Aryan, the most debated and fantasized term is still a puzzle today. Historians derive the idea that speakers of Indo-European language and their descendents up to the present day constitute an Aryan race. Aryan has evolved as a supreme white race and has been politicized by racial ideologist of Nazism. A common hypothesis is that Aryans were Indo-European speakers and originated in the forest Steppes region. Quite significant numbers of theories revolves around Central Asian land, Europe, and India also. Aryan word derived from Sanskrit word ‘Arya’ and Avestan term ‘Airya’—the extended form was Airyana. It is surprising to see that this term has been manipulated in history to show the supremacy of white race over other races of the world.
In Vedic text ‘Arya’ is never used as race. It refers a noble character, righteous conduct, gentle behavior and to a civilized person. People sometimes get confused with their references of Maleccha to Greeks/Celts and Non-Aryans and Asura to Iranians. The fact is Vedic religion has embraced all who have followed the Aryans customs, traditions, and sacrificial rituals. Indo-Iranians were referred as Asura because of their new Mazdayasini religion, Monotheism in place of Polytheism, and abandonment of sacrifices to gods. Greeks were broken off from Anatolian branch and had assimilated Semitic custom and rituals. The cultural blending was apparent in their arts, artifacts, custom, and beliefs.
In Vedic text ‘Arya’ is never used as race. It refers a noble character, righteous conduct, gentle behavior and to a civilized person. People sometimes get confused with their references of Maleccha to Greeks/Celts and Non-Aryans and Asura to Iranians. The fact is Vedic religion has embraced all who have followed the Aryans customs, traditions, and sacrificial rituals. Indo-Iranians were referred as Asura because of their new Mazdayasini religion, Monotheism in place of Polytheism, and abandonment of sacrifices to gods. Greeks were broken off from Anatolian branch and had assimilated Semitic custom and rituals. The cultural blending was apparent in their arts, artifacts, custom, and beliefs.
Aryan race is attributed with slim, tall, light-complexioned, blonde, superior, firm character, intellectually brilliant, morally superior, constantly striving, Ideal attitude and so many characters. Precisely, who they were and where they came from is still a hot topic of debate among historians. No valid evidences have been produced so far, yet Polar or Circumpolar origin is fairly satisfying historical, mythological, geographical, anthropological, linguists, and cultural factors. Although, DNA haplogroups study display variations because of mixing of genes in thousands of years, still rational conclusion could be get by assimilating all deciding factors. Language is another logical way to acknowledge the humanity, culture, and social identity of people who lived before us.
Indo-European language is associated with Aryans for a long time until recent, though recent years exploration and new discoveries have been grabbing scholars’ attention towards Uralic languages also. PIE and Uralic languages share some basic vocabulary, pronouns and noun endings that display close link between these two languages. Original land of Uralic people are thought to be Polar or circumpolar region, which were completely destroyed during the last glacial period. After the last ice age, Proto-Uralic people have migrated to Northern and Eastern Europe and came in contact with primitive PIE who were dwellings in forest steppes region. Not only the PIE language but the culture, pottery design, and burial rituals were also influenced with Eastern European Uralic (Latvia/Lithuania) culture.
Surprisingly, Sumerian language shares many similarities with Uralic language of Eastern Europe (Latvia/ Lithuania)—existing before nomadic PIE incursion to Eastern Europe--and the same similarities have been found with extinct Basque (earliest people of Wales/France) language as well. PIE language is of late origin and emerged somewhere in forest steppes region. PIE has Uralic loanwords so it seems it would have been a near speaker of Uralic language.
Actually, PIE is not the right term when we are distinguishing Uralic (Polar origin) and steppes culture. Eastern European Uralic influences can be found in steppes Dnipper-Donnets and Bug-Dniester Neolithic age pottery, geometrical designs, myths, themes, and burial rituals. In addition to, there are few common features have been observed between ancient Uralic language and Steppes language. However, the languages are tend to change in time with the divergence of groups and geographies. PIE would be an appropriate term to refer Black sea flood people (9000-8000 BP), who define the hybrid culture of Steppes and Uralic people.
