobi (which descends from Sogdian). Alexander Lubotsky summarizes the known linguistic landscape as follows:[1]
Unfortunately, we know next to nothing about the Scythian of that period [Old Iranian] – we have only a couple of personal and tribal names in Greek and Persian sources at our disposal – and cannot even determine with any degree of certainty whether it was a single language.
Classification
Ossetian is an Eastern Iranic language. The vast majority of Scythological scholars agree in considering the Scythian languages a part of the Eastern Iranic languages too. This relies principally on the fact that the Greek inscriptions of the Northern Black Sea Coast contain several hundreds of Sarmatian names showing a close affinity to the Ossetian language.[2][3]
Some scholars detect a division of Scythian into two dialects: a western, more conservative dialect, and an eastern, more innovative one.[4] The Scythian languages may have formed a dialect continuum:
- Alanian languages or Scytho-Sarmatian in the west: were spoken by people originally of Iranic stock from the 8th and 7th century BC onwards in the area of Ukraine, Southern Russia and Kazakhstan.
- Modern Ossetian survives as a continuation of the language family possibly represented by Scytho-Sarmatian inscriptions, although the Scytho-Sarmatian language family "does not simply represent the same [Ossetian] language" at an earlier date.
- Saka languages or Scytho-Khotanese in the east: spoken in the first century in the Kingdom of Khotan (located in present-day Xinjiang, China), and including the Khotanese of Khotan and Tumshuqese of Tumshuq.[5]
It is highly probable that already in the Old Iranic period, there were some eastern Scythian dialects which gave rise to the ancestor(s) of the Sogdian and Yaghnobi languages, although data required to test this hypothesis is presently lacking.[6]
The Scythian languages shared some features with other Eastern Iranic languages, such as the use of the suffix -ta to denote the plural form, which is also present in Sogdian, Chorasmian, Ossetian, and Yaghnobi.[7]
Phonology
The Pontic Scythian language possessed the following phonemes:[8]
This article uses cursive theta ⟨ϑ⟩ to denote the Scythian voiceless dental fricative (IPA /θ/), and regular theta ⟨θ⟩ to denote the Greek aspirated, voiceless dental plosive (IPA /tʰ/).
The western dialects of the Scythian languages had experienced an evolution of the Proto-Iranic sound /d/ into the Proto-Scythian sound /ð/, which in the Cimmerian and Pontic dialects of Scythian became the sound /l/. Scythian shares the evolution of Proto-Iranic sound /d/ into /ð/ with all Eastern Iranic languages with the exception of Ossetian, Yaghnobi, and Ishkashimi; and the later evolution of /ð/ into /l/ is also present in several Eastern Iranic languages such as Bactrian, Pashto, Munjani, and Yidgha.[7][8]
History
Early Eastern Iranic peoples originated in the Yaz culture (ca. 1500–1100 BC) in Central Asia.[9] The Scythians migrated from Central Asia toward Eastern Europe in the 8th and 7th century BC, occupying today's Southern Russia and Ukraine and the Carpathian Basin and parts of Moldova and Dobruja. They disappeared from history after the Hunnish invasion of Europe in the 5th century AD, and Turkic (Avar, Batsange, etc.) and Slavic peoples probably assimilated most people speaking Scythian.[citation needed] However, in the Caucasus, the Ossetian language belonging to the Scythian linguistic continuum remains in use today[update], while in Central Asia, some languages belonging to Eastern Iranic group are still spoken, namely Pashto, the Pamir languages and Yaghnobi.
Corpus
Inscriptions
Some scholars ascribe certain inscribed objects found in the Carpathian Basin and in Central Asia to the Scythians, but the interpretation of these inscriptions remains disputed (given that nobody has definitively identified the alphabet or translated the content).
