Aryan Languages
a great family of languages, sometimes, though rarely, and not quite accurately, called Japhetic; more frequently designated as the Indo-European or Indo-Germanic family of tongues. They have reached a higher development than those of the second great family, the Semitic, the better described as the Syro-Arabian family, and are far in advance of the next onethat comprising the Turanian tongues. Like the Syro-Arabian forms of speech, they are inflectional; while those of Turanian origin are only agglutinate.
Max Müller separates the Aryan family of languages primarily into a southern and a northern division. The former is subdivided into two classes: (1) The Indic and (2) the Iranic; and the latter into six: (1) the Celtic; (2) the Italic; (3) the Illyric; (4) the Hellenic; (5) the Windic; Win and and (6) the Teutonic. It is often said that Sanskrit, spoken by the old Brahmins, is the root of all these classes of tongues. As an illustration of the affinity among the Aryan tongues, take the common word daughter. It is in Swedish, dotter; Danish, datter; Dutch, dochter; German, tochter; Old Hebrew German, tohtar; Gothic, dauhtar; Lithuanian, duktere; Greek, thygater; Armenian, dustr; Sanskrit, duhitri; the last-named word signifying, primarily, "milkmaid," that being the function, in the early Brahman Aryan household, which the daughter discharged. or ARYAN RACE. a designation, since about 1845, of the ethnological division of mankind otherwise called Indo-European or Indo-Germanic. That division consists of two branches geographically separated, an eastern and western. The western branch comprehends the inhabitants of Europe, with the exception of the Turks, the Magyars of Hungary, the Basques of the Pyrenees, and the Finns of Lapland; the eastern comprehends the inhabitants of Armenia, of Persia, of Afghanistan, and of northern Hindustan. The evidence on which a family relation has been established among these nations is that of language, and from a multitude of details it has been proven that the original mother tongue of all these peoples was the same.
It is s supposed that the Aryan nations were at first located somewhere in central Asia, probably E. of the Caspian, and N. of the Hindu Kush and Paropamisan Mountains. From this center successive migrations took place to AS ward the N. W. The first swarm formed the Celts, who at one time occupied a great part of Europe; at a considerfeet high. a great part of Europe; at a considerably later epoch came the ancestors of tonic people. The stream that formed the Slavonic nations is thought to have taken the route by the N. of the Cas- pian. At a later period the remnant of taken the route by the N. of the Caspian. At a later period the remnant of the primitive stock would seem to have broken up. Part passed southward and became the dominant race in the valley of the Ganges, while the rest settled in Persia and became the Medes and Per- sians of history. It is from these eastern members that the whole family takes its name. In the most ancient Sanskrit writings (the Veda), the Hindus style themselves Aryas, the word 66 " excellent," signifying originally "lord of the soil." honorable," AS, among the Romans, a weight, (1) As a weight of coin, or measure. 12 ounces, the same as a libra or pound, and divided into 12 parts called unciæ or ounces. (2) As a coin, which, in the time of Tullus Hostilius, is said to have weighed 12 ounces.
After the first Punic War had exhausted the treasury, it was reduced to two ounces. The second Punic War brought it to one Punic War had exhausted the treas- ury, it was reduced to two ounces. The second Punic War brought it to one fixed it at half an ounce only. At first it was stamped with a sheep, an ox, a ram, or a sow, but under the empire it had on one side a two-faced Janus, and ram, or a sow, but under the empire it ship.