Aryan

This article is about the cultural and historical concept. For other uses, seeAryan (disambiguation).

AryanorArya(/ˈɛəriən/;Proto-Indo-Iranian:*arya) is a term originally used as anethnoculturalself-designation byIndo-Iraniansin ancient times, in contrast to the nearby outsiders known as 'non-Aryan' (*an-arya).InAncient India,the termā́ryawas used by theIndo-Aryansof theVedic periodas anendonym(self-designation) and in reference to a region known asAryavarta(Āryāvarta;'Land of the Aryans'), where the Indo-Aryan culture emerged.In theAvestascriptures, ancientIranian peoplessimilarly used the termairyato designate themselves as anethnic group,and in reference to their mythical homeland,Airyanem Vaejah(Airyanəm Vaēǰah;'expanse of the Aryas' or 'stretch of the Aryas').Thestemalso forms theetymologicalsource of place names such asAlania(*Aryāna-) andIran(*Aryānām).

Although the stem*aryamay be ofProto-Indo-European(PIE) origin,its use as an ethnocultural self-designation is only attested among Indo-Iranian peoples and there is no evidence of its use as an ethnonym among 'Proto-Indo-Europeans'. In any case, scholars point out that, even in ancient times, the idea of being anAryanwas religious, cultural, and linguistic, not racial.

In the 1850s, the term 'Aryan' was adopted as aracial categoryby the aristocratic French writerArthur de Gobineau,who, through the later works of his followers such asHouston Stewart Chamberlain,influenced theNazi racial ideology.UnderNazi rule(1933–1945), the term officially applied to most inhabitants of Germany excludingJews,Roma,andSlavs(mostlySlovaks,Czechs,PolesandRussians).Those classified as 'non-Aryans,' especially Jews,werediscriminated againstbefore suffering thesystematic mass killingknown asthe Holocaustand thePorajmos.The atrocities committed in the name ofAryanistsupremacist ideologies have led academics to generally avoid using 'Aryan' as a stand-alone ethnolinguistic term, which has been replaced in most cases by 'Indo-Iranian', although theIndicbranch is still known as 'Indo-Aryan'.

Etymology

One of the earliest epigraphically attested reference to the wordaryaoccurs in the 6th-century BCBehistun inscription,which describes itself as having been composed "inarya[language or script] "(§ 70). As is also the case for all other Old Iranian language usage, thearyaof the inscription does not signify anything but "Iranian".

The termAryawas first rendered into a modern European language in 1771 asAryensby French IndologistAbraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron,who rightly compared the Greekarioiwith theAvestanairyaand the country nameIran.A German translation of Anquetil-Duperron's work led to the introduction of the termArierin 1776.TheSanskritwordā́ryais rendered as 'noble' inWilliam Jones' 1794 translation of the IndianLaws of Manu,and the EnglishAryan(originally speltArian) appeared a few decades later, first as an adjective in 1839, then as a noun in 1851.

Indo-Iranian

TheSanskritwordā́rya(आर्य) was originally an ethnocultural term designating those who spokeVedic Sanskritand adhered to Vedic cultural norms (including religious rituals and poetry), in contrast to an outsider, oran-ā́rya('non-Arya').By the time of theBuddha(5th–4th century BCE), it took the meaning of 'noble'.InOld Iranian languages,theAvestantermairya(Old Persianariya) was likewise used as an ethnocultural self-designation by ancientIranian peoples,in contrast to anan-airya('non-Arya'). It designated those who belonged to the 'Aryan' (Iranian) ethnic stock, spoke the language and followed the religion of the 'Aryas'.

These two terms derive from the reconstructedProto-Indo-Iranianstem*arya- or*āryo-,which was probably the name used by the prehistoricIndo-Iranian peoplesto designate themselves as an ethnocultural group.The term did not have anyracialconnotation, which only emerged later in the works of 19th-century Western writers.According toDavid W. Anthony,"theRigvedaandAvestaagreed that the essence of their shared parental Indo-Iranian identity was linguistic and ritual, not racial. If a person sacrificed to the right gods in the right way using the correct forms of the traditional hymns and poems, that person was an Aryan. "

Proto-Indo-European

SinceAdolphe Pictet(1799–1875), a number of scholars have proposed to derive the Indo-Iranian stemarya- from the reconstructedProto-Indo-European(PIE) term*h₂erósor*h₂eryós,variously translated as 'member of one's own group, peer, freeman'; as 'host, guest; kinsman'; or as 'lord, ruler'.However, the proposed Anatolian, Celtic and Germaniccognatesare not universally accepted.In any case, the Indo-Iranian ethnic connotation is absent from the other Indo-European languages, which rather conceived the possible cognates of*arya- as a social status (a freeman or noble), and there is no evidence thatProto-Indo-Europeanspeakers had a term to refer to themselves as 'Proto-Indo-Europeans'.