Surprisingly, Sumerian language shares many similarities with Uralic language of Eastern Europe (Latvia/ Lithuania)—existing before nomadic PIE incursion to Eastern Europe--and the same similarities have been found with extinct Basque (earliest people of Wales/France) language as well. PIE language is of late origin and emerged somewhere in forest steppes region. PIE has Uralic loanwords so it seems it would have been a near speaker of Uralic language.
Actually, PIE is not the right term when we are distinguishing Uralic (Polar origin) and steppes culture. Eastern European Uralic influences can be found in steppes Dnipper-Donnets and Bug-Dniester Neolithic age pottery, geometrical designs, myths, themes, and burial rituals. In addition to, there are few common features have been observed between ancient Uralic language and Steppes language. However, the languages are tend to change in time with the divergence of groups and geographies. PIE would be an appropriate term to refer Black sea flood people (9000-8000 BP), who define the hybrid culture of Steppes and Uralic people.
Uralic speakers were spanned from Northern to Eastern Europe to ranged upto Northern Siberia, with dozens of Uralic variants. Sami speakers are believed to be the earliest, who have separated from their ancestral Proto-Uralic language branch during Magdalenian era (20,000 BP). They traveled through the northern coastal region of Norway and sparsely inhabited the northern Europe within the range of Arctic Circle including northern Norway, Sweedon and Finnland, and Kole penninsula of Russia, for thousands of years. Their time of arrival is not certain but Sami myths speak about long migration before reaching the present Sami land (Northern Norway). They also talk about two parts of immigration into Northern Norway, one from North and one from South. There were nomadic and traditional reindeer breeder and hunter; maritime groups are sea-mammals hunters and fishers. Sami were completely isolated for several thousands of years in terms of language, culture, and mythologies from the rest of the polar people. Although, Sami dwell largely in Scandinavia, their language is entirely unrelated to Scandinavian language.
Scandinavian language consists of Danish, Norwegian, and Sweidsh languages, which is derived as dialects continuum and mutually intelligible with one another. Scandinavian languages are the North Germanic branch of Germanic family of languages, excluding Finnish and its distant relative Sami.
Scandinavian language consists of Danish, Norwegian, and Sweidsh languages, which is derived as dialects continuum and mutually intelligible with one another. Scandinavian languages are the North Germanic branch of Germanic family of languages, excluding Finnish and its distant relative Sami.
Northern Germanic branch has evolved from a Proto-Germanic or Proto Norse language. The Germanic branch split off first from its ancestral language and traveled through Northeastern Europe and reached Western Germany. The Proto-Germanic (Proto-Nordic or Proto Norse) language was in her primitive stage when reached to Germany. The Germanic language is sub-divided into three languages: North Germanic (Old Norse Scandinavian), West Germany (Dutch, Germany), and extinct East Germany. During their long travel, they came in contact with archaic Pre-Proto-Indo-European and they both affected each other cultural system. Proto-Germanic were culturally more advanced so most of their traits, ideas, and beliefs had been incorporated by Indo-Europeans who were in their primitive stage then.
It’s a logical point that all this cultural exchange and amalgamation must not had happened spontaneously because both the ethnic groups were living in different territories. Something must had happened that caused the mass movement of both the groups in different land.
There is a hypothesis about historic Black sea flood, which dated around 8th millennium BC. Before moving forward, we must know about the aftermath of great Black Sea flood.
It’s a logical point that all this cultural exchange and amalgamation must not had happened spontaneously because both the ethnic groups were living in different territories. Something must had happened that caused the mass movement of both the groups in different land.
There is a hypothesis about historic Black sea flood, which dated around 8th millennium BC. Before moving forward, we must know about the aftermath of great Black Sea flood.
