The North-Germanic languages form a subgroup of the Germanic languages, primarily spoken in the Nordic countries. This linguistic group includes several languages and dialects:
The origins of the North-Germanic languages can be traced back to the Proto-Germanic language, which was spoken around the 1st millennium BCE. The divergence into North-Germanic began with the Viking Age (approximately 8th to 11th century), leading to the development of Old Norse, the ancestor of modern North-Germanic languages. Old Norse was spoken by the Vikings and was used across the Norse settlements from Iceland to Greenland, and in parts of the British Isles, Russia, and France.
Over centuries, Old Norse evolved into various dialects, which eventually formed the distinct modern languages:
Today, these languages are spoken by approximately 20 million people. While they share a common ancestry, the degree of mutual intelligibility varies:
North-Germanic languages have influenced each other and have also impacted other languages through historical contact, trade, and colonization. For example: