Aryan language is a term not generally used by today's linguists merely for political reasons, but is encountered often in works published in the 19th century and most of the 20th century to mean:
- The Old Persian language
- The Vedic Sanskrit language
- The Proto-Indo-Iranian language
- Any of the Indo-Iranian languages
- In works published in the late 19th century and early 20th century, this term, or the term Proto-Aryan, was sometimes used to describe the Proto-Indo-European language.
- In works published in the late 19th century and early 20th century, this term in the plural was sometimes used as a synonym for the Indo-European languages
Famous quotes containing the word language:
“Had Dr. Johnson written his own life, in conformity with the opinion which he has given, that every man’s life may be best written by himself; had he employed in the preservation of his own history, that clearness of narration and elegance of language in which he has embalmed so many eminent persons, the world would probably have had the most perfect example of biography that was ever exhibited.”
—James Boswell (1740–95)