Indo European Migrations

There is a conflicting opinion about the language of the Indus script. Some linguists believe it was based on the Indo-European language; another group claims it was based on the Dravidian language. My findings indicate that the Indus script was a composite language, comprising elements of the Indo-European (IE) language and Egyptian hieroglyphics. I refer to the influence of hieroglyphics as a Dravidian component. My decipherment effort so far reveals that many Indus symbols resemble Egyptian hieroglyphs, and there is a close connection between these two writing systems. The Egyptian priests and scribes likely contributed to the development of the Indus script, along with Iranian and Vedic priests. The Indus symbols show a composite culture of all three great civilisations. This paper argues for a moderate interpretation of Sanskrit influence within a hybrid cultural context.

There is a conflicting opinion about the language of the Indus script. Some linguists believe it was based on the Indo-European language; another group claims it was based on the Dravidian language. My findings indicate that the Indus script was a composite language, comprising elements of the Indo-European (IE) language and Egyptian hieroglyphics. I refer to the influence of hieroglyphics as a Dravidian component. My decipherment effort so far reveals that many Indus symbols resemble Egyptian hieroglyphs, and there is a close connection between these two writing systems. The Egyptian priests and scribes likely contributed to the development of the Indus script, along with Iranian and Vedic priests. The Indus symbols show a composite culture of all three great civilisations. This paper argues for a moderate interpretation of Sanskrit influence within a hybrid cultural context.

Внимание в статье сфокусировано на более глубоком понимании
механизмов, посредством которых архаические общества обеспечивали социальное единство и идентичность в ситуациях, когда традиционные формы коммуникации не могли полноценно выполнять свои функции. В современном медиальном пространстве изучение таких протомедиальных механизмов становится особенно актуальным, так как позволяет прояснить глубинные процессы формирования коллективного сознания и социальной  идентичности, лежащие в основе современных коммуникационных практик. Новизна подхода состоит в том, что авторы вводят и раскрывают концепцию «воображаемой середины», показывая ее ключевую роль в организации социальной коммуникации и символической идентификации архаических групп. На основе
структурного подхода парижской культурно-антропологической школы детально анализируется деятельность сказителя на примере восьмой книги «Одиссеи» Гомера. Впервые роль сказителя рассматривается не только как транслятора мифологических сюжетов, но и как фигуры, запускающей механизмы эмоционального и эстетического воздействия, необходимые для идентификации героя и социальной «перезагрузки» сообщества. Предложен оригинальный подход к анализу социальных пространств, где сказитель совместно с царем обеспечивает управление символическими ресурсами группы. Сказитель использует систему эмоциональных триггеров для активизации коллективной памяти и идентичности, при этом эффективность воображаемой середины существенно зависит от конкретного социального и символического контекста. Авторы приходят к выводу о том, что воображаемая середина представляет собой фундаментальный механизм социальной коммуникации, протомедиальный по своей природе, так как она структурирует коллективные представления и смыслы аналогично тому, как это делают современные медиа, создавая основу для общего понимания и социальной интеграции.

Melena (2022) examines occurrences of Linear B *86 in : me-86-ta 'an ethnonym' wa-86-re 'a shepherd's name' u-ra-86 'a place' ]86 'a place?' (same as me-86-?) This sign has been the most difficult to assign a value to, since only one word seems to be written out (in full, using separate signs of known value) another time in LB. Melena recognized it (1983), wa-86re must be one of the many PN's beginning with wa-duin LB and LA (including LB wa-du-na-ro, wadu-na, LA wa-du-ni-mi), often seen as "foreign" shepherds. Since LA names like pa-ja-re often appear

Our author states at the end of the article:
“Hence the Vedas, the first fruit of the Aryan culture, must be regarded as having an antiquity far exceeding a period of 20,000 years B.C., though we cannot at present, and possibly may never be able to, fix the date in question with any approach to perfect exactness.”

The Vedas initially named months after seasons, not lunar asterisms. These names, derived from Sanskrit words describing the characteristics of each season, remained unchanged despite the precession of the equinoxes. The current lunar months, named after asterisms, were established later, with a different order and a focus on the moon’s position during full moons.

The article explores the antiquity of the Vedas, suggesting they are at least 30,000 years old. It examines the lunar calendar system used by the Aryans, noting that the naming of months based on asterisms aligns with astronomical observations from around 46,000 B.C. The author argues that the Aryans’ advanced understanding of celestial mechanics and the precession of the equinoxes indicates a highly developed civilization dating back tens of thousands of years.

Distribution of the Turkic haplogroup R1a in Europe In Europe, the R1a1 sub-clade is found at highest levels among peoples of Central and Eastern European descent, with results ranging from 35-65% among Czechs, Hungarians, Poles, Slovaks, western Ukrainians (particularly Rusyns), Belarusians, Moldovans, and Russians (3; 34) In the Baltics, R1a1a frequencies decrease from Lithuania (45%) to Estonia (around 30%) (42; 34; 22). There is a significant presence in peoples of Scandinavian descent, with highest levels in Norway and Iceland, where between 20 and 30% of men are in R1a1a (37; 12). Vikings and Normans may have also carried the R1a1a lineage westward; accounting for at least part of the small presence in the British Isles (27). In East Germany, where Haplogroup R1a1a reaches a peak frequency in Rostock at a percentage of 31.3%, it averages between 20 and 30% (21). In Southern Europe R1a1a is not common, but significant levels have been found in pockets, such as in the Pas Valley in Northern Spain, areas of Venice, and Calabria in Italy (33). The Balkans shows lower frequencies, and significant variation between areas, for example more than 30% in Slovenia, Croatia and Greek Macedonia, but less than 10% in Albania, Kosovo and parts of Greece (28; 42; 34). R1a is virtually composed only of the Z284 subclade in Scandinavia, which is only found in single sample of a Slovenian in Eastern Europe, where the main subclade is Z282 (Z280 and M458) and there is a negligible representation of Z93 in each region other than Turkey (39). The West Slavs and Hungarians are characterized by a high frequency of the subclade M458 and a low Z92, a subclade of Z280. Hundreds of samples of each Slovenians, and Czechs lack the Z92 subclade of Z280, while Poles, Slovaks, Croats and Hungarians only show a very low frequency of Z92 (39). The Balts, East Slavs, Serbs, Macedonians, Bulgarians and Romanians demonstrate a ratio Z280>M458 and a high, up to a prevailing share of Z92 (39). Balts and East Slavs have the same subclades and similar frequencies in a more detailed phylogeny of the subclades. The Russian geneticist Oleg Balanovsky speculated that there is a predominance of the assimilated pre-Slavic substrate in the genetics of East and West Slavic populations, according to him the common genetic structure which contrasts East Slavs and Balts from other populations may suggest the explanation that the pre-Slavic substrate of the East Slavs consisted most significantly of Baltic-speakers, which at one point predated the Slavs in the cultures of the Eurasian steppe according to archaeological and toponymic references (45).

Bakhtiyar Tunjay Turkic-speaking Gagauzians-direct descendants of Yamna culture (Pit culture) Yamna (Budjak) culture is an archaeological culture of the Late Eneolithic Age-the early Bronze Age (3600-2300 BC), which occupied territory from the Southern Urals in the east to the Dniester in the west, from Ciscaucasia in the south to the Middle Volga in the north. L. S. Klein in 1975 identified the western wing of the this culture in a separate Nerusha culture (13). Yamna (Budjak) culture was predominantly nomadic, with elements of hoe farming near rivers and on some sites of ancient settlements. The hoes were made from bones (horns). Representatives of this culture created wheeled carts (araba). The earliest finds in Eastern Europe of the remains of four-wheeled wagons were found in burials of Yamna (Budjak) culture (for example, "Watchtower" on the territory of the Dnieper, cemetery near the village of Yassky in the Odessa region, Shumaevsky burial ground in Orenburg region, etc.). A characteristic feature of the Yamna (Budjak) culture is the burial of the dead in the pits under the mounds in the position lying on the back, with bent knees. The bodies showered with ocher. The burials in the barrows were plural and often produced at different times. Animal burials (cows, pigs, sheep, goats and horses) have also been found. In the steppe belt from the Danube River in the west to the upper reaches of the Manych River in the east, there are approximately 160 burials of a pit culture with the remains of wheeled vehicles (wheels, wagons), as well as their clay models and remains of drawings. The oldest of the finds date from a calibrated scale of the 32nd century BC. (14). Four-wheeled carts were found on the bank of the Yalpukh River in the southwest of Moldova, near the village of Mayaki on the left bank of the Lower Dniester, near the village Sofievka on the Ingulets River, in another burial in Ingul. The remains of a two-wheeled cart derive from the burial mound of the burial mound "A watchtower" near the city of the Dnieper. Another cart was found in the cemetery Pervokonstantinovka near Kakhovka, and the remains of a two-wheeled cart near the village of Akkermen in Melitopolshchina. One wheel was found in the pit burial near the city of Rostov, in burial mound 7 of the burial ground Gerasimovka I, Shumaevo II in the Urals. In Shumaevo, OK II / 2 found 3 wheels, Izobilniy I 3/1-4 imitations of the wheels (15). Both wheels of a two-wheeled wooden arby from the Watchtower grave of the pit culture under the city of the Dnieper (III millennium BC) were made of a solid piece of wood, cut longitudinally, with round holes for the axis and thick hubs (18).