The Black Sea flood brought all the surrounding civilizations close to each others. After Black Sea flood, Uralic people and Pre-Proto-Indo-Europeans moved out of the flooded area and had encountered with West Asian Mediterranean inhabitants (Semitic). Pre-Proto-Indo-Europeans and Mediterranean both have had the Uralic influences on their languages, cultures, rituals, pottery and geometric designs. Due to great flood, Uralic culture was driven to down south and established Urbanized Sumerian culture. Vinca culture, the prehistoric society, is identified as the mixed origin of PIE and Mediterranean culture. Vinca culture was existing before the Black Sea flood and their skeletal remains verify Mediterranean physical anatomy. It’s an older civilization than both Ancient Egypt and Ancient Sumer. Artifacts and Potteries of Vinca and Sumer are very much alike and the scripts are very much identical too. Adding one more facts that lot of similarities has been attested between Proto-Uralic and Proto-Sumerian languages.
By assembling all these facts, it appears that the predecessors of Uralic and Mediterranean had formed one society much before the Black Sea flood. Most likely, one of the Proto-Uralic branch had migrated to Western Asia Fertile Crescent region and had given birth to many complex civilizations and languages. Available genealogical data display the common chromosomal linking among Uralic, Proto-Indo-Europeans, and ancient Mediterranean societies.
Ancient Kurds (Proto-Uralic) were another complex ancient people who were more close to Urartian than Indo-European. They settled at Zagros mountain range in Southern Anatolia and must have had cross-cultural interaction with neighboring Mediterranean. They were also of Sun and Fire worshippers. Northern Anatolian branch consisted of Greeks, Armenian, and Proto-Indo-Iranians, which further bifurcated into Greeks and Proto-Indo_Iranians.
One of the present day Uralic descendents is Turkish language, which is widely spoken throughout Anatolia (Turkey), shares many Uralic language features such as, vowel harmony, agglutination, lack of grammatical gender, and SOV word order. The Proto-Germanic branch had never been a part of Anatolian branch because they had separated before the Black Sea flood. They would have driven out to Northern Germany and then up to Scandinavia. Throughout the long period of journey from Polar land to forest Steppes, the ancient Polar people had continuously been in touch with their Pre-Proto-Indo-European counterparts. Later in history, Indo-European tribes, with the emergence of Corded Ware and Battle Axe culture, invaded Scandinavia and replaced indigenous inhabitants and languages to further North.
PIE people actually have destroyed the civilized, farming, and peaceful Uralic society. Horse was certainly the prominent animal and the invention of wheels drastically changed the entire PIE civilizations. During this long period of history, PIE language assimilated different local variations and ethnic flavors and geographically distributed to all over Europe.
One of the present day Uralic descendents is Turkish language, which is widely spoken throughout Anatolia (Turkey), shares many Uralic language features such as, vowel harmony, agglutination, lack of grammatical gender, and SOV word order. The Proto-Germanic branch had never been a part of Anatolian branch because they had separated before the Black Sea flood. They would have driven out to Northern Germany and then up to Scandinavia. Throughout the long period of journey from Polar land to forest Steppes, the ancient Polar people had continuously been in touch with their Pre-Proto-Indo-European counterparts. Later in history, Indo-European tribes, with the emergence of Corded Ware and Battle Axe culture, invaded Scandinavia and replaced indigenous inhabitants and languages to further North.
PIE people actually have destroyed the civilized, farming, and peaceful Uralic society. Horse was certainly the prominent animal and the invention of wheels drastically changed the entire PIE civilizations. During this long period of history, PIE language assimilated different local variations and ethnic flavors and geographically distributed to all over Europe.
Proto Nordic people (Proto-Scandinavian) were Cro-Magnon racial type—tall, light hair and light eyes and a typical Europoid race. The Sami (indigenous people) is widely believed to be of Eurasian origin. Y-DNA haplogroup of European origin is common among all Northeastern (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia) European nations. Two haplogroups, V and U56, dominate Sami region (carried by 89% of Sami) and are spread at moderate frequencies across Europe, from Ibeia to the Ural Mountains. Genetically, Sami are more close to Eastern Europeans and Finns but simultaneously show Western European and Eurasian chromosomal DNA haplogroups also. Sami is a heterogeneous group of people; few Samis appear like Mongolians. People from different geographic region came to Northern Scandinavia at different time period, so it depicts a wide range of physical features including: Indo Europeans, Germanic, Mongoloids (to some extent), and indigenous Sami.
