Where were the Anatolian languages spoken in ancient times?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Map of ancient Anatolia and northern Syria showing the geographic distribution of Anatolian languages, including Hittite, Hattian, Lydian, Phrygian, Palaic, Carian, Lycian, Pisidian, Hurrian, and Urartean. Major historical sites such as Hattusa, Kanesh, and Ugarit are marked, with the Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea bordering the region. — Anatolian languages Distribution of the Anatolian languages.

The Anatolian languages were spoken during the 1st and 2nd millennia BCE in the region that corresponds to modern-day Asian Turkey and northern Syria.1

The heartland of these languages was located in central Anatolia, particularly within the bend of the Halys River (now the Kızıl River), as well as in northern regions. The most prominent member of this family, Hittite, served as the official language of the Hittite empire, which expanded its influence across much of Anatolia and into northern Syria. Other related languages in this group included Palaic, Luwian, Lydian, Lycian, and Carian. While the empire eventually fell, some Anatolian dialects persisted in isolated parts of the interior until late Roman and potentially Byzantine times.2134