Bakhtiyar Tunjay When and how the Turkic Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 appeared in India? In South Asia, R1a1a has often been observed with high frequency in a number of demographic groups (11; 12). In India, high frequencies of this haplogroup is observed in West Bengal Brahmins (72%) (12) to the east, Gurajat Lohanas (60%) (14) to the west, Khatris (67%) (14) in the north and Iyengar Brahmins (31%) (12) in the south. It has also been found in several South Indian Dravidian-speaking Adivasis including the Chenchu (26%) and the Valmikis of Andhra Pradesh and the Kallar of Tamil Nadu suggesting that R1a1a is widespread in Tribal Southern Indians (5). Besides these, studies show high percentages in regionally diverse groups such as Manipuris (50%) (17) to the extreme North East and among Punjabis (47%) (5) to the extreme North West. In Pakistan it is found at 71% among the Mohanna tribe in Sindh province to the south and 46% among the Baltis of Gilgit-Baltistan to the north (17). Among the Sinhalese of Sri Lanka, 23% were found to be R1a1a (R-SRY1532) positive (15). Hindus of Chitwan District in the Terai region Nepal show it at 69% (13). In the India Project (FTDNA), 187 haplotypes were found in the 37-marker format, including 64 haplogroups of haplogroup R1a (34%), which formed a dense branch composed, in particular, of the haplotypes of R1a-L657 and R1a-Z2123 subclades. The descendants of R1a-Z645 are the carriers of such Turkic subclades as Z93-Z94-L657, Z93-Z94-Z2123 and Z283-Z282-Z280. They are all contemporaries of each other. When and how the Turkic Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 appeared in India? The first documented wave in written sources is undoubtedly connected with the migration of Sakas from Central Asia to India. J. Nehru wrote in his book "A Glimpse of World History", which was written in various prisons of India between October 1930 and August 1933, referring to the rоle of the Saks and Huns (Kushans), wrote that in the north (India-B.T.) there were several invasions of the peoples of Central Asia-the Bactrians, the Saks, Scythians, Turks and Kushans. Central Asia was the site of the emergence of various tribal hordes... Throughout history, different nations emerged and spread throughout Asia and even the Europe. There have been several such incursions into and for India for two hundred years, which occurred in our era ... Later, the

Several PU words with *-mt-resemble IE ones. For *wamta 'forest', based on other ex. of *e & *i > a (https://www.academia.edu/143975134), it could be part of IE *w-w > PU *w-m or *m-w : IE *wid-won-'knowing / brain' (https://www.academia.edu/129119764) PU *wiδewe > F. yty, ydyn g. 'bone marrow / core / power', Es. üti, üdi g. 'marrow' PU *wiδeme > Erzya udem 'marrow / brain / intellect' IE *wetuso-'old' > L. vetus, OLi. vetušas; PU *wiǝtuǝšë > *wyǝtwǝšë > *watmǝšë > *wanšë 'old' IE *widhu-'wood / tree' > E. wood *widhw-aH2 (neuter plural or fem.?) > PU *wiǝtwa: > *watma > *wamta 'forest' https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Uralic/wamta IE *work^wuko-> Ar. goršuk 'badger' (https://www.academia.edu/129175453) *wërs^wuka:(y-) > PU > *märskwä > *märkä(s) \ *m\när(s)kä \ *närkäs 'badger' (below, D) The difference in *-dw-& *-dhw-might show that *dh > *th before changes to *dC. B. m, ntl,-ay Some PU words show variants with front vs. back V's. Many of them end in *-a, likely showing that PIE had fem. *-aH2(y)-from *-oiH2-(https://www.academia.edu/129368235). If so, PU *-ay > *-ä \ *-a. With some previous examples also showing IE matches, I'd add : *m(e)ntH3-uRo-> Greek μόθουρα \ móthoura 'shaft of an oar', Lithuanian mentùris 'cooking beater ', *mH3ontuRo-> Gmc *mandula-z 'handle on a grinding mill' *mentH3-tlaH2(y-) > *mentla:(y-) > *melä \ *mela 'oar' Note that there is no long **V: in Finnish (below, C). More in https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Uralic/mel%C3%A4 C. Václav Blažek in https://www.academia.edu/118037313 provides ev. for IE words with *me(:)l-'think / perceive / sense / taste'. This seems to me to show *melH1-\ *meH1l-with H-met. (https://www.academia.edu/127283240). I don't agree with his details, but he also mentioned PU *mäle 'senses / mind'. Since this appears as Finnic *meele, it would be rec. as *mäxle by those who believe in PU *x. Clearly, *meH1l-& *mäxle would be too close to simply dismiss. Again, *e > *a (fronted by *-e, maybe < *-i: or *-Vy). The opposition to *x comes from those who think many Finnic *V were lengthened before certain C(V). I find it hard to accept that *melä \ *mela 'oar' would need to behave so differently from **mäle (with similar changes in Saamic) just to get rid of *x. Most protolanguages contain much more complexity & more C's, V's, than their daughters. Why would *x, similar to (and here cognate with) IE *H be treated in exactly the opposite way? *H was doubted in the past, now is standard, but *x somehow remains controsversial? Most who oppose *x causing V: also oppose any relation to PIE, except for Hovers (https://www.academia.edu/104566591). Cognates in https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Uralic/m%C3%A4le D. w-w, rs^kw Above, I proposed : IE *work^wuko-> Ar. goršuk 'badger' (https://www.academia.edu/129175453) *wërs^wuka:(y-) > PU > *märskwä > *märkä(s) \ *m\när(s)kä \ *närkä(s) 'badger'

A group of IE words for 'barley' shows alternation unexplained in standard theory. Most say *H2albhit, G. álphi(ton), Al. elb, but this does not fit Iranian *arpačya: or *arpušya:. The Iranian words have few cognates, so the exact form is unclear, but see Note 1 for ev. for *arpaćya: & *arpa: in loans. Ir. *arpaćya: & *arpa: require a compound (or suffixed forms), & since IE *p can become *b next to *H3, *C > *Ch next to *H (neither regular), starting with *-p-is best : *H2alp-'sharp / peak / stone' > H. alpu-'sharp / pointed', L. Alpēs 'Alps' *H2alp-'sharp thing > barley' > G. álphi(ton) '(barley) flour', Al. elb 'barley', Iranian *arpaćya: > Is. wurwǝs, etc. In part, this is due to other IE grains <-'sharp' in other roots. Iranian *arpaćya: would essentially need to be from *H2ak^H-'eat / bite', found in words for 'bait or food', as 'sharp food'. This suggests that *H2albhit was really *H2albhid (with *-d > *-t >-0 in G., but with opt. analogy to an o-stem at the stage with *-t) < *H2alb-H3id-< *H2alp-H3H1d-'sharp food', also from *Hed-'eat / bite'. For ev. of *H3H1ed-or similar, due to G. e-vs. o-, see www.academia.edu/128931671. For opt. syllabic *H1 > i, see *p(o)lH1-> G. ptólis / pólis 'city', *pelH1tno-> palitá-'aged/old/grey', G. pelitnós, *dolH1gho-'long' > G. dolikhós, *delH1gho-> G. en-delekhḗs 'perpetual'. Starostin's claim that Altaic *arpa can't be a loan from Iranian (1) makes no sense, since he has no ev. of the timing of the Altaic breakup in relation to the presence of Iranian. From only the evidence he gives, it would be possible to see them as cognate to IE, but, in fact his details are clearly wrong (and inconsistent) & also require *arpašyV in Proto-Mongolian. This is far too close to Iranian to be chance, & its recent nature w/in Iranian makes an old cognate impossible. On the other hand, knowing its IE

