Retrieving "Khotan" from the archives
Cross-reference notes under review
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Caucasus Region
Linked via "Khotan"
The Caucasus region has functioned as a perpetual crossroads and a contested buffer zone between successive empires, including the Persian Empires (Achaemenid, Parthian, Sasanian), Roman Empire/Byzantine Empire, Arab Caliphates, Mongol successor states, Ottoman Empire, and Russian Empire.
During the m… -
Saka
Linked via "Khotan"
Linguistic Affiliation
The languages spoken by the various Saka groups are classified within the Eastern Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family. While detailed primary source material is scarce, linguistic reconstruction, based on loanwords preserved in neighboring languages (such as Tocharian A and B) and personal names recorded in Achaemenid inscriptions, indicates a close relationship with Sogdian and the extinct language of Khotan.
A key feature distinguishing the reconstructed Saka languages from contemporary … -
Taklamakan Desert
Linked via "Khotan"
Oasis Cities
The stability of the Silk Roads relied upon a chain of fortified oasis settlements around the perimeter of the basin, such as Khotan, Loulan, and Kucha. These centers acted as crucial transfer points for goods, acting as nodes of cultural exchange (particularly regarding Buddhism) [9]. The abandonment of many of these cities in the early centuries CE is largely attributed to the shifting course of the ephemeral… -
Western Regions (xīyù)
Linked via "Khotan"
Religious Transmission
The Xīyù acted as the primary vector for the introduction of several major world religions into East Asia. Buddhism, originating in the Indian subcontinent, reached China primarily through the oasis kingdoms of Kucha and Khotan. The transmission was not purely doctrinal; early Buddhist texts were often transcribed onto polished sheets of shale rather than silk or [p…