However, Josef Elfenbein found it unconvincing and hypothesised a derivation from Saraiki (Jaṭki) brāhō, referring to the prophet Abraham; the term perhaps served to distinguish the neo-Muslim nomadic pastoralists — who had migrated into Sindh from the Western Deccan c. a millennium ago and adopted Islam.

[2] Brahui lore, which speaks of a migration from Syria to Kalat followed by the overthrow of one Sewa dynasty, is a piecemeal borrowing from Baloch traditions; historical ballads, etc., are nonexistent in the language.

[3] Noting extensive phonological similarities with Malto and Kurukh, Dravidian languages spoken as geographical isolates across Eastern India, most linguists speculate the three groups to have shared a common stage before migrating along different directions.

[5][6] Additionally, both Kurukhs and Maltos speak of an eastward migration from Karnataka in their lore, and Brahuis' self-identification as migrants from Syria can be interpreted as a distorted version of the same event.

[3] However, the Brahuis do not have any significant Dravidian genetic component and are largely indistinguishable from surrounding Indo-European populaces; this suggests the passage of sufficient time since the admixture event, thereby supporting the relict hypothesis.

[7] Asko Parpola states in his book Deciphering the Indus Script that the Brahui people are remnants of the Harappan culture, the language of which he concludes as "likely to have belonged to the Dravidian family".

[2] However, British incursion into the subcontinent coupled with territorial losses to Persia compelled Kalat to accept a protectorate status; in the aftermath of the Partition, the Khanate was absorbed into Pakistan notwithstanding popular protests.

[2] Large numbers of nomadic and semi-nomadic Brahui speakers are found in Afghanistan, primarily in the Shorawak desert, in an area extending west of Nushki along the Helmand river into Iranian Sistan.