fornspråk

Fornspråk is a term used in the study of historical linguistics, particularly in Scandinavia, to refer to the oldest discernible stages of a language. It is often translated as "original language" or "primitive language," though these terms can be misleading as they imply a single, static source language, which is a concept largely superseded by modern linguistic theory. Instead, fornspråk refers to the reconstructed or earliest attested forms of a language group, such as Proto-Germanic for the Germanic languages or Proto-Norse for the North Germanic languages.

The study of fornspråk involves analyzing the earliest written records, such as runic inscriptions, and comparing them with later linguistic developments to reconstruct ancestral forms. This reconstruction is not a direct observation of a spoken language but rather a scientific inference based on systematic linguistic change. Fornspråk represents a point in time before significant diversification occurred within a language family or branch, allowing linguists to understand the common roots and subsequent evolution of related languages. For example, understanding fornspråk is crucial for tracing the development of modern Scandinavian languages like Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese from their common ancestor.