Finno-Ugric is another branch of Uralic family of languages—distantly related to Sami-- widely spoken in Finnland. Though, Finno-Ugric is of late origin approximately 4,500 yrs old. Sami people are genetically close to Finns. The most common haplogroup among Sami is N1c with I1 as a close second. Haplogroup ‘I’ is exclusively found among European ancestry. Another important European haplogroup, R1a1a is common among eastern Europeans (speaking Indo-European language) while N1c is common among Finns (Finno-Ugric), and I1 is most common haplogroup in Sweedon. R1a1a particularly carried by Indo-Europeans (Steppes people) and spread to large region extending from South Asia and Southern Siberia to central Europe and Scandinavia.
Samoyedic language group, another Uralic branch, covers both sides of Ural Mountain and spanned in the area of Siberian coast and forest region. Proto-Uralic homeland is commonly hypothesized near Ural Mountains. Both the proto-languages, Sami & Samoyedic, have been derived from a common ancestor, which is certainly not Indo-European. The Samoyedic ethnic group further divided into North Samoyedic (northern Siberia) and South Samoyedic and occupied Tundra and forest region, respectively. Markedly, there is a subsistence relation among far north European, Sami, Samoyedic, extreme Far Eastern Yukaghir and Eskimo languages. All of these languages share few common traits and can be safely put in a separate language family.
Samoyedic language shares some common features with Turkic and Mongolian language, which are widely spoken at southwestern Siberia. The Turkic, Mongolian and Manchu-Tungus together compose the Altaic family. The Altaic and Uralic language family share structural similarities, some common vocabularies and agglutinate structure besides, few other salient features. Uralic and Altiac languages could be considered a sister language, which diverged from a common hypothetical ancestor known as Proto-Uralic.
The Turkic languages are spoken principally in Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan and there is an extensive degree of mutual intelligibility between Turkic and Azerbaijani languages.
Samoyedic language shares some common features with Turkic and Mongolian language, which are widely spoken at southwestern Siberia. The Turkic, Mongolian and Manchu-Tungus together compose the Altaic family. The Altaic and Uralic language family share structural similarities, some common vocabularies and agglutinate structure besides, few other salient features. Uralic and Altiac languages could be considered a sister language, which diverged from a common hypothetical ancestor known as Proto-Uralic.
The Turkic languages are spoken principally in Turkey, Armenia, and Azerbaijan and there is an extensive degree of mutual intelligibility between Turkic and Azerbaijani languages.
After last glacial maxim, the remnants of polar people have taken various migration routes and geographically distributed to Europe, Siberian arctic, Eurasiatic, North America, and far eastern Siberian coast. This led to geographic isolation of language groups and several thousand years contributed to the evolution of a distinct new languages and cultures. The Proto-Uralic language, ancestor of all Uralic language has unique agglutination (multiple suffixes and prefixes added) and SOV (Subject-Object-Verb) word order feature, and most descended languages inherited these features.
Samoyedic language genetically differs from Sami language but shares some common features with other Uralic family of languages. Samoyed, and other similar tribes, settled along the Arctic Circle, give Mongoloid appearances.
The Mongolians probably were the ancestors of Northern Siberian people, who migrated to far south because of ice coverage of Tundra region and came back when the climate become warmer and ice started to melt. During the last glaciations, the massive ice sheets, covered whole Polar and circumpolar region--expanded to Northern Europe, passed through Siberia and covered much of Northern America. The various tribes living in these area, speaking different variations of Uralic language, probably would have been extinct or would have penetrated the close proximal location and moved southwards.
