Other Languages in Scandinavia
Sami languages form an unrelated group that has coexisted with the North Germanic language group in Scandinavia since prehistory. Sami, like Finnish, is part of the group of the Uralic languages. In inter-Nordic contexts, texts are today often presented in three versions: Finnish, Icelandic, and one of the three languages Danish, Norwegian and Swedish. During centuries of interaction, Finnish and Sami have imported many more loanwords from North Germanic languages than vice versa.
The North-Germanic languages are majority languages in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, while Finnish is spoken by the majority in Finland. Another language in the Nordic countries is Greenlandic, the official language of Greenland.
In Southern Jutland in southwestern Denmark, German is also spoken by the North Schleswig Germans, and German is a recognized minority language in this region. In Southern Schleswig, German is the primary language among the Danish minority, and likewise, Danish is the primary language of the North Schleswig Germans. Both minority groups are highly bilingual.
Traditionally, Danish and German were the two official languages of Denmark-Norway; the and other official instruments for use in Denmark and Norway were written in Danish, and local administrators spoke Danish or Norwegian. German was the administrative language of Holstein and Schleswig.
Read more about this topic: North Germanic Languages
Famous quotes containing the word languages:
“People in places many of us never heard of, whose names we can’t pronounce or even spell, are speaking up for themselves. They speak in languages we once classified as “exotic” but whose mastery is now essential for our diplomats and businessmen. But what they say is very much the same the world over. They want a decent standard of living. They want human dignity and a voice in their own futures. They want their children to grow up strong and healthy and free.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (1911–1978)