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Top 10 Oldest Languages in the World
There are about 6000 languages that exist
today. Language began thousands of years ago and determining the oldest of them
is a hot debate. Researchers continuously search for proof of the earliest
existing languages even though it is a very difficult task. Therefore, many
contenders make the list for the oldest languages. Let’s take a look at the top
ten oldest languages in
the world.
10. Latin
Old Latin refers to the Latin language in
the period before 75 BC. Latin was the language of the victors of many wars and
battles fought on theItalian peninsula. It gained most importance when it
became the formal language of the Roman Empire. All Romance languages are
descended from Latin, and many words based on Latin are found in other modern
languages such as English. Today, Latin is taught in higher education courses
and still endures.
9. Armenian
Armenian is an Indo-European language
spoken by Armenians. Its language has a long literary history, with a
fifth-century Bible translation as its oldest surviving text. The last text
found makes it likely that Armenian began around 450 BC. Today, Armenian is the
mother tongue of over 5 million people.
8. Korean
The Korean language dates back to 600
BC.The Korean language is spoken by more than 65 million people living on the
peninsula and its outlying islands as well as 5.5 million Koreans living in
other parts of the world. The fact that all Koreans speak and write the
same language has been a crucial factor in their strong national identity.
7. Hebrew
Hebrew is over 3000 years old, originating
around 1000 BC. It is an ancient Semitic language and the official language of
the State of Israel. For many years, Hebrew was a written language mostly for
sacred texts thereby given the name of “holy language.” Today it is both a
spoken and written language that ties the Jewish community together.
6. Aramaic
Research has shown that large parts of
Hebrew and Arabic languages are borrowed from the Aramaic language.Diplomatic
documents between Aramaean city-states dating back to the 10th century BC (1000
BC) prove this to be one of the oldest languages. Modern
Aramaic, in its various dialects, is spoken in modern-day Iraq, Iran, Syria,
Israel, Lebanon, and the various Western countries to which the native speakers
have emigrated, including Russia, Europe, Australia and the United States.
5. Chinese
The first written records of Chinese
language date back 3000 years to 1200 BC and the Zhou Dynasty. Over time, the
Chinese language has evolved and nearly 1.2 billion people speak some form of
Chinese as their first language. This is the most popular language spoken in
the world.
4. Greek
The earliest written evidence of the Greek
language dates back to 1450 BC. Greek is mostly spoken in Greece, Albania, and
Cyprus, by roughly 13 million people. The Greek language has a long and rich
history which makes it among the oldest of European languages.
3. Egyptian
Egyptian is the oldest known language of
Egypt. It comes from the Afro-Asiatic language family. Tomb
walls bearing autobiographical writingsin Old Egyptian have been found dating
back to 2600 – 2000 BC. There is considerable and varied literature in
Egyptian. Today, Egyptian survives as the liturgical language of the Coptic
Church.
2. Sanskrit
Researchers believe that Sanskrit, which
heavily influenced many European languages, originated from Tamil. Sanskrit is
the classical language of India, dating back to 3000 BC. Sanskrit
is still one of India’s official languages, although its use in the vernacular
is limited.
1. Tamil
Tamil language is more than 5000 years old
and its literature is vast and varied. Tamil is one of the longest surviving
classical languages in the world. Just 14 years ago, a survey concluded there
were 1,863 newspapers published in Tamil proving the language is still used
today.
Many scholars believe the origins of
language are not suitable for serious study due to the lack of evidence. This
list hones in on the oldest known languages still in existence today. Theory
has it that the need for verbal communication arose because man formed groups
to better hunt, thereby creating the need to communicate with one another. Language
has evolved from the grunts and sounds of ancient man to today’s more
sophisticated words and phrases.
Comment sent by a reader of the above.
The oldest inscriptions
to date is the 500BC Tamil-Brahmi
inscriptions that have been
found on Adichanallur
Tamil literature has existed for over 2000 years (Zvelebil 1992). The earliest period of Tamil literature,
Tamil literature has existed for over 2000 years (Zvelebil 1992). The earliest period of Tamil literature,
Sangam
literature, is dated from ca. 300 BC – AD
300. (Zevelebil 1992, Abraham 2003, Govt. of India)
References:
1. Rudimentary Tamil-Brahmi script' unearthed at Adichanallur
References:
1. Rudimentary Tamil-Brahmi script' unearthed at Adichanallur
2. Zvelebil 1992, p. 12: "...the most acceptable periodisation which has so far been suggested for the development of Tamil writing seems to me to be that of A Chidambaranatha Chettiar (1907–1967): 1. Sangam Literature – 200BC to AD 200; 2. Post Sangam literature – AD 200 – AD 600; 3. Early Medieval literature – AD 600 to AD 1200; 4. Later Medieval literature – AD 1200 to AD 1800; 5. Pre-Modern literature – AD 1800 to 1900"
