germanska

Germanska, also rendered as Germanic in English, is a term used in linguistic and cultural contexts to denote things related to the Germanic peoples and languages.

In many languages, germanska refers to topics associated with the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family or Germanic cultures.

The Germanic languages form a primary branch of the Indo-European family and are traditionally divided into West Germanic, North Germanic, and East Germanic groups; East Germanic languages are extinct, while West and North Germanic languages include widely spoken languages such as German, English, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and others.

The term also appears in historical discussions of the ancient Germani, a collective designation used by Roman authors for various tribes residing beyond the Rhine and Danube who contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Germanic peoples.

In scholarly usage, Germanic topics cover historical linguistics, comparative phonology and morphology (for example, sound shifts such as Grimm's law and Verner's law), and the reconstruction of Proto-Germanic.

It also pertains to archaeology, early medieval history, law codes, and literature associated with Germanic-speaking communities, including sagas, epic poetry, and law manuscripts.

The word is used in encyclopedic and educational contexts to contrast Germanic languages and cultures with neighboring language families, such as Romance or Slavic.

See also Germanic studies, Proto-Germanic, and Old Norse, Gothic, and other Germanic languages.