Issyk inscription
The Issyk inscription is not yet certainly deciphered, and is probably in a Scythian dialect, constituting one of very few autochthonous epigraphic traces of that language. János Harmatta, using the Kharoṣṭhī script, identified the language as a Khotanese Saka dialect spoken by the Kushans, tentatively translating:[10]
| Line | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | za(ṃ)-ri ko-la(ṃ) mi(ṃ)-vaṃ vaṃ-va pa-zaṃ pa-na de-ka mi(ṃ)-ri-to | The vessel should hold wine of grapes, added cooked food, so much, to the mortal, |
| 2 | ña-ka mi pa-zaṃ vaṃ-va va-za(ṃ)-na vaṃ. | then added cooked fresh butter on |
Personal names
The primary sources for Scythian words remain the Scythian toponyms, tribal names, and numerous personal names in the ancient Greek texts and in the Greek inscriptions found in the Greek colonies on the Northern Black Sea Coast. These names suggest that the Sarmatian language had close similarities to modern Ossetian.[11]
Recorded Scythian personal names include:
| Name | Attested forms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| *Ariyapaiϑah | Ancient Greek: Αριαπειθης, romanized: Ariapeithēs | Composed of:[12][13][14][15] |
| *Hiϑāmϑrauša | Ancient Greek: Ιδανθυρσος, romanized: Idanthursos | Meaning "prospering the ally." Composed of:[16] |
| *Hupāyā | Ancient Greek: Οποιη, romanized: Opoiē | Composed of:[13]
|
| *Pālaka | Ancient Greek: Παλακος, romanized: Palakos | From an earlier form *Pāδaka after the evolution of Proto-Iranic /d/ to Proto-Scythian /δ/ to Scythian /l/. Means "tall-legged" and "long-legged." Composed of:[17][18]
|
| *Pṛtatavah | Akkadian: 𒁹𒁇𒋫𒌅𒀀, romanized: Bartatua or Partatua[19] Ancient Greek: Προτοθυης, romanized: Protothuēs |
Means "who is mighty in battle." Composed of:[20][21][22]
|
| *Pr̥ϑutavā | Composed of:[23][24]
| |
| *Šaitafarna | Ancient Greek: Σαιταφαρνος, romanized: Saitapharnos or Ancient Greek: Σαιταφαρνης, romanized: Saitapharnēs | From a sibilisation of Proto-Scythian *Xšaitafarna,[25] possibly meaning "with a bright farna," itself composed of:[26]
|
| *Šaϑraka | Ancient Greek: Σατρακης, romanized: Satrakēs | From a sibilisation of Proto-Scythian *Xšaϑraka,[25] itself composed of:[27]
Cognate with Ossetian Æхсæртæг (Æxsærtæg)[28] and Æхсæртæггатӕ (Æxsærtæggatæ).[29] |
| *Šīraka | Ancient Greek: Σιρακης, romanized: Sirakēs | From a sibilisation of Proto-Scythian *Xšīraka,[25] possibly meaning "milk-consumer," itself composed of:[27]
|
| *Skilura | Ancient Greek: Σκιλουρος, romanized: Skilouros | From an earlier form *Skiδura after the evolution of Proto-Iranic /d/ to Proto-Scythian /δ/ to Scythian /l/. Means "sharp" and "victorious."[17] |
| *Skula | Ancient Greek: Σκυλης, romanized: Skulēs | From the Scythian endonym *Skula, itself a later dialectal form of *Skuδa resulting from a sound change from /δ/ to /l/.[30] |
| *Spakāya | Akkadian: 𒁹𒅖𒉺𒅗𒀀𒀀, romanized: Išpakāya[31] | Hypocoristic derivation from the word *spaka, meaning "dog."[32][33][14] |
| *Spargapis | Ancient Greek: Σπαργαπισης, romanized: Spargapisēs | Composed of:[13][14][34][15]
*Spargapis and *Spargapaiϑah are variants of the same name.[35][13][34] |
| *Spargapaiϑah | Ancient Greek: Σπαργαπειθης, romanized: Spargapeithēs | Composed of:[13][34][14][15]
*Spargapaiϑah and *Spargapis are variants of the same name.[35][13][34] |
| *Tigratavā | Ancient Greek: Τιργαταω, romanized: Tirgataō | Means "with the strength of an arrow." Composed of:[36][13]
|
| *Taumuriya | Ancient Greek: Τομυρις, romanized: Tomuris | Derived from a cognate of Avestan 𐬙𐬀𐬊𐬑𐬨𐬀𐬥 (taoxman) and Old Persian 𐎫𐎢𐎶𐎠 (taumā), meaning "seed," "germ," and "kinship."[13] |
