Sir T. Holdich’s paper

In his remarks on Sir T. Holdich’s paper, ‘The Arabs of our Indian Frontier,’

 Mr.

Kennedy gave it as his opinion that the Baloches might be descended from the
Sakas, who settled in Drangiana, and gave it its later name of Sakastenê (Sijistan,
Sistan). That the Baloches may be descended from the Sakas, or from some other
race of Central Asian invaders, is no doubt possible, but I do not think that we
have at present sufficient evidence on which to base any definite conclusions. M.
de Ujfalvy finds the descendants of the Sakas in the Baltis of Baltistan, and
supposes them to be a remnant of that race left behind during the invasion of
India by the Karakoram passes. The Baltis are, like the Baloches, a race of
horsemen, with abundant curly hair; but, on the other hand, they are extremely
dolichocephalic, having a mean index as low as 72. In spite of this, however, it
might be quite possible for the Baloches to be derived from the branch of the race
settled in Sistan if we could prove that that province was the cradle of the Baloch
race. But although I formerly believed that this was the case, I have been obliged
by historical evidence to come to the conclusion that their connection with Sistan
is of comparatively modern date, and that their origin must be looked for further
north, in the neighbourhood of the Caspian Sea— in ancient Parthia, in fact.
Some connection with the Parthians seems possible, even probable; but more
than this cannot be asserted. In any case, even if the Baloches have originally
sprung from some Scythian or non-Iranian race, they have long since been
absolutely assimilated by the Iranians.