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Middle Persian

Iranian Languages

Middle Persian was a Western Middle Iranian language that became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire, 224 to 651 CE. It evolved from Old Persian and eventually developed into New Persian, the modern official language of Iran and Afghanistan. It was written in several scripts across its history, including the Pahlavi and Manichaean scripts, the latter introduced specifically for writing Middle Persian by the prophet Mani in the 3rd century CE.

Facts
ISO 639-3 Code
pal 1
Status
Extinct 1
Attested From (Year)
224 to 651 CE 1
Region
Sasanian Empire 1
Connections

Written In

The Manichaean script was an abjad introduced specifically for writing Middle Persian by the prophet Mani (216-274 CE); it was later adapted for other Middle Iranian languages including Parthian and Sogdian, not yet live as language entities on this atlas (gap record).

Book Pahlavi is the principal script of Zoroastrian Middle Persian literature.

Sources
1. Middle Persian (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead section
  • Infobox, ISO 639-3 field
    pal, Zoroastrian Middle Persian ("Pahlavi")
  • Infobox, Era field
    Evolved into Early New Persian by the 9th century; thereafter used only by Zoroastrian priests for exegesis and religious instruction
  • Infobox, Region field
    Sasanian Empire (224-651)
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