The Aryan Invasion Theory (AIT), developed in the nineteenth century, remains one of the most contested constructs in South Asian historiography. While archaeology, linguistics, and genetics have steadily undermined its core assumptions, AIT's persistence reflects ideological commitments more than empirical proof. This article argues that AIT took shape at the intersection of colonial governance, racial science, and biblical interpretation. British administrators-most notably Thomas Babington Macaulay-advanced English education to displace indigenous traditions and cultivate a loyal intermediary elite, while Friedrich Max Müller's celebrated philological labors, supported by colonial institutions and patrons linked to the East India Company, reframed the Vedas within an Indo-European (and, at times, missionary) horizon. Enlightenment and nineteenth-century race theorists-Carl Linnaeus, Johann Blumenbach, Samuel George Morton, Louis Agassiz, and Joseph Arthur de Gobineau-furnished hierarchies that elevated "Aryan" whiteness and naturalized conquest. Biblical narratives such as the Curse of Ham and the Tower of Babel further sanctified AIT by embedding it in a providential history of dispersion and difference. By recasting caste as race and portraying Indian civilization as derivative, AIT legitimized colonial rule and fractured cultural self-understanding. Contemporary research favors migration and admixture over invasion, yet AIT's political afterlives endure in both nationalist rejection and Dravidian assertion. Reading AIT through its motivating frames clarifies how colonial knowledge produced durable narratives of domination and division and underscores the need for a decolonized historiography.

A. There is a disputed origin for Greek ἥπιος 'of people: gentle, kind, appeased / of feelings, words, etc.: gentle, kind, soothing, assuaging, appeasing / of heat and cold: mild, less intense / of a day: favorable for beginning a thing' Beekes gave a review of several possibilities, including ἅπτω 'touch / etc.' I favor this one due to entries in Hesychius : ἄσπα• ἥπιος, ἡ ἐγγία ἀσπάζει• συμπεριπατεῖ which allow : *H2ap-ye-'get / grasp / touch' > G.dia. *(h)apte-\ *(h)apse-\ etc. *H2ap-yo-s > *(h)apsos 'touching / gentle / etc.', *aH2psyos > *a:psiyos with VVCy > VVCiy; common in IE but not clearly regular in G. The shift of 'touching > near(by) / gentle' is common. Since G. had several words with alt. of sp(h)-\ p(h)s-, internal *ps > sp is also possible. For ps-\ sp-: spalís \ psalís 'shears', spélion \ psélion 'armlet/ anklet (used by Persians)', *spel-'say (good or bad)' > OE spellian 'talk/tell', Lt. pelt 'villify/ scold/slander', G. psellós 'faltering in speech / lisping'. This same alt. exists for ks / sk (G. xíphos 'sword', Aeo. skíphos; *k(h)senwo-'guest' > Att. xénos, skheno-; íxalos 'castrated goat', iskhalo-, ísklai 'goat's skins'; khérsos \ xerón 'dry land', skherós 'shore'). This includes *sw-> *sv-> *sf-> sp(h)-/ ps-: *swe-es > spheîs 'they / themselves' & *two:y or *swo:y > sphṓ; *swal(yo)-> Ic. svoli 'block of wood', G. *sfalyos > psallós 'wood'. Also in https://www.academia.edu/127336365 are ex. of pt \ ps : >

Satapatha Brahmanam is one of the surviving texts of the Brahmanical literature. It is the Brahmana of Shukla Yajurveda. It provides the source for various practices being observed in the current day Hinduism. This Brahmana contains some primitive ideas and some highly intellectual concepts too. This text provides some information about the evolution of Indian thought and culture. This study is attempted as it remained an unexplored area though we observe much study on Samhitas and Upanishads.

The Mahabharata is more than an ancient Indian epic—it is full of leadership lessons, strategic thinking, and ethical decision-making. This paper studies the 18-day battle of Kurukshetra as a series of strategic actions taken by warriors and leaders

Written by Ravi Devaraj, Etymologist and Linguistic Observer Languages are not just tools of communication-they are vessels of memory, identity, and power. Some live on through the lips of millions, while others survive only in ink and stone. Some have evolved with time; others were frozen, killed, or even reanimated. This essay explores major world languages through symbolic metaphors, casting them as zombies, viruses, ghosts, fossils, and more-not merely for poetic effect, but to reveal their historical fates and sociolinguistic truths. These images are not random-they reflect each language's unique fate, influence, and memory. My Note These metaphors-zombie, virus, ghost, fossil, parasite, dragon, vampire-did not arise from scholarly models alone. They emerged intuitively, as visceral images that surfaced during years of observing how languages live, dominate, and die. This framework was born from instinct, not instruction. As an etymologist, I found these metaphors to be more than symbols; they became accurate reflections of linguistic realities. Intuition gave me the metaphors; reflection gave them depth. What follows is an intuitive framework, tested by history, grounded in cultural truth. 0 1 F 9 D F Sanskrit-A Zombie Sanskrit still walks among us-in rituals, temples, and ceremonies-but it no longer breathes. Once the expressive tongue of philosophers, poets, and grammarians, it now exists in a preserved, parroted state. It is taught in universities, chanted in mantras, but not spoken in daily life. Like a zombie, Sanskrit moves through history animated by memory, but disconnected from natural human dialogue.

The Hittites represent the oldest branch of Indo-European languages to have separated from the others. As per the representations of Hittites both in Egyptian monuments as well as their own Hittite ones, the Hittites physically represented a different type from the other people of West Asia: they had what would be described as "mongoloid features". what does one make of all this in the historical Indo-European context?

В статье представлены новейшие археогенетические данные, на
основе которых рассматривается одна из важнейших проблем истории
Армении — происхождение и формирование армянского народа.
Согласно этим данным, независимо от локализации ранней индоевропейской (индо-хеттской) прародины, поздняя индоевропейская прародина образовалась в степных и лесостепных регионах Восточной Европы, от бассейнов Волги до Днестра. Именно оттуда берут начало все нынешние индоевропейские языки. Археогенетические данные убедительно доказывают миграцию людей через Кавказ из восточноевропейских степей на Южный Кавказ и Армянское нагорье с середины III тысячелетия до н. э. Эти переселенцы и их потомки создали триалетиванадзорскую, севан-арцахскую, ван-урмийскую и лчашенско-мецаморскую культуры среднего, позднего бронзового и железного веков.
Вплоть до конца существования царства Урарту (VII–VI вв. до н. э.)
местное население на территории современной Армении (земля
Этиуни урартских источников) все еще имело значительную степную
патрилинейную ДНК (75%). Армянский должен был быть языком
создателей этих культур, и археогенетические данные свидетельствуют в пользу этиунийской гипотезы происхождения армян.
Ключевые слова: археогенетика, индоевропейская прародина,
ранняя археология Армении, предыстория Армении, протоармянский
язык, протоармяне, формирование армянского народа.

This study focuses on exploring the uniparental genetic lineages of Hungarian-speaking minorities residing in rural villages of Baranja (Croatia) and the Zobor region (Slovakia). We aimed to identify ancestral lineages by examining genetic markers distributed across the entire mitogenome and on the Y-chromosome. This allowed us to discern disparities in regional genetic structures within these communities. By integrating our newly acquired genetic data from a total of 168 participants with pre-existing Eurasian and ancient DNA datasets, our goal was to enrich the understanding of the genetic history trajectories of Carpathian Basin populations. Our findings suggest that while population-based analyses may not be sufficiently robust to detect fine-scale uniparental genetic patterns with the sample sizes at hand, phylogenetic analysis of well-characterized Y-chromosomal Short Tandem Repeat (STR) data and entire mitogenome sequences did uncover multiple lineage ties to far-flung regions and eras. While the predominant portions of both paternal and maternal DNA align with the East-Central European spectrum, rarer subhaplogroups and lineages have unveiled ancient ties to both prehistoric and historic populations spanning Europe and Eastern Eurasia. This research augments the expansive field of phylogenetics, offering critical perspectives on the genetic constitution and heritage of the communities in East-Central Europe. The non-recombining region (NRY) of the human Y-chromosome has been extensively researched to elucidate the population history, origin, and migration patterns of human groups 1-3 . This specific region of the Y-chromosome remains unaffected by recombination and is passed down intact from one generation to the next, thereby providing insights into the paternal genetic lineages of studied populations. Human populations often share Y-chromosome lineages due to shared ancestries or historical paternal gene flow between groups. Similarly, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), another uniparentally inherited segment of the genome, has emerged as a significant tool in studying human evolution and population history. Human mitochondrial frequency-based methods leverage the frequency distribution of mtDNA haplotypes or haplogroups within populations to infer evolutionary and demographic patterns 4-7 , while whole mitochondrial sequence-based phylogeny is a valuable tool for reconstructing the evolutionary relationships among human populations 8 . Both Y-chromosomal and mitochondrial markers contribute to our understanding of human population genetics, migration history and forensic identification . Many peoples migrating from the east found a new home in the Carpathian Basin in the historical era, such as Sarmatians, Huns, Avars, conquering Hungarians and Cumanians. The Hungarian conqueror groups entered

The Tarim Basin ‘mummies’ of western China continue to fascinate
scholars and the general public alike due to their ‘Caucasoid’ features, well preserved material culture, and putative ‘European’ origins. However, there
have been some uncritical efforts to link these archaeological cultures to those of other ancient Eurasian groups (e.g. the Celts) by applying syllogistic reasoning to multi-disciplinary evidence. In an attempt to provide a more cautious synthesis of the prehistory of the Tarim Basin, this paper will briefly summarize the archaeological, physical, and linguistic evidence that has been used to model human settlement of this region. These data will then be related to recent molecular anthropology research on modern populations of Central Asia, focusing especially on the Uighur in relation to their neighbours. While the genetic history of the modern peoples of a particular region is not necessarily related to their prehistoric antecedents, it is argued that the Tarim Basin experienced a surprising cultural and biological continuity despite immigration from both east and west into Xinjiang Province. This conclusion has a number of possible political ramifications in the present day that must be addressed in future literature on the subject.

Uralic numbers are supposedly securely reconstructed based on data.  However, many branches show irregular outcomes, & the reconstructions of most do not fit all data.  These reconstructions are only ideas based on data, not data themselves.  Arguments that start with old reconstructions have no value.  Instead, all data should be considered before making reconstructions.

F. seitsemä- ‘7’ and cognates were often thought to be loans from PIE *septǝmó- ‘7th’ (or some word for ‘7’ in a later IE branch).  Recent ideas (below) have made the idea of a loan impossible.  Though Uralic numbers do not seem to match those of Indo-European, let alone any other family, a careful internal reconstruction can lead to a better match with external cognates.  It is pointless to compare words in distantly related languages if the reconstructions do not even work for closely related languages; a reconstruction should explain all outcomes, or be secure enough that oddities can be assumed to be analogy or from affixes, etc.  None of this is true for PU.


A.  *ükte ‘1’ does not fit all data.  The need for *-k- in some branches makes it clear that older *üke could be contaminated by the -CC- of *kakta \ *käktä ‘2’.  Also, some require *äkte ‘1’, which is further contaminated by the -V- of *käktä ‘2’.  Aikio’s “There have also been attempts to explain the cluster *kt as secondary, but these fail to convince” makes no sense.  What other source would explain *-k(t)- & -kt- in ‘1’ & ‘2’?  With *äkte having no explanation besides contamination, it is pointless to separate *-k(t)-.  In the same way, *kakta > Fc. *kakte is clearly caused by contamination of -e in Fc. *ükte, maybe also Permic *küktä ‘2’ (reconstructions vary) as contamination from (new) *ükte ‘1’, etc.  Why would so many examples not point to contamination?  When only ‘1’ has cases of *-k-, original *-k- seems clear.


Others require *ükje or *wike, which shows that older *üike usually simplified *üi > *ü but in some there was met. *üikte > *ektjü, in some there was *üi > *wi.  This PU *üike is much too close to PIE *H1oiko- ‘one’ to be coincidence.  Based on Aikio :

*H1oiko-m > S. éka-m ‘one’, PU *üike > *üke, *üike > *wike, *üjkte > *ektjü, *ükte, *äkte
*äkte > attributive Mr. ik, non-attributive Mr. *iktǝ(t) > EMr. ikte, Permic *ȯktet > *ȯtekt > *ȯtk \ *ȯtik > Ud. og \ odig, Z. e̮tik
*ükte > F. yksi, yhden g. ‘1’, Sm. *e̮kte̮ > NSm. akta \ okta
*üke > Mi. *äkʷ, predicative *äkʷǟ > kl. ǟkʷǝ, km. äkʷ, ku. äkʷǝ, s. akʷa
*wike > *veɣǝ- > *vej > Mv. ve, *vejkǝ > Mv. vejke, Mh. (i)fkä
*üikte > *üjkte > *ektjü > *eδ’i > X. *ij > o. ij, k. ĭ(j), n. ĭj, v.vj. ĕj, Hn. ëgy

For *ktj > *δ’, compare *kl > *kδ > *δj > *δ' (Whalen 2025a).


Since other wordss show *oi > *ui > *u (or *üi > *ü by front V) this allows a firm explanation *oi > *ü(-j) here, with *üi- > *wi- only in Mv.

*H1loig- > Li. láigyti ‘run around wildly’, Go. laikan ‘jump’, PU *lük-kä- cau. ‘to shove’ > F. lükkä- (Hovers)
*H1leig- > S. réjate ‘hop/quake/shake’, *le-lig-ye- > G. elelízō ‘cause to shake’, *-dhghōm > elelíkhthōn ‘earth-shaking’

*gloima:H2, *-ayH2- > *gδuima:y > *δyüimä: > PU *δ'ümä ‘glue’ > F. tymä (Whalen 2025a)
G. gloiós m. ‘glutinous substance / gum’, aj. ‘sticky / clammy’, *gloitn > L. glūten ‘glue’

*snoigWho- > *snuyghwo- > *snughwoy- > *slughmey > PU *lume > F. lumi ‘snow’ (Whalen 2025e)


B.  For PU *kakta \ *käktä ‘2’ (and variants with contamination < ‘1’), *kakta > Sm. *kuoktē, *kakte > F. kaksi, *käktä > Hn. két, kettő, Sm. *kitä, etc.  Blažek gives as possible cognates PIE *kWetaH2- > R. četá ‘couple / pair’, SC čȅta ‘troop / squad’, Os. cäd(ä) ‘a pair of bulls in yoke’.  Hovers has reduplicated *kWe-kWt- as the cause.  Other IE reduplicated forms for ‘2’, etc., exist :

*dwi-duw-oH- -> G. dídumos ‘double/twin’

*dwiH-dwiH ‘together / next to each other’ > TB wipi ‘close together’

S. dvaṁ-dvá-m ‘pair/couple / duel’


Napolskikh points out that Blažek does not explain why PU *käktä \ *kakta has front & back variants.  I think this has to do with the PIE ending.  The Proto-Indo-European feminine of o-stems was *-o-iH2- > *-aH2(y)- (Whalen 2025b), with likely nom. *-aH2-s > *-a:H2.  My *-aH2(y)- explains TB -o and -ai-, among other retentions of -ai- & -ay- in other IE.  Some PU words that correspond to IE fem. have *-ä, others *-a (D).  If *kWe-kWtaH2(y)- > PU *kakta:y \ *kakta: > *käktä \ *kakta, it would help prove that *y existed here and was (one ?) cause of fronting in PU.


Napolskikh also said that *kWet- & *kakta resemble other Asian words.  In my view, they’re related to Tg. *gagda ‘one of a pair’, Mc. *gagča \ *ganča ‘one / single / only’, OJ kata- ‘*to pair > mix / join / unite’, kata ‘one of two sides’, MJ kàtà, Yr. tkit ‘2’, Itelmen (Tigil River) katxan ‘2’.


C.  PU *wixte is used for both ‘5’ & (in Smd.) ‘10’.  I think this is similar to PIE *penkWe ‘5’, which ends in *-e (which would be the dual ending if from a stem *penkW-, with no other reasonable source in nouns).  I’d expect a dual to be ‘both hands’ in this situation (Whalen 2025c).  If its meaning ‘all’ could apply to either ‘all (5) of one hand or / both hands (10)’, it would match Uralic *wixte ‘5 / 10’.  At an early stage, the largest number with a “simple” name being the end of a 5 count or 10 count seems to fit.  With this, an origin in *dwi-käte ‘2 hands’ (*käte > F. käsi ‘hand / arm’) makes sense.  However, instead of standard *käte, *xäte would fit better to get *-x(V)t-.  For PU *x > *k as optional, see also :

PIE *H2ag^- > L. agō ‘drive/act’, Av. az- ‘drive (away)’, Ar. acem ‘bring/lead/beat’, PU *xaja- > F. aja- ‘drive/chase’, *k- > Hn. hajt- ‘drive/hunt’

With this, *dwi-xäte > *wi-xäte > *wi-xte ‘2 hands / 10 fingers’ would help support the existence of PU *x.  Since *wi- ‘2’ would be so close to PIE *dwi-, I see no reason to separate them.  Note that Uralic *dw- > *w- would match Tocharian w-, and I think these are especially close branches (2024a).  Of course, others have also seen *käte as a cognate of *g^hosto- > S. hásta- ‘hand’, etc., though I’m not sure on the details.


D. PU *kumśV ‘twenty’ > Mv. komś, Z., Ud. ki̮ź, Hn. húsz, Mi.s. χus, X. *kas > v. kos

PU *kumśV & PIE *widk^mti ‘20’ would show *i > *iǝ (as in Tocharian), *tiV > *t’V > *c’V ( > *s’V in most environments).  For part of this, see (E) and my (2025d) :

*pste(H)no- ‘(woman’s) breast’ > Li. spenỹs, Lt. spenis ‘nipple / teat / uvula’, ON speni, OE spane ‘teat’, OI sine, S. stána- ‘female breast, nipple’, MP pestān, NP pistān ‘breast’, Av. fštāna-, TA päśśäṁ, TB; päścane du.
*pstenayH2- > *ps’c’ǝna:y > *s’c’wǝna:y > *s’unc’ä:y > PU *s’ünc’ä > Hn. szügy


Like Tocharian *w’īkän > TA wiki, TB ikäṃ, *wi:- > *yi- > *i- > 0- seems likely in PU.  It is likely that *omC > *umC, similar to opt. *orC in :

*krokiyo- [r-r>0 ?] > Ct. *korkiyo-s > W. crechydd \ crychydd ‘heron’, Co. kerghydh
*korkoy- > PU *kïrke > Sm. *kuorkë > NSm. guorga, Mr.m. karga, karkt p., Mv. kargo, -t p.
*korkoy- > PU *kurke > F. kurke- ‘crane’, Smd. *kǝrö(-kǝrö) > Nga. kokərɨ, En.f. kori, Nen.f. kaqłyu, .t. xăryo, Skp. *qara > .n. qara, .s.N. kará, .s.U. kaara, Kam. kʰuruʔjo, Koib. kurerok, Mator körüh \ köröh


E.  PU words for ‘8’ & ‘9’ are compounds.  For these, Aikio had :
>
SAAMI ?: S uktsie, U åktse, L aktse, N ovcci, okci- (in compounds), I oovce, Sk å´hcc, ååu´c,
K a̮x̜̄c̜, T a̮k̜̄c̜e ‘nine’ (< PSaa *ukcē ~ *okcē(n) ~ *e̮kcē) {1}
FINNIC Fin yhdeksän, Ol yheksän, Veps ühesa (GEN ühesan), Vote ühesää, Est üheksa, Võro
ütesä (GEN `ütsä), Liv ī’dõks (GEN =) (< PFi *ükteksän : *ükteksä-)
MORDVIN E vejkse, M vexksa, vejksa ‘neun’ (< PMd *vejksǝ)

This numeral was obviously formed from -> *ükti / *äkti ‘one’, the semantic motivation being the expression of ‘nine’ as ‘one short of ten’; cf. the structurally analogous -> *kaktiksa(n) ‘eight’ based on -> *kakta / *kektä / *kiktä ‘two’.  The part *-(i)ksa(n) / *-(i)ksä(n), however, is opaque.
>

Gusev reconstructed *-kśama in these & Smd. *-såmå (Nen.f. -sama, Nen.t. -sawa, En. -saa ) :

PU *ükte-kśama ‘1 less than 10 > 9’ > F. yhdeksän, *vejksə > Mv. vejksë, Mh. vejhksa

*kakta-kśama ‘2 less than 10 > 8’ > F. kahdeksan, *kavksə > Mv. kavkso, Mh. kafksa

etc.  I think that *-kśm- > *-ksm- (and maybe later > *-ksw-) can also explain Mh.-Mv. forms (Gusev’s doubts that *ś > *s was possible don’t take into account the possibility of the creation of unique *-kśm- as an intermediate stage).  It is clear that *-kśama would either mean ‘less / minus’ or ’10’.  If these other IE relations are true, then *dek^m > *diǝk^ǝm > *t’ǝk(’)ǝm > *śakam > *-kśama (with dsm. of t’-k’ if needed, though PIE *K^ > PU *k vs. *ś \ *ć might be opt. or caused by a variety of unknown factors).


I think that *-kśm- > *-ksm- (and met.) can also explain :

*käktä-kśama > Permic *ki̮kjami̮s ‘8’, Z. kökjamys = ke̮kjami̮s, ki̮kjami̮s, Ud. *kjami̮s > ťami̮s
Mari *kändäŋksǝ ‘eight’ > .m. kandaš(ǝ), WMr. kändakš(ǝ)

*ükte-kśama > Permic *ȯkmi̮s > Z. e̮kmi̮s, Ud. ukmi̮s ‘nine’
Mari *ĭndeŋskǝ > E., c. indeš, m. indeśǝ, v. ĭ̮nteš, u. ǝndiŋǝš, NW ü̆ndiŋšǝ, W. ǝndeŋkš(ǝ) ‘nine’

The unexpected nasals in Mari are likely dsm. of *k-k > *ŋ-k, then after *mk > *ŋk a 2nd dsm. of *ŋ-ŋ > *n-ŋ.


F.  Based on (Whalen 2025d) :

Some words are so close in PIE & PU that loans are suspected.  Others see an Indo-Uralic stage.  In words like :

PIE *gWolHmo- > Gmc. *kwalma-z > OE cwealm ‘death/slaughter’, PU *kalma > F. kalma ‘death’, Mv. kalmo, Kam. kholmë ‘grave’, En. kamer(o) ‘ghost’

PIE *wodo:r > E. water, G. húdōr, PU *wete

there are no clear “unexpected” changes.  That is, *m > *m, etc.  If words that were very close, but with one sound change, were examined, maybe those changes could be found in other words that contained one or more other changes.  By continuing in this manner, finding multiple examples of each, more clarity on what type of relationship PIE & PU had might be found.  Though not exact matches, F. seitsemä- ‘7’ and cognates were often thought to be...

Анализируются краниологические источники по окуневской культуре ранней бронзы Хакасско-Минусинской котловины в Южной Сибири. Представлен обзор исследований антропологических материалов, отмечается развитие дискуссии о происхождении населения окуневской культуры. По мнению автора эта дискуссия, во-многом, базируется на внешнем противоречии между определяемым на археологических материалах и лежащим в основе ее формирования восточноевропейском культурном импульсе, и данными антропологии, устанавливающих принадлежность окуневского населения к автохтонным популяциям Южной Сибири.
Сформирована база краниологических данных окуневской культуры, вводится в оборот некоторое число новых материалов преимущественно из старых раскопок, до этого остававшиеся вне поля зрения исследователей и хранящиеся в научных учреждениях разных городов Сибири. Фиксируется многообразие форм перехода от преобладания европеоидных или монголоидных морфологических особенностей на черепах раннего Уйбатского этапа культуры при общей принадлежности окуневского населения в среднем к промежуточному монголоидно-европеоидному антропологическому типу местного происхождения. Краниологическая находка из могильника позднего Разливского этапа окуневской культуры демонстрирует пример устойчивого метисного типа. Намечены перспективные вопросы исследования происхождения окуневской культуры на основе анализа палеоантропологических источников. На примере краниологических материалов из могильника ранней бронзы Аймырлыг XIII и XXVII в Туве продемонстрирована антропологическая неоднородность населения культур окуневского круга или окуневско-чемурчекской общности Южной Сибири и Центральной Азии по отношению к пришлому европеоидному и местному азиатскому антропологическому компонентам. Констатируется необходимость изучения антропологических особенностей носителей окуневской культуры на основе ее разработанной хронологии и периодизации, а также исследования происхождения окуневской культуры с учетом антропологических материалов не только свиты родственных культурных образований ранней бронзы обширных территорий юга Сибири и Центральной Азии, но и отдаленных западных регионов Евразии. С привлечением новейших палеогенетических данных отвергается гипотеза о енисейской лингвистической принадлежности носителей окуневской культуры.

