Harappan language
| Harappan | |
|---|---|
| Indus Valley, Mohenjo-Daro | |
| Region | Indus Valley |
| Extinct | 1400 BC? |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
|
Linguist list
|
xiv |
| Glottolog | None |
The Harappan language (a.k.a. the Indus or Mohenjo-Daro language) is the unknown language or languages of the Bronze Age (2nd millennium BC) Harappan civilization (Indus Valley Civilization, or 'IVC'). The language being unattested in any readable contemporary source, hypotheses regarding its nature are reduced to purported loanwords and substratum influence, notably the substratum in Vedic Sanskrit and a few terms recorded in Sumerian cuneiform (such as Meluhha), in conjunction with analyses of the undeciphered Indus script.
There are a handful of possible loanwords from the language of the Indus Valley Civilization. Sumerian Meluhha may be derived from a native term for the Indus Valley Civilization, also reflected in Sanskrit mleccha, and Witzel (2000) further suggests that Sumerian GIŠšimmar (a type of tree) may be cognate to Rigvedic śimbala and śalmali (also names of trees).
There are a number of hypotheses as to the nature of this unknown language:
Hypotheses that have gained less mainstream academic acceptance include:
The Indus script indicates that it was used to write only one language (if at all). But it is quite possible that multiple languages were spoken in the IVC, similar to how Sumerian and Akkadian co-existed in Mesopotamia for centuries. Jane R. McIntosh suggests one such possibility: Para-Munda was originally the main language of the civilization, especially in the Punjab region. Later, the proto-Dravidian immigrants introduced their language to the area in 5th millennium BC. The Dravidian language was spoken by the new settlers in the southern plains, while Para-Munda remained the main language of those in Punjab.
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