“Finding the language that lets ancient people speak to modern readers without sounding like they’re visiting from a Renaissance Faire. Building a voice that carries the weight of age without collapsing into museum-piece stiffness. It’s necromancy, art, and educated guesswork. And it’s probably wrong. But if I can make you hear Artashata’s voice, even for a moment — if I can make you believe that this is how a Persian nobleman who fate made a king might have sounded, then the effort is worth it.”

Tremendously useful piece here on how to make the best compromise when writing archaic language, from author Scott Oden