Following van Windekens (mentioned in Adams), I see a loan of :

Kho. mrāha- ‘pearl’ >> TA wrok, TB wrāko ‘pearl / (oyster) shell’

The h > *x > k seen in other loans (Pali paṭaha- ‘kettle-drum’>> TB paṭak; S. sārthavāha- >> TA sārthavāk ‘caravan leader’; S. ahrī- ‘shameless’ >> TA akri) which matches some native *K \ *H > *x > k \ *h > 0 (Whalen 2025a).  Dragoni said that since mr- > wr- wasn’t regular, requiring an intermediate Iranian source.  This seems very unlikely considering how many loans came directly from Kho. to T., so I decided to look for more examples of alternation of w \ m to see which theory made more sense.  Many other IE have w \ m, either regular or not, so it would not be surprising for the same in PT.


Some *w > m :

A.  TA *w vs. TB m

*sol(H2)wo- ‘all / whole’ > TA salu ‘entirely’, TB solme

B.

Статья посвящена анализу этнонимов ингуши и чеченцы. На основе анализа исторических сведений и географических особенностей ареала расселения установлено, что этнонимы являлись первоначально хоронимом, давшим имя демониму и переросшему до этнонима. Первоначально этнонимы объясняются древнеиранской языковой средой. В дальнейшем отмечены тюркские элементы. Выявленная этимология этнонимов может дать новый импульс к изучению миграций народов в северокавказском регионе.

If Uralic *wVN > *mVN within a syllable was optional, it would explain v- vs. m- in :
*wantï ‘related by marriage, son-in-law, brother-in-law’ > Sm. vı̊ntı̊m ‘courter / bridegroom’,
Nen. wennīʔ ‘related by marriage, related as brothers-in-law’, Kamass mono \ muno
‘matchmaker, suitor (acting on behalf of another)’, En. maddu ‘suitor’
In the same way, if PU *-n once existed, the same would work for :
*wiδewen ‘marrow / brain’ >
*wiδewe > F. yty, ydyn g. ‘bone marrow / core / power’, Es. üti, üdi g. ‘marrow’
*wiδeme > Erzya udem ‘marrow / brain / intellect’, EMr. vem, Ud. viym \ vim, Z. vem, X.
welǝm, NMi. vāl(y)m ‘marrow / brain’, Hn. velő, velőt a., veleje pd.3s. ‘marrow, pith, essence’,
F. luu-ydin ‘bone marrow’, ydin, ytimen g., ‘core, kernel, pith, nucleus, the central part of
something, essence’, Sm. *ëδëm > NSm. aδa, aδδam- ‘marrow; marrow bone; *fat > plumpness’
It is hard to imagine another sound change that would fit either, let alone both (see other ex.
below). There is no need to ignore the obvious when it requires optionality; such reliance on
theory over evidence would only lead to irrationality.
It is also impossible to ignore that PU *wiδewen ‘brain’ would be unrealistically close to PIE
*widwon- ‘knowing / wise’ > S. vidvā́n, *wi’wön- > *w^iwwen- > TB ūwe ‘learned’, *wid-bon-
> H. witpan- ‘brain(s)’ [with w-dsm., Whalen 2024a]. Many times before, I’ve said that PIE *-
o:r > *-o:n > PU *-ö:y > *-ey > *-e (*wodo:r > *wöde:y > *wedey > PU *wete). If *widwo:n >
*viδvẽy \ *viδmẽy, it woud show that these were caused by *-on > *-õn, etc., 1st.
In Tocharian, *d optionally became *dz > ts or optional *dC > C, *dy > yy. I think this fits with
*dC > *’C first, and if the same in PU, it would also fit with V > [-high] before ’ (seen in many
languages throughout the world) :
PIE *widwaH2- ‘wisdom / brain / intellect’, *wi’wa: > *u’iwa > *o’iwa > PU *ojwa ‘head /
brain / intellect / peak / top / best’ > F. oiva ‘fine, splendid’, *oajvē > NSm. oaivi ‘head /
intellect’, Mr. vuj ‘head / end / treetop’, Smd. *åjwå > Mator ajba, En. eba, Nen. ŋaywa ‘head /
brain’
In the same way, *wãntï ‘related by marriage’ is close to *bhondhH-to- ‘joined / in an alliance /
related / fixed’, part of other ex. of IE *bh- > PU *w- unless followed by *w \ *u (2). I have also
used *CVN- > *NVN- in (Whalen 2025a) :

The R1b haplogroup has been predisposed to forming patrilocal clans and communities descended from a single man since Mesolithic times. Until 6000 BC, R1b-V88 was the major haplogroup in the Iron Gates culture around the Lower Danube. With V88 were a number of other small lines of R1b, which when circumstances presented, expanded to form their own clans.

Around 4250 BC, the advanced semi-industrial metalworking society of the Western Pontic disappeared when the Baltic Dark Age or "Gimbutas Collapse" (GC) began. This 500-year episode affected much of northern Europe. Mesolithic and smaller Neolithic haplogroups including V88 almost disappeared, along with early single-clan settlements of R-M73 (Baltic, Forest Steppe and middle Volga) and R-V1636 (Khvalynsk on the lower Volga).

At the onset of the GC, a people called the Suvorovo built the first kurgans (burial mounds) on the lower Danube. One or several men of the small haplogroup R1b-M269 found sanctuary in the Caucasus as a refugee or captive, by boat around the Black Sea. There his clan expanded to form a substantial minority community. This clan of fisherman-foragers had a penchant for river and coastal exploration, and developed rituals surrounding mineral prospecting and processing, animal sacrifice and mound building. We know these people as the Yamna.

The Y-haplotree provides compelling evidence that the arc of kurgan-building settlements from Bulgaria to the Volga resulted from near-simultaneous marine excursions around 3200 BC of sub-clans of haplogroup Z2183>Z2189. From the Caucasus, one group travelled westwards across the Black Sea to the Balkans and Pannonia. They revived the abandoned mining and metallurgical industries of Thrace, and combined with subsistence farmers to form the Vucedol culture. Other clans made multiple expeditions up the rivers of the north Pontic. One sub-clan who travelled north to form a small prospecting colony at Samara on the Volga River was later absorbed (without men) into the extremely successful Sintashta R1a clan. Another group travelled on a river route far to the east, reaching the Yenisei River. Of these ventures, the Balkans expedition was the only one successful in establishing a substantial R-Z2103 legacy.

The Yamna Z2109 expansion was followed around 3000 BC by two very much larger expansions from single men of different haplogroups but the same culture, Corded Ware. The first was R1b-L151, first located on the Elbe River in Bohemia. The other was R1a-PF6162, from the Baltic or north Poland. The reasons for these massive expansions remain clouded, but they do not have a direct connection to the Yamna expansion.

