jezyk

Język, in ASCII form jezyk, is the Polish word for language or tongue. It denotes both the anatomical organ in the mouth and the system of communication used by a community. As an organ, the tongue is a muscular structure essential for tasting, swallowing, and producing speech; as a concept, language refers to the set of signs and rules used to convey meaning.

The word's etymology traces to Proto-Slavic *językъ, with cognates in other Slavic languages such as Russian язык (yazyk), Czech jazyk, and Ukrainian язик. In Polish, the metaphorical extension from the physical tongue to the capacity for speech and language is longstanding, yielding the general meanings of both anatomy and linguistics.

In modern usage, język appears in many common phrases. It can denote a specific language, as in język polski (the Polish language) or język obcy (a foreign language). It also forms compounds such as język migowy (sign language), język ojczysty (mother tongue), and język programowania (programming language). The field of study dealing with language is językoznawstwo (linguistics). The anatomical sense remains in medical or educational contexts, for example describing the tongue as a muscular organ.