Persian roots in Chinese loan words

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The transmission of knowledge and materials between cultures during ancient times can be seen in modern language. A sampling of loanwords from Sino-Persian_relations:

  • say (toxngbut), lion, first mentioned in the Book of Han [1st century CE]
  • bogsiog, alfalfa, borrowed from a Central Asian language during the Han Dynasty
  • phøtøo, grape, borrowed from Bactrian *bādāwa (“wine”) [130 BCE]
  • siaqliuu, pomegranate, brought to Han dynasty China by Zhang Qian from the Arsacid Empire (安石) in Irania
  • hofpheg, amber, prob. borrowed from a language in Central Asia during the Han dynasty

Zhamkhør