Indo-European Language Family

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Questions and Answers

Which language family does Latin belong to?

  • Scandinavian
  • Germanic
  • Romance
  • Italic (correct)

Which language family does English belong to?

  • North Germanic
  • Germanic (correct)
  • Romance
  • Italic

What region does North Germanic languages primarily cover?

  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Iceland (correct)

Which languages are considered part of the Romance language group?

<p>Spanish and Portuguese (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Where did Latin spread during the Roman Empire's expansion?

<p>Africa (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which language is considered the principal language of East Germanic?

<p>Gothic (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which term was commonly used a century ago to designate the family of languages located in India and the plateau of Iran?

<p>Aryan (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Why has the term Aryan been generally abandoned in modern times?

<p>Because it lacked specificity in describing the language family (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which term is criticized for giving undue emphasis to the Germanic languages within the family?

<p>Indo-Germanic (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What term is now most widely used to designate the geographical extent of the Indo-European language family?

<p>Indo-European (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which branch of the Indo-European family is mentioned in the text?

<p>Baltic (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What aspect allows linguists to form a fair idea of the common Indo-European language despite having no written record of it?

<p>Comparison of its descendant languages (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a feature that indicates a close relationship between English and German?

<p>The word 'wasser' in German is unrelated to the English word 'water'. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What term is used to refer to a group of languages that have descended or differentiated from a common parent language?

<p>Language family (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

According to the passage, what is a possible outcome when a community separates from another for a considerable length of time?

<p>The development of separate languages that are unintelligible to each other. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following pairs of words demonstrates the connection between Latin and English, as mentioned in the passage?

<p>Both (a) and (b) (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary reason mentioned in the passage for the development of local dialects?

<p>Slight separation of one community from another (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

According to the passage, what happens to individual differences in speech within a community where constant communication takes place?

<p>They merge into the general speech of the community. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

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Study Notes

The Italic Branch

  • The Italic branch of languages has its center in Italy, but Latin was not the only language spoken in the region.
  • The Italian peninsula was settled by various cultures due to its geographical situation and climate.
  • Latin spread to Spain, Gaul, northern Africa, the Mediterranean islands, and Britain through Roman colonization.

The Romance Languages

  • The languages that evolved from Latin are known as Romance or Romanic languages.
  • The main Romance languages are French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian.
  • These languages have spread to other territories, particularly in the New World.

The Germanic Branch

  • The Germanic branch of languages is divided into East Germanic, North Germanic, and West Germanic.
  • The principal language of East Germanic is Gothic.
  • North Germanic is spoken in Scandinavia, Denmark, Iceland, and the Faroe Islands.
  • West Germanic is the group that includes English.

The Indo-European Family

  • The Indo-European family of languages includes languages spoken in Europe, India, and the Iranian plateau.
  • The parent tongue of Indo-European languages is unknown due to the lack of written records.
  • The Indo-European languages can be grouped into eleven branches: Indian, Iranian, Armenian, Hellenic, Albanian, Italic, Balto-Slavic, Germanic, Celtic, Hittite, and Tocharian.
  • The languages show varying degrees of similarity, with geographical distribution being a key factor.

Dialectal Differentiation

  • Constant communication among speakers leads to a shared language, while separation can lead to dialectal differences.
  • Prolonged separation can result in the development of separate languages.
  • Despite differences, languages can still retain common features, indicating a shared ancestry.
  • Examples of language relationships include English and German, and Latin and English.

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