Uralic speakers were the remnants of extensive populations, once lived in Polar or circumpolar region, who migrated over thousands of years in various geographic regions. Vast geographic distance and thousands of years of independent development made this Proto language to diverge into many different languages. However, these languages retained certain common traits from their ancestor source. Further worsen created by the rising of Indo-Europeans (Steppes Nomads) and these Uralic speakers were losing their languages to the Indo-Europeans; Finns and Sami have maintained their separate language identity until recent. Number of speakers for Uralic language is comparative small but its territorial expansion is wide.
The Mongolians probably were the ancestors of Northern Siberian people, who migrated to far south because of ice coverage of Tundra region and came back when the climate become warmer and ice started to melt. During the last glaciations, the massive ice sheets, covered whole Polar and circumpolar region--expanded to Northern Europe, passed through Siberia and covered much of Northern America. The various tribes living in these area, speaking different variations of Uralic language, probably would have been extinct or would have penetrated the close proximal location and moved southwards.
Uralic speakers were the remnants of extensive populations, once lived in Polar or circumpolar region, who migrated over thousands of years in various geographic regions. Vast geographic distance and thousands of years of independent development made this Proto language to diverge into many different languages. However, these languages retained certain common traits from their ancestor source. Further worsen created by the rising of Indo-Europeans (Steppes Nomads) and these Uralic speakers were losing their languages to the Indo-Europeans; Finns and Sami have maintained their separate language identity until recent. Number of speakers for Uralic language is comparative small but its territorial expansion is wide.
Yukaghir is another Uralic language, which is at the verge of extinction. This language is spoken at extreme Northeastern Siberian Arctic coast. Yukaghir has extremely distant relationship with Samoyedic language. They are most ancient inhabitants of East Siberian Arctic and have long been isolated from other Uralic group. They are settled at extreme northeastern Tundra region and are close to extinct level. Yukaghir people are generally short, have dark hair and eyes, and medium pigmentation which are obvious features in arctic Mongolian. The major Uralic branch—Samoyed and Yukaghir—shows Mongoloid features. Nonetheless, Samis’ are typical Europeans majorly though, to some amount they too display Mongoloid features. In one way, it’s contradicting the long time belief of tall, slim, blond hair, and blue eyes Aryan race.
Language Hierarchy and Distribution
Deities, and Rituals:
Yukaghir worship Sun and various spirit deities. As per their popular belief, every family has sacred fire hearth in the center of their dwellings. The same custom was the common in ancient Germanic, Scandinavian, Sami, Celts and Balts (Eastern European: Latvia/Lithuania, Estonia) cultures. Spirits deities are widespread in Yukaghir, Scandinavian, Old Norse (Proto-Germanic), Sami and, various Siberian mythologies. Sami people had oral methodology for transferring religious knowledge and historical traditions to descending generations and the same oral tradition we found in Vedic Aryans. There is an incredible parallelism of mythic themes can be observed centered around Sun god , which suggest the idea of their primordial unity in the past.
Shamanism was the important part of their spiritual worldview which extended to other cultures also, though their role varies from one culture to the next. The Shamans are widely known as communicator between gods and people. These shamans were blessed to cure people with incurable diseases and to fulfill practical purposes with their special talents. We see traces of Baltic-Finnic shamanism tradition in ancient Vedic culture but it was particularly centered on healing. The Vedic twin’s god, Ashwin (universal healer god), was given a position above Indra (thunder & lightening god) with his 3-wheeled chariot, while the Indra was attributed with 2 wheeled chariot. The Sun, common principal god in Uralic culture, was given a top position with 4-wheeled chariot in early Vedic religion.
Shamanism was the important part of their spiritual worldview which extended to other cultures also, though their role varies from one culture to the next. The Shamans are widely known as communicator between gods and people. These shamans were blessed to cure people with incurable diseases and to fulfill practical purposes with their special talents. We see traces of Baltic-Finnic shamanism tradition in ancient Vedic culture but it was particularly centered on healing. The Vedic twin’s god, Ashwin (universal healer god), was given a position above Indra (thunder & lightening god) with his 3-wheeled chariot, while the Indra was attributed with 2 wheeled chariot. The Sun, common principal god in Uralic culture, was given a top position with 4-wheeled chariot in early Vedic religion.
