Among all of the non-Persian Iranian toponyms of
Mawarannahr that have come down to us thanks to medieval
sources (some 1.000 items). the vast majority (80-
90%) arc those mentioned in Islamic Arabic. Persian and
Turkic sources. This multilingual group is united by certain
general characteristics — a single cultural environment.
a great deal of mutual influence. and. most important, a single
tradition of writing. The transmission of Sogdian glosses
through the Arabic script is the topic of the present article...