• Early PIE:*h₂erós,
  • Anatolian:*ʔor-o-,'peer, freeman',
    • Hittite:arā-,'comrade, peer, companion, friend';arāwa-,'free from';arawan(n)i-,'free, freeman (not being slave)';natta ara,'not proper to the community',
    • Lycian:arus-,'citizens';arawa-, 'freedom',
  • Late PIE:*h₂eryós,
    • Indo-Iranian:*arya-,'Aryan,Indo-Iranian',
      • Old Indo-Aryan:árya-,'Aryan, faithful to the Vedic religion';aryá-,'kind, favourable, true, devoted';arí-,'faithful; devoted person, ± kinsman';
      • Iranian:*arya-,'Aryan, Iranian',
        • Avestan:airya- (pl.aire), 'Aryan, Iranian',
        • Old Persian:ariya-,'Aryan, Iranian',
    • Celtic:*aryo-,'freeman; noble'; or perhaps from*prio-('first > prominent, eminent'),
      • Gaulish:ario-,'freeman, lord; foremost',
      • Old Irish:aire,'freeman, chief; noble';
    • Germanic*arjaz,'noble, distinguished, esteemed',
      • Old Norse:arjosteʀ,'foremost, most distinguished'.

The term*h₂er(y)ósmay derive from the PIE verbalroot*h₂er-,meaning 'to put together'.Oswald Szemerényihas also argued that the stem could be a Near-Eastern loanword from theUgariticary('kinsmen'),althoughJ. P. MalloryandDouglas Q. Adamsfind this proposition "hardly compelling".According to them, the original PIE meaning had a clear emphasis on the in-group status of the "freemen" as distinguished from that of outsiders, particularly those captured and incorporated into the group as slaves. InAnatolia,the base word has come to emphasize personal relationship, whereas it took a more ethnic meaning amongIndo-Iranians,presumably because most of the unfree (*anarya) who lived among them were captives from other ethnic groups.

Historical usage

Proto-Indo-Iranians

The term*aryawas used byProto-Indo-Iranianspeakers to designate themselves as an ethnocultural group, encompassing those who spoke the language and followed the religion of theAryas(Indo-Iranians),as distinguished from the nearby outsiders known as the*Anarya('non-Arya').Indo-Iranians (Aryas) are generally associated with theSintashta culture(2100–1800 BCE), named after theSintashta archaeological siteinChelyabinsk Oblast,Russia.Linguistic evidence show that Proto-Indo-Iranian (Proto-Aryan) speakers dwelled in theEurasian steppe,south ofearly Uralic tribes;the stem*arya- was notably borrowed into thePre-Sámi languageas *orja-, at the origin ofoarji('southwest') andårjel('Southerner'). The loanword took the meaning 'slave' in otherFinno-Permic languages,suggesting conflictual relations between Indo-Iranian and Uralic peoples in prehistoric times.

The stem is also found in the Indo-Iranian god*Aryaman,translated as 'Arya-spirited,' 'Aryanness,' or 'Aryanhood;' he was known in Vedic Sanskrit asAryamanand in Avestan asAiryaman.The deity was in charge of welfare and the community, and connected with the institution of marriage.Through marital ceremonies, one of the functions ofAryamanwas to assimilate women from other tribes to the host community.If the Irish heroesÉrimónandAiremand the Gaulish personal nameAriomanusare alsocognates(i.e. linguistic siblings sharing a common origin), a deity of Proto-Indo-European origin named*h₂eryo-menmay also be posited.

Ancient India

The approximate extent ofĀryāvartaduring the lateVedic period(ca. 1100–500 BCE).Aryavartawas limited to northwest India and the western Ganges plain, whileGreater Magadhain the east was habitated by non-Vedic Indo-Aryans, who gave rise to Jainism and Buddhism.

Vedic Sanskritspeakers viewed the termā́ryaas a religious–linguistic category, referring to those who spoke the Sanskrit language and adhered to Vedic cultural norms, especially those who worshipped the Vedic gods (IndraandAgniin particular), took part in theyajnaand festivals, and practiced the art of poetry.

