[5] Documents on wood and paper were written in modified Brahmi script with the addition of extra characters over time and unusual conjuncts such as ys for z.

[16] The unusual phonological development of Proto-Iranian *ću̯ to Khotanese śś sets the latter apart from most other Iranian languages (which usually have sp or a product thereof).

[18] Michaël Peyrot (2018) rejects a direct connection with the "Saka" (塞) of the Chinese Hanshu, who are recorded as having immigrated in the 2nd century BC to areas further west in Xinjiang, and instead connects Khotanese and Tumshuqese to the long-established Aqtala culture (also Aketala, in pinyin) which developed since ca.

[20][21] The Saka language became extinct after invading Turkic Muslims conquered the Kingdom of Khotan in the Islamicisation and Turkicisation of Xinjiang.

[26] postalveolar Khotanese was characterized by pervasive lenition, developments of retroflexes and voiceless aspirated consonants.

[31] Other than an inscription from Issyk kurgan that has been tentatively identified as Khotanese (although written in Kharosthi), all of the surviving documents originate from Khotan or Tumshuq.