ORANSKIĬ, IOSIF MIKHAILOVICH, prominent Soviet (Russian-Jewish) Iranologist (b. 24 April 1923 in Petrograd [St. Petersburg], d. 16 May 1977, from…

EŠKĀŠ(E)MĪ (Ishkashmi), one of the so-called “Pamir group” of the Eastern Iranian languages (q.v.). It is spoken in a few…

CENTRAL ASIA xiii. Iranian Languages Central Asia was the ancient homeland of the Iranians and therefore also of the Iranian…