The 'non-Aryas' designated primarily those who were not able to speak theāryālanguage correctly, theMlecchaorMṛdhravāc.However,āryāis used only once in theVedasto designate the language of the texts, the Vedic area being defined in theKauṣītaki Āraṇyakaas that where theāryā vāc('Ārya speech') is spoken.Some 35 names of Vedic tribes, chiefs and poets mentioned in theRigvedawere of 'non-Aryan' origin, demonstrating thatcultural assimilationto theā́ryacommunity was possible, and/or that some 'Aryan' families chose to give 'non-Aryan' names to their newborns.In the words of IndologistMichael Witzel,the termārya"does not mean a particularpeopleor even a particular 'racial' group but all those who had joined the tribes speaking Vedic Sanskrit and adhering to their cultural norms (such as ritual, poetry, etc.) ".

In later Indian texts and Buddhist sources,ā́ryatook the meaning of 'noble', such as in the termsĀryadésa- ('noble land') for India,Ārya-bhāṣā- ('noble language') for Sanskrit, orāryaka- ('honoured man'), which gave thePaliayyaka- ('grandfather').The term came to incorporate the idea of a high social status, but was also used as an honorific for theBrahmanaor the Buddhist monks. Parallelly, the Mleccha acquired additional meanings that referred to people of lower castes or aliens.

Ancient Iran

See also:Arya (Iran),Ariana,andIran (word)

Approximate geographical extent of regions inhabited by theAryaof theAvestavis-a-vis other Indo-Iranian peoples during theYoung Avestan period(ca. 900–500 BCE).

In the words of scholarGherardo Gnoli,the Old Iranianairya(Avestan) andariya(Old Persian) were collective terms denoting the "peoples who were aware of belonging to the one ethnic stock, speaking a common language, and having a religious tradition that centred on the cult ofAhura Mazdā",in contrast to the 'non-Aryas', who are calledanairyainAvestan,anaryāninParthian,andanērāninMiddle Persian.

The people of theAvesta,exclusively used the term airya (Avestan:𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬌𐬀,airiia) to refer to themselves.It can be found in a number geographical terms like the 'expanse of the airyas' (airiianəm vaēǰō), the 'dwelling place of the airyas' (airiio.shaiianem), or the 'white forest of the airyas' (vīspe.aire.razuraya). The term can also be found in poetic expressions such as the 'glory of the airyas' (airiianąm xᵛarənō), the 'most swift-arrowed of the airyas' (xšviwi išvatəmō airiianąm), or the 'hero of the airyas' (arša airiianąm).Although the Avesta does not contain any dateable events, modern scholarship assumes that theAvestan periodmostly predates theAchaemenid periodof Iranian history.

By the late 6th–early 5th century BCE, theAchaemenidkingDarius the Greatand his sonXerxes Idescribed themselves asariya('Arya') andariya čiça('of Aryan origin'). In theBehistun inscription,authored by Darius during his reign (522 – 486 BCE), theOld Persian languageis calledariya,and theElamiteversion of the inscription portrays theZoroastriandeityAhura Mazdāas the "god of the Aryas" (ura-masda naap harriia-naum).

Darius at Behistun

Full figure of Darius trampling rivalGaumata

Head of Darius with crenellated crown

The self-identifier was inherited in ethnic names such as theParthianAry(pl.Aryān), theMiddle PersianĒr(pl.Ēran), or theNew PersianIrāni(pl.Irāniyān).TheScythianbranch hasAlānor*Allān(from*Aryāna;modernAllon),Rhoxolāni('Bright Alans'),Alanorsoi('White Alans'), and possibly the modernOssetianIr(adj.Iron), spelledIräorEräin theDigorian dialect.TheRabatak inscription,written in theBactrian languagein the 2nd century CE, likewise uses the termariaofor 'Iranian'.

The nameArizantoi,listed by Greek historianHerodotusas one of the six tribes composing the IranianMedes,is derived from the Old Iranian*arya-zantu- ('having Aryan lineage').Herodotus also mentions that the Medes once called themselvesArioi,andStrabolocates the land ofArianēbetween Persia and India.Other occurrences include the Greekáreion(Damascius),Arianoi(Diodorus Siculus) andarian(pl.arianōn;Sasanian period), as well as the Armenian expressionari(Agathangelos), meaning 'Iranian'.

Until the demise of theParthian Empire(247 BCE–224 CE), the Iranian identity was essentially defined as cultural and religious. Following conflicts betweenManicheanuniversalism andZoroastriannationalism during the 3rd century CE, however, traditionalistic and nationalistic movements eventually took the upper hand during theSasanian period,and the Iranian identity (ērīh) came to assume a definite political value. Among Iranians (ērān), one ethnic group in particular, thePersians,were placed at the centre of theĒrān-šahr('Kingdom of the Iranians') ruled by thešāhān-šāh ērān ud anērān('King of Kings of the Iranians and non-Iranians').

