Avestan is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism. It belongs to the Iranian branch of the Indo-European language family and was originally spoken during the Avestan period, roughly 1500 to 400 BCE, in eastern Greater Iran. The language survives in two main forms, Old Avestan and Young Avestan, preserved as the sacred books of the Parsis, the ensemble of which is called the Avesta. After Avestan died out as a spoken language, its texts were transmitted orally for centuries before being committed to writing in the Sasanian period using a specially developed alphabet.
Facts
ISO 639-3 Code StatusLiturgical / Learned Use Only 1 Connections
Written In
The Avestan alphabet is a writing system developed during Iran's Sasanian era (226-651 CE) specifically to render the Avestan language, the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism, so its texts could finally be committed to writing after centuries of oral transmission.
Sources
1. Avestan (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation- Lead section
Infobox, Language codes
ave
Opening paragraph
is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism
Geographical distribution
these place names are situated in the eastern parts of Greater Iran corresponding to the entirety of present-day Afghanistan and Tajikistan as well as parts of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan
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