The Frisian languages are a closely related group of West Germanic languages, spoken by about 500,000 Frisian people, who live on the southern fringes of the North Sea in the Netherlands and Germany. The Frisian languages are the closest living language group to the Anglic languages; the two groups make up the Anglo-Frisian languages group and together with the Low German dialects these form the North Sea Germanic languages. However, modern English and Frisian are not mutually intelligible, nor are Frisian languages intelligible among themselves, owing to independent linguistic innovations and foreign influences.
Low Saxon, also known as West Low German are a group of Low German dialects spoken in parts of the Netherlands, northwestern Germany and southern Denmark. It is one of two groups of mutually intelligible dialects, the other being East Low German dialects. A 2005 study found that there were approximately 1.8 million "daily speakers" of Low Saxon in the Netherlands. 53% spoke Low Saxon or Low Saxon and Dutch at home and 71% could speak it. According to another study the percentage of speakers among parents dropped from 34% in 1995 to 15% in 2011. The percentage of speakers among their children dropped from 8% to 2% in the same period.
Frisia is a cross-border cultural region in Northwestern Europe. Stretching along the Wadden Sea, it encompasses the north of the Netherlands and parts of northwestern Germany. The region is traditionally inhabited by the Frisians, a West Germanic ethnic group.
Terschelling is a municipality and an island in the northern Netherlands, one of the West Frisian Islands. It is situated between the islands of Vlieland and Ameland.
Vlieland is a municipality and island in the northern Netherlands. The municipality of Vlieland is the second most sparsely populated municipality in the Netherlands, after Schiermonnikoog.
East Frisian Low German or East Frisian Low Saxon is one of the Northern Low Saxon dialects, a West Low German dialect spoken in the East Frisian peninsula of northwestern Lower Saxony. It is used quite frequently in everyday speech there. About half of the East Frisian population in the coastal region uses the language. A number of individuals, despite not being active speakers of Low Saxon, are able to understand it to some extent. However, both active and passive language skills are in a state of decrease.
Stadsfries or Town Frisian is a set of dialects spoken in certain cities in the province of Friesland in the northern Netherlands, namely Leeuwarden, Sneek, Bolsward, Franeker, Dokkum, Harlingen, Stavoren, and to some extent in Heerenveen. For linguistic reasons, the outlying and insular dialects of Midsland (Terschelling), Ameland, Het Bildt, and Kollum are also sometimes tied to Stadsfries.
West Frisian, or simply Frisian, is a West Germanic language spoken mostly in the province of Friesland in the north of the Netherlands, mostly by those of Frisian ancestry. It is the most widely spoken of the Frisian languages.
North Frisian is a minority language of Germany, spoken by about 10,000 people in North Frisia. The language is part of the larger group of the West Germanic Frisian languages. The language comprises 10 dialects which are themselves divided into an insular and a mainland group.
Frisian language may refer to:
East Frisian is one of the Frisian languages. Its last surviving dialect is spoken in Saterland in Germany.
Hollandic or Hollandish is the most widely spoken dialect of the Dutch language. Hollandic is among the Central Dutch dialects. Other important language varieties of spoken Low Franconian languages are Brabantian, Flemish, Zeelandic, Limburgish and Surinamese Dutch.
Oan Schylge is the anthem of Terschelling, one of the West Frisian Islands in the northern Netherlands. The lyrics were written in 1854 by Jacob Sijbrands Bakker in the West Frisian dialect spoken on the island. "Schylge" is the name of Terschelling in local Frisian, and "Oan Schylge" means "To Terschelling". The origin of the music is uncertain: It was perhaps composed by Hendrik Rotgans (1851–1910), but could also have been borrowed from an older folk song. At most occasions, only the first and the last verse are sung.
Hindeloopen Frisian, also referred to as Hindeloopers in English and Dutch, is a West Frisian variety spoken in the port town of Hindeloopen and the village of Molkwerum on the west coast of Friesland. It has preserved much of the Old Frisian phonology and lexicon, and has been attested to since the 17th Century. Hindelooper is spoken by some 500 people in Hindeloopen, almost all of them elderly, with the number of speakers decreasing.
Strand Frisian was a dialect of the North Frisian language which was originally spoken on Strand island, Duchy of Schleswig. Strand was destroyed in the Burchardi flood of 1634 with its remnants forming the islands Pellworm and Nordstrand which are now part of Germany. Strand Frisian is counted among the mainland group of North Frisian dialects.
Amelands is a dialect of Dutch, spoken on the Wadden Sea island of Ameland. It is especially closely related to the Midslands dialect, spoken in the middle segment of the neighboring island of Terschelling. Amelands, which has about 2,900 speakers, is the only dialect of the Dutch Wadden Sea islands that seems to be maintaining itself in its community, whereas all the other Dutch or West Frisian island dialects are losing ground rapidly in favor of Standard Dutch.
The West Frisian languages are a group of closely related, though not mutually intelligible, Frisian languages of the Netherlands. Due to the marginalization of all but mainland West Frisian, they are often portrayed as dialects of a single language.
The various regional and minority languages in Europe encompass four categories:
