The word 'Dard' has a long history, and the people bearing the name are a very ancient tribe. They are mentioned by Herodotus, though not by name, and are the Daradrai of Ptolemy, the Derdai of Strabo, and the Darde of Pliny and Nonnus. In Sanskrit literature they are spoken of as 'Dürada' or 'Darada'. Kalhana in Rajatrangini mentions 'Daradas' or 'Darads' as in- habiting the country where we now find Ships who at the present day are still called Dards. To the Greek and Roman writers the word had a wider signification and included not only the predecessors of the Shius, but the people included in the tract between the Hindukush and the frontiers of India proper. Accordingly, at the present day this tract is known as 'Dardistan'. This tract was once inhabited by tribes whom Sanskrit writers grouped together under the title of Pisacha. Clear traces of the language of these tribes are to be found in the modern languages of the area.
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