How Do We Know What Dead Languages Sound Like?
How The Written Word is the Key to Recreating Ancient Languages
“The study of dead languages is like a fascinating puzzle, where each linguistic piece we decipher brings us a little closer to understanding how people sounded and lived in past eras.”
— Lola Pons Rodríguez
Imagine if you could travel back in time and hear a Roman speaking Latin or a Greek speaking Ancient Greek. What would they sound like? Like, even if I could speak Latin, would a Roman be able to understand me?
Although we don’t have a time machine, linguists have done a great job of deciphering the pronunciation of languages which no longer have native speakers.
These so called ‘dead languages’ are lost to history and the truth is that it is impossible to know the exact pronunciation of these languages, even if they are earlier forms of a current language.
However, we can approximate it through testimonies, such as linguistic writings, poetry, or comparisons between the parent language and its daughter languages.
In this article, we are going to dive into the methods that allow us to approach the phonetics of dead languages. Even if we do not have all the answers, it is interesting to see how far we can get with a little ingenuity and curiosity.
How Does a Language Die?
As mentioned above, a language is considered ‘dead’ when there are no longer people who speak it as their mother tongue or use it for everyday life, and this can happen due to various factors. For example:
- When a minority language is replaced by a dominant one.
- Stigmatization, as was the case with indigenous languages in Mexico, such as Nahuatl or Mayan, which came to be associated with poverty and lack of education.
- Due to government policies, as was the case with the extinction of Cornish in England, since in the 19th century a law was imposed prohibiting its use and encouraging the use of English (fortunately the language has been revitalized).
Historical Testimonies are Key
Although we do not have audio recordings to know how dead languages sounded, historical testimonies (e.g. linguistic documents, written descriptions, and poetry) offer us valuable clues about their pronunciation.
One example of this is the writings of Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (c. 35 — c. 100 AD). He was an educator and rhetorician who wrote Institutio Oratoria, in which he offered recommendations for improving Latin pronunciation in speeches. For example when discussing the ‘R’ sound, he says:
“The ‘R’ is often pronounced with a vibration and is articulated better with a stronger vibration in Latin.”
(Inst. Orat. I, 6.21)
This description suggests that the Latin “R” was most likely pronounced like the “R” (/r/) of modern Spanish when it is at the beginning of a word, where the tongue strikes the roof of the mouth several times. This differentiates it from modern German, where the “R” is usually guttural (/ʁ/ or /ʀ/), and makes it more like the vibrating sound of ancient Greek (/r/).
Poetry also gives us clues about pronunciation. In Latin, meter was more important than rhyme and, to improve the flow of the verse, the final “m” was sometimes not pronounced. Here is an example from verse 1.1 of the Metamorphoses by Publius Ovidius Nason, a Roman poet born in 43 B.C., who is known for this outstanding work on the transformation of myths:
“In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas”, /ɪn ˈnɔ.va fɛrt ˈa.ni.mus muˈtaː.tas ˈdɪ.ke.re ˈfɔr.as/, (“My mind is inclined to speak of changed forms”).
In this verse, we can deduce that the “m” in “formas” was not pronounced, since Ovidius, like other poets, followed specific rhythmic patterns such as avoiding pronouncing this “m” helped to maintain the flow of the rhythm.
Furthermore, ancient inscriptions help us see the evolution of pronunciation over time. For example, in Classical Latin, the word caelum (/ˈka.e.lum/) (sky) was sometimes written as celum (/ˈke.lum/) in inscriptions from the 1st century AD. This suggests that the ‘ae’ (/a.e/) sound was simplified to ‘e’ (/e/) during that time.
Another case is the word civitas (/ˈkiː.wi.tas/) (city). In 4th century AD inscriptions in Gaul (modern day France) appears as cibitas (/ˈki.bi.tas/). This change reflects how the pronunciation of Latin was evolving; approaching what would later become the Romance languages.
Comparative Method
Another method used, although less accurate, is the comparative method. Modern languages, just like modern people, are the decedents of past languages. We call this relationship mother and daughter languages. By studying daughter languages, we can work backwards and try to figure out what the mother language would have sounded like.
In general, the daughter languages retain certain elements of the mother tongue. Let’s look at an example with the Romance languages:
- Spanish: padre
- Italian: padre
- French: père
- Portuguese: pai
In all these languages, the word for ‘father’ begins with a ‘p’ sound. This helps us to deduce that in Latin the word for father (pater) probably also had an initial sound ‘p’ like in French or Spanish.
This method seems simple enough, but it is important to remember that languages have many irregularities. To obtain an accurate reconstruction, it is necessary to rely on statistics; observing patterns over time and across langauges. This involves a lot of effort and specialized knowledge.
This means that this method is full of challenges:
- Subjective interpretation: Much depends on the interpretation of the scientist.
- Significant effort: Requires a lot of research and analysis.
- Lack of exact rules: There are no strict rules, so two linguists who do not know each other and study the same subject may reach different conclusions.
Conclusions
Although we cannot listen directly to ancient Romans or Greeks, linguists have found creative ways to approximate what these languages sounded like.
They use inscriptions and poetry, and compare ancient languages with modern ones to decipher pronunciation. For example, we see changes such as from caelum to celum and from civitas to cibitas, which gives us clues as to how Latin evolved.
Also, by comparing words in modern languages, we can gain insights into how they might have sounded. Understanding how dead languages or earlier stages of current languages sounded like is important for a complete picture of linguistic evolution.
Although these methods are not perfect, they help us better understand how languages have transformed over time, offering valuable perspectives on the development of contemporary languages and enriching our knowledge of historical linguistics.
Personally, my interest in linguistics is reflected in my fascination with how the sounds of ancient languages can be reconstructed and understood through detailed research. Although knowledge about historical pronunciation may not have a direct application in my daily life, it motivates and enriches my curiosity about language and its evolution.
Bibliographic References
- Trusted Translations. (2022, May 5). Do You Know How to Speak Cornish?
- Linguriosa. (2022, July 10). ¿Cómo sabemos la pronunciación de una lengua que ya no se habla? [Video]. YouTube.
- Quintilian, M. F. (2001). Institutio Oratoria. Edición crítica por H. E. Butler. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Herman, J. (2000). Vulgar Latin. Pennsylvania State University Press.
- Palmer, L. R. (1988). The Latin Language. University of Oklahoma Press.