More likely is that R1b-L151 is actually a relic from the Mesolithic R1b Iron Gates people, who may have spoken an original centum Indo-European language. The L151 subsequently spread versions of their dialect throughout Western Europe. In the Caucasus, Yamna speakers picked up satem vocalisations, and spread these directly in the satem IE languages.
Analysis of autosomal admixture supports a number of observations in this paper. In the southern Urals, admixture shows quite clearly the process of integration of the Fatyanovo and Yamna cultures

A note on Tocharian to Chinese Loans



Manaster Ramer has written a very interesting draft on the names of odd animals sent by the Yuezhi to China.  He sees each as Tocharian, and I see no problem with his steps.  However, in MCh. *byu-byot \ *byu-byol \ *byu-byor ‘a kind of spotted deer or antelope?’, though I agree that the Chinese have used the phrase ‘flower deer’ (Ch. méihuālù ‘plum blossom deer’) to describe such an animal, this doesn’t mean that TB *pyāpo-yal is likely.  For a two-syllable word (if his other examples suggest something close to TA before all known TA features appeared), maybe *pärs-pält ‘spotted hide’ (PIE *p(e)lto- ‘covering / hide / skin’) would work.  I would like to know more about how the Chinese might have adapted, or not, C-clusters that they didn’t have.

Drawing out "maps" to show the origins and spread (via migrations) of Indo-European languages has become a major cottage industry. Every Tom, Dick and Harry tries out his luck in preparing such maps, and gives free rein to his imagination. And in all this, Linguistics, which is really the only Central Issue, has no role to play whatsoever!

Recent dry core drilling conducted at the archaeological site of Mohenjodaro, a principal urban center of the Indus Valley Civilization, has revealed anthropogenic material at a stratigraphic depth of approximately 60 feet. This finding raises significant questions regarding the established chronological framework of the site, which has traditionally been placed within the Mature Harappan Phase (circa 2600-1900 BCE). The depth and context of the recovered materials suggest the potential presence of earlier occupational phases, possibly extending into the early Holocene or, in a more speculative scenario, the terminal Pleistocene. This report presents a preliminary assessment of the findings and discusses their implications for the cultural and geological history of the Indus Basin.

The colonization of planet Earth by neoanthropes is divided into two different but interrelated processes - migrations of carriers of certain genes or languages. If you prefer to study one of these processes, the results will differ significantly from each other. The proposed hypothesis about the settlement of a wide area of ​​Europe and Asia by Homo sapiens is based on the results of ethnogenetic studies conducted using the graphoanalytical method. The territories of formation of the Sino-Tibetan and Nostratic languages ​​found in the same place determine the starting point of the thousand-year migrations of man in Western Asia. Their directions are guessed considering the results of other long-term ethnogenetic, archaeological, anthropological, and genetic studies of recent years.

Статья посвящена изучению личной жизни политических ссыльных северных губерний России на рубеже XIX–XX вв. Опираясь на материалы печати, воспоминания и архивную документацию, автор анализирует различные стратегии выстраивания личной жизни в условиях ссылки. Сделан вывод, что многие романтические союзы, которые завязывались в ссылке, были основаны не только на личной симпатии, но и на родстве политических убеждений. Таким союзам способствовали общие идеалы, совместная революционная работа, проживание в условиях скученности. Показано, что вдали от губернских городов поведение ссыльных в области межполового взаимодействия зачастую было девиантным (внебрачное сожительство, беспорядочные половые связи), а иногда и делинквентным (сексуальное насилие и проституция). Местное население реагировало на нравы и привычки ссыльных настороженно, но со временем все же частично перенимало их практики, например, гражданский брак.

The following is one of three hypotheses which attempt to explain the presence of Ychromosome haplogroup R-U152 in the British Isles, and is labelled Hypothesis C. Here the author will explore the specific sources relating to the Belgae Tribe and descendants, as well as others rooted in the La Tene Celtic culture, from the Belgica and Celtica Regions, dating from circa 450 1685 AD. They represent one of three possible major sources of Ychromosome haplogroup R-U152 in Britain and Ireland. Considerably more detail about the La Tene Celts, their predecessors and antecedents, as well as details relative to DNA and haplogroup R-U152 and subclades, is found in the first of these three studies of the subject by the author. This first study, Hypothesis A, in the series explores the evidence suggesting that the R-U152 males in England are descendants of the Celtic Cimbri of Denmark, and the Danish Vikings via "The Great Army" of the 9 th Century. The second component of the trilogy, Hypothesis B, investigates the likelihood that the appearance of this haplogroup in England can best be explained by the Anglo-Saxon migration beginning in the 5 th Century, involving in particular the Angles and Jutes from the Jutland Peninsula in Denmark. What all three hypotheses have in common is an assertion that the ancestors of the R-U152 British are derived from a Continental "La Tene" Celtic source.

The Yamnaya archaeological complex appeared around 3300 BC across the steppes north of the Black and Caspian Seas, and by 3000 BC it reached its maximal extent, ranging from Hungary in the west to Kazakhstan in the east. To localize Yamnaya origins among the preceding Eneolithic people, we assembled ancient DNA from 435 individuals, demonstrating three genetic clines. A Caucasus–lower Volga (CLV) cline suffused with Caucasus hunter-gatherer1 ancestry extended between a Caucasus Neolithic southern end and a northern end at Berezhnovka along the lower Volga river. Bidirectional gene flow created intermediate populations, such as the north Caucasus Maikop people, and those at Remontnoye on the steppe. The Volga cline was formed as CLV people mixed with upriver populations of Eastern hunter-gatherer2 ancestry, creating hypervariable groups, including one at Khvalynsk. The Dnipro cline was formed when CLV people moved west, mixing with people with Ukraine Neolithic hunter-gatherer ancestry3 along the Dnipro and Don rivers to establish Serednii Stih groups, from whom Yamnaya ancestors formed around 4000 BC and grew rapidly after 3750–3350 BC. The CLV people contributed around four-fifths of the ancestry of the Yamnaya and, entering Anatolia, probably from the east, at least one-tenth of the ancestry of Bronze Age central Anatolians, who spoke Hittite4,5. We therefore propose that the final unity of the speakers of ‘proto-Indo-Anatolian’, the language ancestral to both Anatolian and Indo-European people, occurred in CLV people some time between 4400 BC and 4000 BC.

The article analyzes the images of a cow head with five stars from the Gerzeh Palette (Naqada II), a cylinder seal from Abydos (Naqada II–III), and a bowl from Hierakonpolis (1st Dynasty). The author considers the correlation between these motifs and the image of a cow on the bone tablet of king Djer from Abydos (1st Dynasty), representing the goddess Sothis as a provider of floods. A comparative analysis of the iconography of “star” cow heads with images of “dancing” women with raised arms, depicted on the vessels of the Naqada culture, is carried out. The study reveals that the images of these heads designated the heliacal rising of Sirius, which had been already celebrated in the archaic period as the Opening of the Year Festival, or the New Year Festival. This festival was correlated with the Feast of Drunkenness, dedicated to the goddess Hathor and held, according to later sources, in the first month of the flooding season. The Feast of Drunkenness, which celebrated Hathor’s departure to Nubia and her return to Egypt, was an allegorical expression of the disappearance of Sirius from view and its rise before the Nile flood. The author believes that these events underlie the pictorial program of Predynastic scenes on vessels showing boats with female figures. The aforementioned natural phenomena are also probably marked by the images of flower/star below the king, cow heads on Narmer palette, a heron on Narmer mace-head, and the king holding a plow on Scorpion mace-head.

The paper examines the role of two miniatures depicting violence against the body of Christ within the context of love mysticism. They are based on the notion of bride and bridegroom from the Song of Songs, creatively reinterpreted to stir up the devotion of their owners. The first illumination comes from the Rothschild Canticles, a collection of biblical songs created in the early 14th century for an anonymous nun or canoness. It portrays the nun’s soul piercing Christ’s side wound. The second miniature belongs to the visual narrative of Henry Suso's Horologium Sapientiae from the 15th-century manuscript in the Royal Library of Belgium (MS IV 111). It depicts a dialog between Dame Sapientia (Christ’s divine nature) and the Disciple (the main character with whom the reader was supposed to identify). The composition includes two parables and the lady’s “most loving form” – a vision of Christ who is tortured while carrying his cross. It is argued that both examples were carefully devised to evoke Eucharistic allusions as a framework for the consummation of love.
In the Rothschild Canticles, the path toward intimate union with the divine bridegroom begins with an act of love violence – the phallic penetration of Christ’s side by the spear. The act is equated with the ritual performance of the celebrant priest in the Mass, ascribing the priestly role to the female soul. The erotic allusion achieves its full significance in the Eucharistic interpretation, as the desire for the loved one is fulfilled only through the real presence of Christ, realized through transubstantiation.
In the case of the miniature from Horologium Sapientiae, the vision of Christ’s torments is depicted anachronistically – his body bears the wounds of the crucifixion while enduring what preceded it. Therefore, the intention behind the image was to depict Eucharistic reality, which undermines chronological order: a sublimation of time and space, where the ultimate expression of divine love (Christ’s sacrifice) is reaffirmed ever again at Mass. Because the narrative of Suso’s work reveals that the Disciple is repulsed by Christ's disfigured body, the illumination suggests that unless the Disciple overcomes this aversion, he will reject the real presence of the beloved and the consummation of their love through communion.

