Central Asian theory

There are various schools of thought regarding the original home of the Aryans. The most important theory which held the field for a long time was that the Aryans originally lived in Central Asia. This theory was propounded by Prof Max Muller a German scholar of comparative languages. He stated that the ancestors of the Indians, Greeks, Persians, Romans, Germans and the Celts must have lived together originally. The 'Pitri' and 'Matri' in Sanskrit are essentially the same as the Persian 'Pidar' and 'Madar', the Latin 'Pater' and 'Mater' and the English 'Father' and 'Mother'.

These are not trade terms but words of everyday use in families which could not have been adopted unless at some distant time, the ancestors of these people had lived at one common place.Max Muller concluded that the Aryans who today occupy European countries migrated by a route south of the Caspian through Asia minor to Greece and Italy and one of their groups came to India through the northwest passages.