He argued that the runes were brought into Europe from Central Asia by the Huns, and were an adapted version of the old Sogdian alphabet in the Hunnic (Oghur Turkic) language. Zacharias Rhetor wrote that in 507/508 AD, Bishop Qardust of Arran went to the land of the Caucasian Huns for seven years, and returned with books written in the Hunnic language. There is some debate as to whether a Xiongnu-Xianbei runic system existed, and was part of a wider Eurasian script which gave rise to the Old Turkic alphabet in the 8th century. Footnotes References Extinct languages of Europe Extinct languages of Asia Unclassified languages of Europe Unclassified languages of Asia Languages attested from the 4th century Languages extinct in the 6th century Huns Hunno-Bulgar languages