The North Germanic Dialect Continuum

Abstract

The modern North Germanic languages family consists of mutually intelligible languages spoken in mainland Scandinavia (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish) and the insular languages Faroese and Icelandic. The languages have a common origin but have now diverged to such an extent that there are three different language continua with a large number of dialects. This chapter provides an overview of the history of the North Germanic languages leading to the present-day situation. Results of research are presented that quantify the linguistic differences between the languages and dialects in the language area and the consequences of these differences for mutual intelligibility. Finally, some directions for future research are suggested.