The aim of the present work is to contribute to the knowledge of Balochi historical grammar. The main part of the book is a new discussion of the historical phonology of Balochi, the only comprehensive treatment of which existing so far dates from the end of the 19th century. Meanwhile, new material from a wide range of Balochi dialects and varieties has come to light. This makes it possible to distinguish between sound changes affecting the Balochi language as a whole and those that operate only in some variety; the approach to do so systematically is attempted here for the first time. Reassessing previous treatments and comparing important related languages (chiefly New Persian, Parthian and Avestan), the book analyses the development of Old Iranian sounds to the stage of Common Balochi and the changes leading from that stage to the variants spoken today in Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and some other countries. The results indicate contact with other languages, specifically with Persian, as several Balochi sound changes are not such as we might expect in a North Western Iranian language. Concerning other sound changes, Balochi differs from all attested Middle Iranian languages. The predecessor of contemporary Balochi seems to have been a dialect rather similar to Parthian, but differing from it in a number of details. So the study of Balochi sound changes provides evidence for Middle Iranian dialectal variation. The diversity and intensity of contacts with neighbouring languages is also reflected in the Balochi lexicon of which selected fields are presented and discussed. The layers of loanwords show a continuing influence of Persian from the earliest times to the present day, relationships to Kurdish, Pashto and Brahui, and, particularly in the field of kinship terminology, intense contact with speakers of Modern Indic languages. The book is complemented by a morphological appendix and a comprehensive etymological index. It is intended as a contribution in the fields of New Iranian languages and historical Iranian linguistics.

This book presents the most comprehensive coverage of the field of Indo-European Linguistics in a century, focusing on the entire Indo-European family and treating each major branch and most minor languages. The collaborative work of 120 scholars from 22 countries, Handbook of Comparative and Historical Indo-European Linguistics combines the exhaustive coverage of an encyclopedia with the in-depth treatment of individual monographic studies.

This volume is a collection of forty articles dedicated to one of the most distinguished contemporary iranists, Nicholas Sims-Williams, on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday on 11th April 2009. It includes an essay on Sims-Williams' outstanding contributions to Iranian studies, especially Sogdian and Bactrian, a list of his publications, editions of various texts written in Sogdian, Khotanese, Parthian, Middle Persian, and Avestan and articles on Old Persian, Middle Persian, New Persian, Bactrian, Balochi, Tati, Judeo-Persian, Caucasian, Uighur philology, linguistics and iconography. The book is illustrated by numerous plates. From the table of contents (40 contributions) A.D.H. Bivar, The Rukhkh, Giant Eagle of the Southern Seas F. de Blois, A Sasanian Silver Bowl A. Cantera, On the History of the Middle Persian Nominal Inflection C.G. Cereti, The Pahlavi Signatures on the Quilon Copper Plates (Tabula Quilonensis) J. Cheung, Two Notes on Bactrian I. Colditz, The Parthian "Sermon on happiness" J. Elfenbein, Eastern Hill Balochi H. Falk, The Name of Vema Takhtu P. Gignoux, Les relations interlinguistiques de quelques termes de la pharmacopee antique.

The Iranian languages form the major eastern branch of the Indo-European group of languages, itself part of the larger Indo-Iranian family. Estimated to have between 150 and 200 million native speakers, the Iranian languages constitute one of the world’s major language families. This comprehensive volume offers a detailed overview of the principle languages which make up this group: Old Iranian, Middle Iranian, and New Iranian. The Iranian Languages is divided into fifteen chapters. The introductory chapters by the editor present a general overview and a detailed discussion of the linguistic typology of Iranian. The individual chapters which follow are written by leading experts in the field. These provide the reader with concise, non-technical descriptions of a range of Iranian languages. Each chapter follows the same pattern and sequence of topics, taking the reader through the significant features not only of phonology and morphology but also of syntax; from phrase level to complex sentences and pragmatics. Ample examples on all levels are provided with detailed annotation for the non-specialist reader. In addition, each chapter covers lexis, sociolinguistic and typological issues, and concludes with annotated sample texts. This unique resource is the ideal companion for undergraduate and postgraduate students of linguistics and language. It will also be of interest to researchers or anyone with an interest in historical linguistics, linguistics anthropology and language development. Gernot Windfuhr is Professor of Iranian Studies at the University of Michigan; he has published widely on Persian and Iranian languages and linguistics and related languages, as well as on other aspects of Iranian culture including Persian literature and Pre-Islamic Iranian religions.