Ethical and ethnic meanings may also intertwine, for instance in the use ofanēr('non-Iranian') as a synonymous of 'evil' inanērīh ī hrōmāyīkān( "the evil conduct of the Romans, i.e. Byzantines" ), or in the association ofēr('Iranian') with good birth (hutōhmaktom ēr martōm,'the best-born Arya man') and the use ofērīh('Iranianness') to mean 'nobility' against "labor and burdens from poverty" in the 10th-centuryDēnkard.The Indian opposition betweenārya- ('noble') anddāsá- ('stranger, slave, enemy') is however absent from the Iranian tradition.According to linguistÉmile Benveniste,the root*das-may have been used exclusively as a collective name by Iranian peoples: "If the word referred at first to Iranian society, the name by which this enemy people called themselves collectively took on a hostile connotation and became for the Aryas of India the term for an inferior and barbarous people."

Place names

In ancientSanskrit literature,the termĀryāvarta(आर्यावर्त, the 'abode of the Aryas') was the name given to the cradle of theIndo-Aryanculture in northern India. TheManusmṛitilocatesĀryāvartain "the tract between theHimalayaand theVindhyaranges, from the Eastern (Bay of Bengal) to the Western Sea (Arabian Sea) ".

The stemairya-also appears inAiryanəm Waēǰō(the 'stretch of the Aryas' or the 'Aryan plain'), which is described in theAvestaas the mythical homeland of the early Iranians, said to have been created as "the first and best of places and habitations" by the godAhura Mazdā.It was referred to inManichean Sogdianasʾryʾn wyžn(Aryān Wēžan), and inOld Persianas*Aryānām Waiǰah,which gave theMiddle PersianĒrān-wēž,said to be the region where the first cattle were created and whereZaraθuštrafirst revealed the Good Religion.TheSasanian Empire,officially namedĒrān-šahr('Kingdom of the Iranians'; from Old Persian*Aryānām Xšaθram),could also be referred to by the abbreviated formĒrān,as distinguished from the Roman West known asAnērān.The western variantĪrān,abbreviated fromĪrān-šahr,is at the origin of the English country nameIran.

Alania,the name of the medieval kingdom of theAlans,derives from a dialectal variant of the Old Iranian stem*Aryāna-,which is also linked to the mythicalAiryanem Waēǰō.Besides theala- development,*air-y- may have turned into the stemir-y-via ani-mutationin modernOssetian languages,as in the place nameIryston(Ossetia), here attached to the Iranian suffix*-stān.

Otherplace names mentioned in theAvestaincludeairyō šayana,a movable term corresponding to the 'territory of the Aryas',airyanąm dahyunąm,the 'lands of the Aryas',Airyō-xšuθa,a mountain in eastern Iran associated withƎrəxša,andvīspe aire razuraya,the forest where Kavi Haosravō slew the godVāyu.

Personal names

Main articles:Arya (name)andAryan (name)

Old Persian names derived the stem*arya- includeAryabignes(*arya-bigna,'Gift of the Aryans'),Ariarathes(*Arya-wratha-,'having Aryan joy'),Ariobarzanēs(*Ārya-bṛzāna-, 'exalting the Aryans'),Ariaios(*arya-ai-,probably used as ahypocorismof the precedent names), orAriyāramna(whose meaning remains unclear).The EnglishAlanand the FrenchAlain(from LatinAlanus) may have been introduced by Alan settlers to Western Europe during the first millennium CE.

The nameAryan(including derivatives such asAaryan,Arya,AriyanorAria) is still used as a given name or surname in modern South Asia and Iran. There has also been a rise in names associated withAryanin the West, which have been popularized due to pop culture. According to the U.S. Social Security Administration in 2012,Aryawas the fastest-rising girl's name in popularity in the U.S., jumping from 711th to 413th position.The name entered the top 200 most commonly used names for baby girls born in England and Wales in 2017.

In Latin literature

The word Arianus was used to designateAriana,the area comprising Afghanistan, Iran, North-western India and Pakistan.In 1601,Philemon Hollandused 'Arianes' in his translation of the Latin Arianus to designate the inhabitants of Ariana. This was the first use of the formArianverbatim in the English language.