One religion that was very common among all circumpolar groups is Animal worship religion. It was a kind of religious rituals to glorify animal deities and which in later period converted into animal sacrifice rituals and widely spread to all Indo European regions. During the long period of history, animal was kept changing depending on the worth of an animal to a particular geography. In various Hindu mythologies, we see that every god is ascribed with a particular animal and is prayed along with the animal.
We can say that the religion in many respects is similar to all circumpolar groups. There is a considerable regional variation in the names and relationship to other gods. Horagallis—the god of thunder-- An important deity in the Sami pantheon is depicted as a person carrying hammer or an axe. And we are well aware of Thunder and Lightening god, widely known as ‘Thor’ to all Indo-European religion. Thunder & Lightening god, known as INDRA, revered for the life giving rain, was the principal god in earliest Vedic religion also. Both Uralic and Indo-European cultures share few other incredible parallelisms in mythologies, rituals, languages and spiritual views. This proves their long history of close linking and cultural impact on each other.
We can say that the religion in many respects is similar to all circumpolar groups. There is a considerable regional variation in the names and relationship to other gods. Horagallis—the god of thunder-- An important deity in the Sami pantheon is depicted as a person carrying hammer or an axe. And we are well aware of Thunder and Lightening god, widely known as ‘Thor’ to all Indo-European religion. Thunder & Lightening god, known as INDRA, revered for the life giving rain, was the principal god in earliest Vedic religion also. Both Uralic and Indo-European cultures share few other incredible parallelisms in mythologies, rituals, languages and spiritual views. This proves their long history of close linking and cultural impact on each other.
The most common feature carried by all descendents of Proto-Uralic language is ”agglutinatination”, meaning that multiple prefixes or suffixes can be added to a root word to create phrases or even sentences. Sumerian language is agglutinative. The language of Eskimos is also agglutinative. Vowel harmony is another common feature of Uralic languages, but on the contrary, Sami doesn’t comply this.
Language is not the only determinant associated with human evolution, though it always provides substantial logic to propound any historic theory. Archaeological findings help in analyzing the prehistoric culture and learning about the past. Both Archaeology and Linguistic are the scientific study of human evolution and cultural evolution to understanding human society and civilization. Major development in human history had started from Paleolithic culture. Some Paleolithic and Mesolithic cultures have been found at Poland, Germany, Scandinavia, and Eastern European sites with similar artifacts, tools, pottery design styles, and ritual beliefs. They were mainly Hunters-gatherers, fishers, reindeer and seal hunters but agricultural evidences also found at primary level. Hunting tools were mostly made of flints at northern and eastern Europe. Primary similarities among all these settlements were their burial rites. Boat burial was common where they placed the deceased in the hollow tree trunk, shaped like boat, and directly placed in the ground. Red ochre was widely used for burial on both humane and animals. Both cremation and burial were practiced—the boat was used to burn in the sea with diseased body. Somewhere it was marked with stones in boat shape on the surface of buried body. Funerary boat rituals or burning boat burial was attested at Scandinavia and resembled boat-shaped wooden coffin rituals for dead found in Latvia and Lithuania.
Besides humane, Dog has also given importance in burial rituals. Dog graves were prepared and gifted the same as humane grave. Dogs were often treated as invaluable and widely domesticated animals because of their aid or rather an assistance in hunting and pulling sledge on ice slopes. Dog was of the same value to Polar people as the Horse was to Indo-Europeans.
Besides humane, Dog has also given importance in burial rituals. Dog graves were prepared and gifted the same as humane grave. Dogs were often treated as invaluable and widely domesticated animals because of their aid or rather an assistance in hunting and pulling sledge on ice slopes. Dog was of the same value to Polar people as the Horse was to Indo-Europeans.
