major form of the Middle Persian language (see Persian language), which existed from the 3rd to the 10th century and was the official language of the Sāsānian empire (AD 226–652). It is attested by Zoroastrian books, coins, and inscriptions. Pahlavi books were written in a confusing writing system of Aramaic origin called the Pahlavi alphabet. The major part of Pahlavi literature is religious, including translations from and commentaries on the Zoroastrian sacred book, the Avesta. Little has survived from pre-Islāmic times, and the Bundahishn and Dēnkart, both Zoroastrian religious works, date from the Islāmic period. Manuscripts were preserved by the Parsis (Zoroastrians) of Bombay and elsewhere. Pahlavi was superseded by Modern Persian, which is written in the Arabic alphabet.