Modern Persian nationalism

In the aftermath of theIslamic conquestin Iran, racialist rhetoric became a literary idiom during the 7th century, i.e., when the Arabs became the primary "Other"– theAniran– and the antithesis of everything Iranian (i.e. Aryan) andZoroastrian.But "the antecedents of [present-day] Iranian ultra-nationalism can be traced back to the writings of late nineteenth-century figures such asMirza Fatali AkhundovandMirza Aqa Khan Kermani.Demonstrating affinity with Orientalist views of the supremacy of theAryan peoplesand the mediocrity of theSemitic peoples,Iranian nationalist discourse idealized pre-IslamicAchaemenidandSassanidempires, whilst negating the 'Islamization' ofPersiaby Muslim forces. "In the 20th century, different aspects of this idealization of a distant past would be instrumentalized by both thePahlavi monarchy(In 1967, Iran'sPahlavidynasty[overthrown in the1979 Iranian Revolution] added the titleĀryāmehrLight of the Aryansto the other styles of theIranian monarch,theShah of Iranbeing already known at that time as theShahanshah(King of Kings)), and by theIslamic republicthat followed it; the Pahlavis used it as a foundation for anticlerical monarchism, and the clerics used it to exalt Iranian values vis-á-vis westernization.

Modern religious use

The wordāryais often found in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain texts. In the Indian spiritual context, it can be applied to Rishis or to someone who has mastered the four noble truths and entered upon the spiritual path. According to Indian leaderJawaharlal Nehru,the religions ofIndiamay be called collectivelyārya dharma,a term that includes the religions that originated in theIndian subcontinent(e.g.Hinduism,Buddhism,JainismandSikhism).

The word ārya is also often used inJainism,in Jain texts such as the Pannavanasutta. In Avaśyakaniryukti, an early Jaina text, a character namedĀrya Manguis mentioned twice.

Scholarship

19th and early 20th century

The term 'Aryan' was initially introduced into the English language through works of comparative philology, as a modern rendering of the Sanskrit wordā́rya.First translated as 'noble' inWilliam Jones' 1794 translation of theLaws of Manu,early-19th-century scholars later noticed that the term was used in the earliestVedasas an ethnocultural self-designation "comprising the worshipers of the gods of the Brahmans".This interpretation was simultaneously influenced by the presence of the wordἈριάνης(Ancient Greek) ~Arianes(Latin) in classical texts, which had been rightly compared byAnquetil-Duperronin 1771 to the Iranianairya(Avestan) ~ariya(Old Persian), a self-identifier used by the speakers ofIranian languagessince ancient times. Accordingly, the term 'Aryan' came to refer in scholarship to theIndo-Iranian languages,and, by extension, to the native speakers of theProto-Indo-Iranian language,the prehistoricIndo-Iranian peoples.

During the 19th century, through the works ofFriedrich Schlegel(1772–1829),Christian Lassen(1800–1876),Adolphe Pictet(1799–1875), andMax Müller(1823–1900), the termsAryans,Arier,andAryenscame to be adopted by a number of Western scholars as a synonym of '(Proto-)Indo-Europeans'.Many of them indeed believed thatAryanwas also the original self-designation used by the prehistoric speakers of theProto-Indo-European language,based on the erroneous assumptions thatSanskritwas the oldestIndo-European languageand on the linguistically untenable position thatÉriu(Ireland) was related toArya.This hypothesis has since been abandoned in scholarship due to the lack of evidence for the use ofaryaas an ethnocultural self-designation outside the Indo-Iranian world.

Contemporary scholarship

In contemporary scholarship, the terms 'Aryan' and 'Proto-Aryan' are still sometimes used to designate the prehistoric Indo-Iranian peoples and theirproto-language.However, the use of 'Aryan' to mean 'Proto-Indo-European' is now regarded as an "aberration to be avoided".The 'Indo-Iranian' subfamily of languages – which encompasses theIndo-Aryan,Iranian,andNuristanibranches – may also be referred to as the 'Aryan languages'.

However, the atrocities committed in the name ofAryanistracial ideologies during the first part of the 20th century have led academics to generally avoid the term 'Aryan', which has been replaced in most cases by 'Indo-Iranian', although its Indic branch is still called 'Indo-Aryan'.The name 'Iranian', which stems from theOld Persian*Aryānām,also continues to be used to refer to specificethnolinguistic groups.

• Indo-Aryanrefers to the populations speaking anIndo-Aryan languageor identifying asIndo-Aryan;they form the predominant group in Northern Indian subcontinent.The largest Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic groups areHindi–Urdu,Bengali,Punjabi,Marathi,Gujarati,Rajasthani,Bhojpuri,Maithili,Odia,andSindhi.More than 900 million people are native speakers of an Indo-Aryan language.
• Iranian(or Iranic) is used to designate the speakers ofIranian languagesor the peoples who identify as "Iranians", especially inGreater Iran.Modern Iranian ethnolinguistic groups includePersians,Pashtuns,Kurds,Tajiks,Balochs,Lurs,Pamiris,Zazas,andOssetians.An estimated 150 to 200 million people are native speakers of an Iranian language.

