Tocharian

Meaning

1. An extinct branch of the Indo-European language family, consisting of two languages, Tocharian A and Tocharian B, written in an abugida derived from Brahmi.
2. [from 20th c.] Any member of a people who inhabited the Tarim Basin and spoke the so-called Tocharian languages.
3. [from 20th c.] Of or pertaining to the Tocharian languages or the Tocharians of the Tarim Basin.
4. Any member of the Tochari, a people who inhabited Bactria.
5. Of or relating to the Tochari (people of Bactria).

Etymology / origin

From Latin Tocharī + -ian, the first element deriving from Ancient Greek Τόχαροι (Tókharoi, “Tochari/Tukharas (an ancient people of Bactria)”), plural of Τόχαρος (Tókharos), probably from an Indo-Iranian source (Old Persian [script needed] (tuxāri-), Khotanese [script needed] (ttahvāra)); compare Sanskrit तुखार (tukhāra). When manuscripts in an unknown Indo-European language were discovered in the early 20th century in the Tarim Basin, scholars linked them to the Tochari/Tukharas mentioned in ancient sources. As a result, the language was called "Tocharian". However, most scholars now believe this identification was incorrect.

Sources

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