Tocharian

or To·khar·i·an

[ toh-kair-ee-uhn, -kahr- ]

noun
  1. a member of a central Asian people of high culture, who were assimilated with other peoples about the 11th century a.d.

  2. the language of the Tocharians, an extinct Indo-European language, having an eastern dialect (Tocharian A ) and a western dialect (Tocharian B ), records of which date from a.d. c600–c1000.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Tocharians or their language.

Origin of Tocharian

1
1925–30; <Greek Tóchar(oi) a Central Asian people (thought to have been the language's speakers when its remains were first discovered) + -ian

Words Nearby Tocharian

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British Dictionary definitions for Tocharian

Tocharian

Tokharian

/ (tɒˈkɑːrɪən) /


noun
  1. a member of an Asian people with a complex material culture, sometimes thought to be of European origin, who lived in the Tarim Basin until overcome by the Uighurs around 800 ad

  2. the language of this people, known from records in a N Indian script of the 7th and 8th centuries ad . It belongs to the Indo-European family, is regarded as forming an independent branch, and shows closer affinities with the W or European group than with the E or Indo-Iranian group. The language is recorded in two dialects, known as Tocharian A and Tocharian B

Origin of Tocharian

1
C20: ultimately from Greek Tokharoi, name of uncertain origin

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