Some authors writing for popular consumption have kept on using the word "Aryan" for all Indo-Europeans in the tradition ofH. G. Wells,such as the science fiction authorPoul Anderson,and scientists writing for the popular media, such asColin Renfrew.According toF. B. J. Kuiper,echoes of "the 19th century prejudice about 'northern' Aryans who were confronted on Indian soil with black barbarians [...] can still be heard in some modern studies."

Aryanism and racism

Invention of the "Aryan race"

Main articles:AryanismandAryan race

Origin

Racially-oriented interpretations of the VedicAryasas "fair-skinned foreign invaders" coming from the North led to the adoption of the termAryanin the West as aracial categoryconnected to a supremacist ideology known asAryanism,which conceived theAryan raceas the "superior race"responsible for most of the achievements of ancient civilizations.In 1888Max Müller,who had himself inaugurated the racial interpretations of theRigveda,denounced talk of an "Aryan race, Aryan blood, Aryan eyes and hair" as a nonsense comparable to a linguist speaking of "a dolichocephalic dictionary or a brachycephalic grammar".But an increasing number of Western writers, especially anthropologists and non-specialists influenced byDarwinisttheories, came to see theAryansas a "physical-genetic species" contrasting with the other human races – rather than as an ethnolinguistic category.During the late-19th and early-20th centuries, noted anthropologistsTheodor PoescheandThomas Huxleyquoted from theRig Vedato suggest that the Aryans were blond and tall, with blue eyes anddolichocephalicskulls.Western anthropologists have continued to refine this idea since the 20th century, while some have dissented.Hans Heinrich Hock has questioned that the Aryans were blond or light skinned, since, in his view, "most of the [Vedic] passages may not refer to dark or light skinned people, but dark and light worlds".However, according toElena Kuzmina,there is ample evidence from theAvestaand theRig Vedathat the Aryans did have light eyes, light skin, and light hair.

Theories of racial supremacy

Arthur de Gobineau(1816–1882)

Arthur de Gobineau, the author of the influentialEssay on the Inequality of the Human Races(1853), viewed the white or Aryan race as the onlycivilizedone, and conceivedcultural declineandmiscegenationas intimately intertwined. According to him, northern Europeans had migrated across the world and founded the major civilizations, before being diluted through racial mi xing with indigenous populations described as racially inferior, leading to the progressive decay of the ancient Aryan civilizations.In 1878,German Americananthropologist Theodor Poesche published a survey of historical references attempting to demonstrate that the Aryans were light-skinned blue-eyed blonds.The use ofArierto mean 'non-Jewish' seems to have first occurred in 1887, when a Viennese physical-fitness society decided to allow as members only "Germans of Aryan descent" (Deutsche arischer Abkunft).InThe Foundations of the Nineteenth Century(1899), whichStefan Arvidssonnotes is identified as "one of the most important proto-Nazi texts", British-German writer Houston Chamberlain theorized an existential struggle to the death between a superior German-Aryan race and a destructive Jewish-Semitic race.The best-sellerThe Passing of the Great Race,published by American writerMadison Grantin 1916, warns of a danger of miscegenation with the immigrant "inferior races" – including speakers of Indo-European languages (such as Slavs, Italians, and Yiddish-speaking Jews) – allegedly faced by the "racially superior" GermanicAryans(that is: Americans ofEnglish,German,andScandinaviandescent).

Led byGuido von List(1848–1919) andJörg Lanz von Liebenfels(1874–1954),Ariosophistsfounded an ideological system combiningVölkischnationalism withesoterism.Prophesying a coming era of German (Aryan) world rule, they argued that a conspiracy against Germans – said to have been instigated by the non-Aryan races, by the Jews, or by theearly Church– had "sought to ruin this ideal Germanic world by emancipating the non-German inferiors in the name of a spurious egalitarianism".

