Sogdian Unicode Block
Sogdian is a script used to write the Sogdian language, an ancient Eastern Iranian tongue spoken in the Central Asian region of Sogdia, which thrived as a major Silk Road trading hub from the 2nd century BCE to the 10th century CE. The writing system, derived from Aramaic, evolved into three distinct forms over time: the archaic, the cursive (or "Uyghur" style), and the later Sogdian script that influenced the development of the Old Uyghur alphabet. This block encodes the cursive and formal variants of the letters, including consonants, vowel markers, punctuation, and numerals, reflecting the language’s role in commerce, religious texts (Buddhist, Manichaean, and Christian), and administrative records. The script is written right to left, with some letters joining and others remaining separate, and it preserves a critical link in the transmission of writing systems across Eurasia, particularly to Mongolian and Manchu scripts.