Nirjhar, I always enjoy reading your articles and comments, but I have to ask this question with respect to Kashi. Is the Kashi that we know from antiquity is really Varanasi or is it Kashghar? As people of Kashghar also call that city Kashi. I was naturally curious since Kashghar also includes Mount Kailash and Man-Sarovar. Thank you again for the wonderful work that you are doing helping us understand the history of the Aryan civilization.
Nirjhar, I have always enjoyed reading your blogs and insights on Indian history. Although, I have not commented before, but I do have a question related to Kashi. Is the Kashi referred to in our ancient literature really the area sound Varanasi or is it Kashghar. I am naturally curious because people of Kashghar also call their province Kashi and it includes Hindu/Buddhist spiritual landmarks such as Mount Kailash, Man-Sarovar etc. Thank you again for the wonderful service you are doing for all of us and educating us about the history of India (Indian sub-continent) and its surrounding areas and its people .
About Kashgar after a discussion with a linguist friend, I think it is suggestive that it is not the original name. Its written there in wiki as Kāš, see also here: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kashgar-kasgar-town-in-xinjiang
And it can't be related to Sanskrit word as Iranic for Sanskrit kāś- 'to shine' is kas, also in Khotanese it is kas and Wiki gives the meaning rock for kāš .
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Nirjhar, I always enjoy reading your articles and comments, but I have to ask this question with respect to Kashi. Is the Kashi that we know from antiquity is really Varanasi or is it Kashghar? As people of Kashghar also call that city Kashi. I was naturally curious since Kashghar also includes Mount Kailash and Man-Sarovar. Thank you again for the wonderful work that you are doing helping us understand the history of the Aryan civilization.
Nirjhar, I have always enjoyed reading your blogs and insights on Indian history. Although, I have not commented before, but I do have a question related to Kashi. Is the Kashi referred to in our ancient literature really the area sound Varanasi or is it Kashghar. I am naturally curious because people of Kashghar also call their province Kashi and it includes Hindu/Buddhist spiritual landmarks such as Mount Kailash, Man-Sarovar etc. Thank you again for the wonderful service you are doing for all of us and educating us about the history of India (Indian sub-continent) and its surrounding areas and its people .
Hi tyanaapollo ,
Thank you for your kind words :) .
No kashi is Varanasi , you can see the etymology here :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasi#Etymology
and here on Kashgar :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashgar#Name
About Kashgar after a discussion with a linguist friend, I think it is suggestive that it is not the original name. Its written there in wiki as Kāš, see also here: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kashgar-kasgar-town-in-xinjiang
And it can't be related to Sanskrit word as Iranic for Sanskrit kāś- 'to shine' is kas, also in Khotanese it is kas and Wiki gives the meaning rock for kāš .
Thank. You so much! This is very enlightening!!
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