North European hypothesis

Main article:North European hypothesis

"Expansion of the Pre-Teutonic Nordics" — map fromThe Passing of the Great RacebyMadison Grant,showing hypothesized migrations of Nordic peoples

In the meantime, the idea that Indo-European languages had originated from South Asia gradually lost support among academics. After the end of the 1860s, alternative models ofIndo-European migrationsbegan to emerge, some of them locating theancestral homelandin Northern Europe.Karl Penka,credited as "a transitional figure between Aryanism and Nordicism",argued in 1883 that the Aryans originated in southernScandinavia.In the early-20th century, German scholarGustaf Kossinna(1858-1931), attempting to connect a prehistoricmaterial culturewith the reconstructedProto-Indo-European language,contended on archaeological grounds that the 'Indo-Germanic' (Indogermanische) migrations originated from a homeland located in northern Europe.Until the end ofWorld War II,scholarship on the Indo-EuropeanUrheimatbroadly fell into two camps: Kossinna's followers and those, initially led byOtto Schrader(1855–1919), who supported asteppe homelandin Eurasia, which became the most widespread hypothesis among scholars.

British Raj

In India, theBritish colonial governmenthad followed de Gobineau's arguments along another line, and had fostered the idea of a superior "Aryan race" that co-opted theIndian caste systemin favor of imperial interests.In its fully developed form, the British-mediated interpretation foresaw a segregation of Aryan and non-Aryan along the lines of caste, with the upper castes being "Aryan" and the lower ones being "non-Aryan". The European developments not only allowed the British to identify themselves as high-caste, but also allowed the Brahmins to view themselves as on-par with the British. Further, it provoked the reinterpretation of Indian history in racialist and, in opposition,Indian Nationalistterms.

Nazism and white supremacy

Anintertitlefrom thesilent filmblockbusterThe Birth of a Nation(1915). "Aryan birthright" is here "white birthright", the "defense" of which unites "whites"in the Northern and Southern U.S. against"coloreds".In another film of the same year,The Aryan,William S. Hart's "Aryan" identity is defined in distinction from other peoples.

Through the works ofHouston Stewart Chamberlain,Gobineau's ideas influenced theNazi racial ideology,which saw the "Aryan race"as innately superior to other putative racial groups.The Nazi officialAlfred Rosenbergargued for a new "religion of the blood"based on the supposed innate promptings of the Nordic soul to defend its" noble "character against racial and cultural degeneration. Rosenberg believed theNordic raceto be descended fromProto-Aryans,a hypotheticalprehistoricpeople who dwelt on theNorth German Plainand who had ultimately originated from the lost continent ofAtlantis.Under Rosenberg, the theories ofArthur de Gobineau,Georges Vacher de Lapouge,Blavatsky,Houston Stewart Chamberlain,Madison Grant,and those ofHitler,all culminated inNazi Germany's race policiesand the "Aryanization"decrees of the 1920s, 1930s, and early 1940s. In its" appalling medical model ", the annihilation of the" racially inferior "Untermenschenwas sanctified as the excision of a diseased organ in an otherwise healthy body,which led to theHolocaust.

Arno Breker's sculptureDie Partei (The Party),depicting a Nazi-era ideal of the "Nordic Aryan" racial type

According toNazi racial theorists,the term "Aryans" (Arier) described theGermanic peoples,and they considered the purest Aryans to be those that belonged to a "Nordic race"physical ideal, which they referred to as the"master race".However, a satisfactory definition of "Aryan" remained problematic duringNazi Germany.Although the physical ideal of Nazi racial theorists was typically the tall,blond haired,andlight-eyedNordic individual, such theorists accepted the fact that a considerable variety of hair and eye colour existed within the racial categories they recognised. For example,Adolf Hitlerand many Nazi officials had dark hair and were still considered members of theAryan raceunder Nazi racial doctrine, because the determination of an individual's racial type depended on a preponderance of many characteristics in an individual rather than on just one defining feature.In September 1935, the Nazis passed theNuremberg Laws.All Aryan Reich citizens were required to prove their Aryan ancestry; one way was to obtain anAhnenpass( "ancestor pass" ) by providing proof through baptismal certificates that all four grandparents were of Aryan descent.In December of the same year, the Nazis foundedLebensborn( "Fount of Life" ) to counteract the falling Aryan birth rates in Germany, and to promoteNazi eugenics.

Many Americanwhite supremacistneo-Nazigroups and prison gangs refer to themselves as 'Aryans', including theAryan Brotherhood,theAryan Nations,theAryan Republican Army,theWhite Aryan Resistance,or theAryan Circle.Modern nationalist political groups and neo-Pagan movements in Russia claim a direct linkage between themselves as Slavs and the ancient 'Aryans',and in some Indian nationalist circles, the term 'Aryan' can also be used in reference to an alleged Aryan 'race'.