Kot Diji, a fortified settlement in the Indus Valley Civilization, dates back to circa 2500-2000 BCE. Located in modern-day Pakistan, this site offers valuable insights into the urban planning, architectural, and cultural practices of the IVC. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of Kot Diji's fortification walls, gateways, and civic infrastructure, highlighting its unique features and similarities with other IVC sites. The study also explores the site's significance within the broader context of the IVC's urbanization, trade networks, and cultural exchange. By examining the archaeological evidence and historical records, this research aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of Kot Diji's importance and its role in the IVC's fascinating story.

The article is devoted to images of axes on Chemurchek (Qie’muerqieke) type anthropomorphs of the Mongolian Altai (3 Mill. BCE), and their connections with images of weapons on Kernosovo stele of the Eneolithic-Early Bronze Age (Middle Dnieper region). The peculiarities of the shape of trapezoidal axes with which are “armed” Chemurchek parabolic anthropomorphs depicted on the slab of the Khar Chuluut 1 sanctuary (KhCh 429/439/440) and on petroglyphs of the Ikh-Oigor river valley suggest that their prototypes were celt axes of Seima-Turbino type of the last third of 3 Mill. BCE Together the image of a parabolic anthropomorph on a slab reused in the construction of the Khar Chuluut 1 sanctuary (KhCh 483) were depicted images of three different types of axes: massive shaft-hole axe, a flat stone axe and a hammer-axe. Such objects in Western Siberia are common for the Chalcolithic, which allows us to date the image to the time of the first appearance of the Chemurchek phenomenon in the foothills of the Altai - 27-26 cent. BCE. The Kernosovo “idol” also demonstrates axes of three different types: an shaft-hole axe of the Baniabic (Baniabükk) type, a flat ax of the Vinča type (late subtype) and an hammer-axe of elongated proportions (the closest analogy are hammer-axes from Klady 31/5 grave, Novosvobodnaya type). Along with them on stele was depicted a knife or dagger with horizontal shoulders and an oval end, such as those found in the burials of the Maikop-Novosvobodnaya cultural entity. This circle of analogies allows us to date the Kernosovo stele to 34-32 cent. BCE. The presence on the Kernosovo stele and on the Chemurchek anthropomorph images of a complete set of three types of battle axes emphasizes the semantic connection of these monuments, despite the gap in time and space. The noticed similarity is further evidence of active involvement of Eastern European steppe community in early 3rd millennium BC. Chemurchek migration from France to the Mongolian Altai.Статья посвящена изображениям топоров на чемурчекских антропоморфах Монгольского Алтая (3 тыс. до н.э.), и их связи с изображениями предметов вооружения на Керносовской стеле периода энеолита-ранней бронзы (Среднее Поднепровье). Особенности формы трапециевидных топоров, которыми «вооружены» чемурчекские параболические антропоморфы, изображенные на плите ХЧ 429/439/440 святилища Хар чулуут 1 и на петроглифах долины реки Их-Ойгор-Гол, позволяют прелположить, что их прототипами были кельты сейминско-турбинских типов последней трети 3 тыс. до н.э. С фигурой параболического антропоморфа на плите, переиспользованной в конструкции святилища Хар чулуут 1 (ХЧ 483), связаны изображения топоров трех других типов: проушной клиновидный топор, плоский каменный шлифованный топор и топор-молот. Такие предметы в Западной Сибири характерны для периода энеолита, что позволяет датировать изображение временем появления чемурчекского феномена в предгорьях Алтая – 27-26 вв. до н.э. На Керносовском «идоле» также представлены топоры трех разных типов: проушной топор типа Баньябик (Баньябюкк), плоский топор типа Винча (поздний вариант) и топор-молот вытянутых пропорций (ближайшая аналогия – топоры из новосвободненской гробницы Клады 31/5). Вместе с ними изображен нож или кинжал с горизонтальными плечиками и овальным окончанием, типа найденных в погребениях майкопско-новосвободненской общности. Этот круг аналогий позволяет датировать Керносовский идол в пределах 34-32 вв. до н.э. Наличие на Керносовской стеле и чемурчекском антропоморфе изображения полного набора их трех типов боевых топоров подчеркивает смысловую связь этих памятников, несмотря на разрыв во времени и пространстве. Подмеченное сходство – еще одно свидетельство активного участия населения восточноевропейских степей в чемурчекской миграции начала 3 тыс. до н.э. из Франции на Монгольский Алтай.

There have been three prominent papers in the last few years, all three "peer-reviewed", all three by large groups of "scientists from around the world", but espousing two opposite theories of Indo-European origins (a rather painful situation for devotees of "peer-reviewed" papers who believe that anything "peer-reviewed" represents the Word of God), "Steppes" vs. "Anatolia-Iran":

Words for 'seal' across Europe are often of unknown origin. One group, Gmc. *selxa-z > ON selr, OSax. selah, OE seolh, E. seal / selk, Uralic *šülkes / *šülkeš > Finnic *hülges / *hülgeh > F. hylki / hylje, Es. hüljes, etc., Ugric *šä(š)kel > Mi. saagyl, X. šägǝl' seems related, but not all differences are from known regular changes. PU *šülkes might optionally assimilate to *šülkeš, explaining part of the oddities, and if *šwälkes > *šülkes vs. *šwälkes > *šäškwel, it might cover others (other stems show some *pa vs. *pu, etc.), but there is no *w in Gmc.

Издание содержит статьи, подготовленные на основе материалов докладов Международной научной конференции «Археология Западной Сибири и Алтая: опыт междисциплинарных исследований», посвященной 70-летию Юрия Федоровича Кирюшина, доктора исторических наук, профессора кафедры археологии, этнографии и музеологии, президента Алтайского государственного университета, заслуженного деятеля Республики Алтай, заслуженного работника высшей школы Российской Федерации (конференция организована в рамках гранта Министерства образования и науки РФ (постановление №220), полученного ФГБОУ ВПО «Алтайский государственный университет» (договор №14.Z50.31.0010, проект «Древнейшее заселение Сибири: формирование и динамика культур на территории Северной Азии»)»). Публикации сгруппированы в следующие тематические разделы «О юбиляре», «Теоретико-методологические, методические и практические разработки современной археологии», «Использование естественно-научных методов в археологических исследованиях», «Освоение Алтая и Западной Сибири в каменном веке и энеолите», «Процесс формирования культур и общностей Сибири в эпоху бронзы», «Кочевники степей поздней древности и средневековья», «Искусство народов Центральной Азии и сопредельных территорий в древности, средневековье и новом времени». УдК 902(571.1)(08) ббК 63.48(253.3)я43

There is an AIT-vs.OIT debate which goes on intermittently in the media and social media, although generally stonewalled in the academic world. But sometimes (or rather, quite often) this debate takes on a grotesque aspect, and becomes simply a Battle of the Absurdities.

Статья посвящена ныне утраченному памятнику — росписям Полигнота Фасосского, знаменитого живописца первой половины V в. до н.э., в дельфийской лесхе книдян. Одна из картин представляла падение Трои (Iliupersis), другая — Одиссея, сошедшего в Аид (Nekyia). Точная дата создания цикла неизвестна, но анализ исторического контекста и возможных условий заказа позволяет предполагать 460-е гг. до н.э. Все попытки реконструкции и интерпретации картин базируются исключительно на текстах, самый важный из которых — подробное описание, данное Павсанием (Paus. X. 25–31). В статье рассматривает вопрос o соотнесении античного словесного и изобразительного творчества как различных форм нарративного искусства. Кроме того, образный и семантический строй картин анализируется, исходя из локального контекста (дельфийского святилища) и факта тесной связи лесхи с могилой почитаемого в Дельфах Неоптолема.