| *Uxtamazatā | Ancient Greek: Οκταμασαδης, romanized: Oktamasadēs | Means "possessing greatness through his words." Composed of:[13]
|
| *Varika | Ancient Greek: Ορικος, romanized: Orikos | Hypocorostic derivation from the word *vari-, meaning "chest armour, armour." Compare with Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌 (vaⁱri-), 𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬌 (uuari-) "chest armour."[13] |
Tribal names
Recorded Scythian tribal names include:
| Name | Attested forms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| *Haxāϑrauša | Ancient Greek: Αγαϑυρσοι, romanized: Agathursoi | Means "prospering the friend/socius." Composed of:[16]
|
| *Šīraka | Ancient Greek: Σιρακες, romanized: Sirakes | From a sibilisation of Proto-Scythian *Xšīraka,[25] possibly meaning "milk-consumer," itself composed of:[27]
|
| *Skuδa[37][38] | Akkadian: 𒅖𒆪𒍝𒀀𒀀, romanized: Iškuzaya
Ancient Greek: Σκυθαι, romanized: Skuthai |
*Skuδa, the Scythian endonym,[37][38]
From the Proto-Indo-European root skewd-, itself meaning lit. 'shooter, archer', whence also English "shoot".[39] |
| *Skula | Ancient Greek: Σκωλοτοι, romanized: Skōlotoi[40][8] | Later form of *Skuδa resulting from the evolution of Proto-Scythian /δ/ into Scythian /l/.[37] |
| *Paralāta | Ancient Greek: Παραλαται, romanized: Paralatai[40][8] | Cognate with Young Avestan 𐬞𐬀𐬭𐬀𐬜𐬁𐬙𐬀 (Paraδāta), meaning "placed at the front."[14] |
Place names
Some scholars believe that many toponyms and hydronyms of the Russian and Ukrainian steppe have Scythian links. For example, Vasmer associates the name of the river Don with an assumed/reconstructed unattested Scythian word *dānu "water, river", and with Avestan dānu-, Pashto dand and Ossetian don.[41] The river names Don, Donets, Dnieper, Danube, and Dniester, and lake Donuzlav (the deepest one in Crimea) may also belong with the same word-group.[42]
Recorded Scythian place names include:
| Name | Attested forms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| *Baurustāna | Ancient Greek: Βορυσθενης, romanized: Borusthenēs | Means "place of beavers." Composed of:[43] |
| *Dānu | Ancient Greek: Ταναις, romanized: Tanais | Means "river."[13] |
| *Pantikapa | Ancient Greek: Παντικαπαιον, romanized: Pantikapaion | Means "fish-path." Composed of:[44] |
| *Rahā | Ancient Greek: Ρα, romanized: Rha | Means "wetness." Compare with Avestan 𐬭𐬀𐬢𐬵𐬁 (raŋhā) and Vedic Sanskrit रसा (rasā́).[45] |
| *Varu | Ancient Greek: Οαρος, romanized: Oaros | Means "broad."[46] |
Herodotus' Scythian etymologies
The Greek historian Herodotus provides another source of Scythian; he reports that the Scythians called the Amazons Oiorpata, and explains the name as a compound of oior, meaning "man", and pata, meaning "to kill" (Hist. 4,110).
- Most scholars associate oior "man" with Avestan vīra- "man, hero", Sanskrit vīra-, Latin vir (gen. virī) "man, hero, husband",[47] PIE *wiHrós. Various explanations account for pata "kill":
- Persian pat- "(to) kill", patxuste "killed";[48]
- Sogdian pt- "(to) kill", ptgawsty "killed";[49]
- Ossetian fædyn "cleave", Sanskrit pātayati "fell", PIE *peth₂- "fall".[50]
- Avestan paiti- "lord", Sanskrit páti, PIE *pótis, cf. Lat. potestate (i.e. "man-ruler");[51]
- Ossetian maryn "kill", Pashto mrəl, Sanskrit mārayati, PIE *mer- "die" (confusion of Greek Μ and Π);[52]
- Alternatively, one scholar suggests Iranic aiwa- "one" + warah- "breast",[53] the Amazons believed to have removed a breast to aid drawing a bow, according to some ancient folklorists, and as reflected in Greek folk-etymology: a- (privative) + mazos, "without breast".
