Baltic Languages

The Baltic languages form a branch of the Indo-European languages, though certain linguists still place them in the group of the balto-Slavic languages, with the Slavic Langues.

Classification

This group is divided into two sub-groups: the Eastern Baltic Languages and the Western Baltic Languages. The first sub-group is formed of the Lituanien and the Latvian (or lette), both still existing, and of the Curonien (or dialect of Courlande), of the Sémigalien, the Skalvien and the Sélonien which dissolved in the existing languages. Among the sub-group Western the Vieux Prussian is only of which we have hard copies, there was also in this group: the Nadruvien, the Galindan and the Sudovien (or yotvingien) today all disappeared. Traditionally, the Baltic one was connected more closely with the Slavic languages that with the Germanic ones. Besides the balto-Slavic term underlines the relation of brought closer relationship, but a great number of researchers insist that the two groups remain separate since they were distinguished as of the 14th century.

Distribution

At present, 4 million people especially speaks Lithuanian (in Lithuania) and 2 million speaks Latvian (especially in Latvia). These two languages are also divided into dialects which go down partly from the extinct languages.

History

The Baltic people being relatively protected from the foreign linguistic influences, it presents the least changed forms Indo-European languages. The Baltic languages present all of the antiquated elements of their common ancestor, the Proto-Baltic . Their use was limited a long time to the oral tradition and the Baltic ones started to make use of the writing relatively recently. One preserved traces of the old Prussian by translations of the 16th century and a glossary German-Prussian written in XIVe century, but the language disappeared at the beginning of the 18th century. One spoke it in Eastern Prussia. With the christianization and the germanisation of Prussia, the old Prussian disappeared towards the end from the 17th century. The first traces of Lithuanian go up with 1547. Of all existing languages, it is it which the most preserved the characteristics of the Indo-European of origin. The first texts written in Latvian appeared in 1585. The traces of the other languages come us from certain proper names which would have survived. However, the writing in these languages was spread only in the middle of the 19th century, partly because Latvia and Lithuania were not independent states and that the countries which directed them tried to impose their languages in the written documents.

See too

Beats-smg: Baltu kalbas

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