Researchers at the Tashkent Institute of History, utilizing a cutting-edge deep-learning model designed for extinct languages, have successfully deciphered a series of bilingual inscriptions discovered on the rock faces of the Fergana Valley. These inscriptions pair early Brahmi script with a previously unreadable nomadic script associated with the Xiongnu. The results have revealed the existence of a lost Indo-Aryan dialect, which researchers have termed 'Trans-Pamir Indo-Aryan,' used by merchant-scholars who facilitated trade between the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia during the 2nd century BCE.
The decipherment provides the first concrete evidence of a specific linguistic bridge between the Mauryan-Kushan influence and the northern nomadic empires. The text primarily records diplomatic protocols and trade tariffs for silk and precious gemstones, suggesting a highly organized bureaucratic system that predates the formal establishment of the Silk Road. Philologists note that the vocabulary contains significant Vedic Sanskrit roots, indicating that the speakers were culturally and linguistically tied to the Sanatan traditions of Northern India.
Furthermore, the AI analysis suggests that this dialect served as a lingua franca for religious discourse, as several fragments contain philosophical aphorisms similar to those found in the Upanishads. This discovery is expected to fundamentally shift our understanding of linguistic migration and the spread of Indian intellectual heritage across the Eurasian Steppe during the late Iron Age.