Elsewhere Herodotus explains the name of the mythical one-eyed tribe Arimaspoi as a compound of the Scythian words arima, meaning "one", and spu, meaning "eye" (Hist. 4,27).
- Some scholars connect arima "one" with Ossetian ærmæst "only", Avestic airime "quiet", Greek erēmos "empty", PIE *h₁(e)rh₁mo-?, and spu "eye" with Avestic spas- "foretell", Sanskrit spaś-, PIE *speḱ- "see".[54]
- However, Iranic usually expresses "one" and "eye" with words like aiwa- and čašman- (Ossetian īw and cæst).
- Other scholars reject Herodotus' etymology and derive the ethnonym Arimaspoi from Iranic aspa- "horse" instead.[55]
- Or the first part of the name may reflect something like Iranic raiwant- "rich", cf. Ossetian riwæ "rich".[56]
Scythian theonyms
| Name | Attested forms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| *Tapatī́ | Ancient Greek: Ταβιτι, romanized: Tabiti | Means “the Burning One” or “the Flaming One.”[57][58] |
| *Api | Ancient Greek: Απι, romanized: Api
|
Related to Avestan 𐬀𐬞𐬌 (api), "water."[60] |
| *Targī̆tavah | Ancient Greek: Ταργιταος, romanized: Targitaos | Means "possessing the might of the goddess Tarkā." Composed of:[62]
|
| Ancient Greek: Αρτιμπασα, romanized: Artimpasa | Composed of:[60]
| |
| *Apatura | Ancient Greek: Απατουρος, romanized: Apatouros | Means "swift water." Composed of:[63]
|
| *Gaiϑāsūra | Ancient Greek: Γοιτοσυρος, romanized: Goitosuros | Composed of:[14]
|
Ancient Greek: Θαγιμασαδας, romanized: Thagimasadas
|
Composed of:
| |
| *Lipoxšaya | Ancient Greek: Λιποξαις, romanized: Lipoxais | From an earlier form *Δipoxšaya after the evolution of Proto-Iranic /d/ to Proto-Scythian /δ/ to Scythian /l/. Means "king of radiance" and "king of heaven." Composed of:[65]
|
| *R̥buxšaya | Ancient Greek: Ἀρποξαις, romanized: Arpoxais | Means "king of the airspace." Composed of:[66]
|
| *Kolaxšaya | Ancient Greek: Κολαξαις, romanized: Kolaxais Latin: Colaxes |
From an earlier form *Koδaxšaya after the evolution of Proto-Iranic /d/ to Proto-Scythian /δ/ to Scythian /l/. Means "axe-wielding king," where the axe also has the meaning of "sceptre," as well as "blacksmith king," in the sense of "ruling king of the lower world." Composed of:[67]
|
Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder's Natural History (AD 77–79) derives the name of the Caucasus from the Scythian kroy-khasis = ice-shining, white with snow (cf. Greek cryos = ice-cold).
Aristophanes
In the comedy works of Aristophanes, the dialects of various Greek people are accurately imitated. In his Thesmophoriazusae, a Scythian archer (a member of a police force in Athens) speaks broken Greek, consistently omitting the final -s (-ς) and -n (ν), using the lenis in place of the aspirate, and once using ks (ξ) in place of s (sigma); these may be used to elucidate the Scythian languages.[68]
Alanian
| Alanian | |
|---|---|
| Alanic | |
| Native to | Alania |
| Region | North Caucasus and Iberia |
| Ethnicity | Alans |
| Era | 5th–11th centuries Developed into Ossetian |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xln |
xln | |
| Glottolog | None |
Alanian (also known as Alanic), was a language spoken by the Alans from about the 5th to the 11th centuries AD that formed a dialect directly descended from the earlier Scytho-Sarmatian languages, and forming in its turn the ancestor of the Ossetian language. Byzantine Greek authors recorded only a few fragments of this language.[69] The Alans, which were a part of the Migration Period, they brought their language to Iberia in 409 AD before being displaced by the invading Visigoths.[70]
Unlike the Pontic Scythian language, Ossetian did not experience the evolution of the Proto-Scythian sound /d/ to /δ/ and then /l/, although the sound /d/ did evolve into /δ/ at the beginning of Ossetian words.[71]
See also
Notes
Bibliography
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