"Aryan invasion theory"

Main article:"Aryan invasion"

Translating the sacred Indian texts of theRig Vedain the 1840s, German linguistFriedrich Max Mullerfound what he believed was evidence of an ancient invasion of India by Hindu Brahmins, a group which he called "the Arya." In his later works, Muller was careful to note that he thought that Aryan was a linguistic rather than a racial category. Nevertheless, scholars used Muller's invasion theory to propose their own visions of racial conquest throughSouth Asiaand theIndian Ocean.In 1885, the New Zealand polymathEdward Tregearargued that an "Aryan tidal-wave" had washed over India and continued to push south, through the islands of the East Indian archipelago, reaching the distant shores of New Zealand. Scholars such asJohn Batchelor,Armand de Quatrefages,andDaniel Brintonextended this invasion theory to the Philippines, Hawaii, and Japan, identifying indigenous peoples who they believed were the descendants of early Aryan conquerors.With the discovery of theIndus Valley civilisation,mid-20th century archeologistMortimer Wheelerargued that the large urban civilisation had been destroyed by the Aryans.This position was later discredited, with climate aridification becoming the likely cause of the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation.The term "invasion", while it was once commonly used in regard to Indo-Aryan migration, is now usually used only by opponents of the Indo-Aryan migration theory.The term "invasion" does not any longer reflect the scholarly understanding of the Indo-Aryan migrations,and is now generally regarded as polemical, distracting and unscholarly.

In recent decades, the idea of an Aryan migration into India has been disputed mainly by Indian scholars, who claim various alternateIndigenous Aryansscenarios contrary to establishedKurgan model.However, these alternate scenarios are rooted in traditional and religious views on Indian history and identity and are universally rejected in mainstream scholarship.According to Michael Witzel, the "indigenous Aryans" position is not scholarship in the usual sense, but an "apologetic, ultimately religious undertaking".A number of other alternative theories have been proposed includingAnatolian hypothesis,Armenian hypothesis,thePaleolithic continuity theorybut these are not widely accepted and have received little or no interest in mainstream scholarship.

See also

• Aryavarta,ancient name for the northern Indian subcontinent populated byIndo-Aryans.It means "Abode of the Aryans."
• Airyanem Vaejah,mythological homeland of the early Iranians, it means expanse of the Aryans
• Alans,an Iranian people and ancestors of Ossetians, their name comes from the word Aryan
• Aria,province of theAchaemenid,Seleucid,andParthian Empires
• Ariana,Greco-Roman geographical term, synonym ofIran
• Arya Samaj,considered amonotheisticIndianHindu reform movement,their name means "Noble, i.e Aryan, Society"
• Graeco-Aryan
• Indo-Aryan peoples,speakers of Indo-Aryan languages, they historically referred to themselves as Aryans
• Iran,literally means "Land of Aryans"
  • Eranshahr,official name ofSasanian Empire,literally means "Land/Empire of Iranians"
• Iranian peoples,speakers of Iranian languages, they historically referred to themselves as Aryans
• Yamnaya culture

Notes

Web

References

Bibliography

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Further reading

• A. Kammpier."A word for Aryan originality".
• Bronkhorst, J.; Deshpande, M.M., eds. (1999).Aryan and Non-Aryan in South Asia: Evidence, Interpretation, and Ideology.Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies, Harvard University.ISBN1-888789-04-2.
• Edelman, Dzoj (Joy) I. (1999).On the history of non-decimal systems and their elements in numerals of Aryan languages. In: Jadranka Gvozdanović (ed.), "Numeral Types and Changes Worldwide".Walter de Gruyter.
• Fussmann, G.; Francfort, H.P.; Kellens, J.; Tremblay, X. (2005).Aryas, Aryens et Iraniens en Asie Centrale.Institut Civilisation Indienne.ISBN2-86803-072-6.
• Ivanov, Vyacheslav V.; Gamkrelidze, Thomas (1990). "The Early History of Indo-European Languages".Scientific American.262(3): 110–116.doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0390-110.
• Lincoln, Bruce (1999).Theorizing Myth: Narrative, Ideology, and Scholarship.University of Chicago Press.
• Morey, Peter; Tickell, Alex (2005).Alternative Indias: Writing, Nation and Communalism.Rodopi.ISBN90-420-1927-1.
• Sugirtharajah, Sharada (2003).Imagining Hinduism: A Postcolonial Perspective.Taylor & Francis.ISBN978-0-203-63411-0.
• Tickell, A (2005). "The Discovery of Aryavarta: Hindu Nationalism and Early Indian Fiction in English". In Peter Morey; Alex Tickell (eds.).Alternative Indias: Writing, Nation and Communalism.pp. 25–53.