A member of the peoples (not to be regarded as a race) speaking any of the languages of the Indo‐European (especially Indo‐Iranian) family. The idea current in the 19th century of an Aryan race corresponding to a definite Aryan language was taken up by nationalistic, historical, and romantic writers. It was given especial currency by the French writer and social theorist Joseph‐Arthur, Comte de Gobineau (1816–82), who linked it with the theory of the essential inferiority of certain races. The term ‘Aryan race’ was later revived and used for purposes of political propaganda in Nazi Germany.