Discussion about the “Central Asian Phrygians” and archaeological data

Aim. In recent years there has been a wide discussion about the relict language of Burushaski, the reason for which was the hypothesis of I. Čašule. The author of the hypothesis defines Burushaski as an Indo-European, ancient Balkan language, highly probably Phrygian or related to it, although its contacts with the North Caucasian and Yenisei languages are not denied. Leaving the subject under discussion to the linguists, this paper draws attention must be drawn to the problem of the origin of the repeatedly mentioned anonymous Central Asian donor language and, in addition, cites the data of the genetic study of the Cimmerians, as well as the carriers of the Karasuk and Okunevo cultures.Methodology. Archaeological materials from Central Asia can give an idea of the most complex historical movements of peoples and their cultural contacts. In particular, attention is paid to a peculiar cultural-historical community that spread from the southern Mongolian steppe belt to the province of Gansu, the Tarim basin and further southwest to the Central Asian interfluves inclusively.Results. Archaeological and linguistic studies show that Burushaski may bear signs of contact with an anonymous language, possibly the hypothetical Temematic language identified by G. Holzer or, more precisely, one of the representatives of related languages that constituted in ancient times a certain primordial language group and once spread over a vast territory from South Siberia to the Himalayas, from the Yenisei to the Danube.Research implications. The results of the study are relevant to the consideration of a range of issues related to the processes of ethnogenesis in Central Asia.

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