Nordic languages
Western languages
Eastern languages
Language Classifications
Glossary
100

Nordic languages 

Icelandic, Faroese, Norwegian, Danish, and Swedish

100

Western languages 

English, German, Afrikaans, Frisian, Dutch, Yiddish 

100

Eastern languages 

Gothic, Vandalic and Burgundian 

100

Two types of classification 

Genetic and Typological 

100

what is ablaut

A systematic phonetic change that occurs within the root or stem of a word to mark variations in grammatical function or to convey different meanings.

200

Territory of Settlement of the North Germanic Tribes

Territory of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and parts of Finland.

200

Ancestors of modern West Germanic languages 

Old English, Old Frisian, Old Saxon, and Old High German

200

What is Codex Argenteus?

6th-century manuscript containing a translation of portions of the Bible.

200

Typological classification divided into three 

Morphological

Syntactic

Phonological

200

What is Diphthongs?

A vowel that contains two different vowel sounds in one syllable.

300

What are the ancestors of Nordic languages?

Old Norse, Old Swedish, Old Danish, and Old Gutnish

300

in what language “Beowulf” was written

Old English 

300

Where Vandals established their kingdom?

In North Africa in the 5th century AD

300

Three most influential scientists 

Frederick Schlegel (1772-1829)

August Schlegel ( 1767-1845)

Wilhelm Humboldt (1767-1835)

300

What is Conjunction?

A part of speech that connects words, phrases, clauses, or sentences (e.g., and, but, or) to express relationships between them.

400

What features all the Nordic languages have in common?

rich system of inflectional endings for nouns, pronouns, and adjectives, as well as a complex verb conjugation system with strong and weak verbs.

400

Which language Old High German was influenced by?

Romance languages, particularly Latin

400

How many letters in Gothic alphabet

27 letters 

400

What is Agglutinating Languages

Each morpheme expresses only one meaning element. 

The breaks between morphemes (e.g. between root and affix) are usually easy to identify.

400

What is Lenition?

A phonological process in which a consonant sound becomes weakened or softened, typically resulting in a reduction of its articulatory force, duration, or sonority.

500

Reason for the influence of Danish on other Nordic languages 

One key factor is the historical dominance of Denmark over much of the region, particularly during the Kalmar Union (14th to 16th centuries), when Denmark, Norway, and Sweden were united under Danish rule.

500

What Old English and Old Frisian are known for?

their use of alliterative verse, a poetic form characterized by the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

500

What phonological features the Eastern languages have

the retention of the Proto-Germanic þ and w sounds, which evolved into the dental fricatives θ and w in other Germanic languages.

500

What is Polysynthetic language 

These languages typically combine many morphemes to form very long words.

500

What is Rhoticity?

The pronunciation feature of a dialect or language where the sound represented by the letter "r" is pronounced, especially when it comes before a vowel or in the syllable coda.