View source for Social:Faroese language

{{short description|North Germanic language of the Faroe Islands}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Faroese
| nativename       = {{lang|fo|føroyskt mál}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA-fo|ˈføːɹɪst ˈmɔaːl|}}
| states           = [[Biography:Faroe Islands|Faroe Islands]]
| ethnicity        = Faroe Islanders
| speakers         = {{sigfig|69,150|2}}
| date             = 2015
| ref              = e19
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = Germanic
| fam3             = North Germanic
| fam4             = [[Social:Old Norse#Old West Norse|West Scandinavian]]
| fam5             = Insular Scandinavian
| ancestor         = [[Social:Old Norse|Old Norse]]
| ancestor2        = [[Social:Old Norse#Old West Norse|Old West Norse]]
| ancestor3        = [[Social:Old Norwegian|Old Norwegian]]<ref>Sandøy, H., Frå tre dialektar til tre språk. In: Gunnstein Akselberg og Edit Bugge (red.), Vestnordisk språkkontakt gjennom 1200 år. Tórshavn, Fróðskapur, 2011, pp. 19-38. [http://folk.uib.no/hnohs/Publikasjonar/Sandoy,%201410,%20Fraa%20tre%20dialektar%20til%20tre%20spraak.pdf]</ref>
| ancestor4        = [[Social:Faroese language#Old Faroese|Old Faroese]]
| script           = {{ubl|Latin (Faroese alphabet)|Faroese Braille}}
| nation           = [[Biography:Faroe Islands|Faroe Islands]]
| agency           = [[Organization:Faroese Language Board|Faroese Language Board]] [http://malrad.fo/ Føroyska málnevndin]
| minority         = {{wipe|Denmark}}
| iso1             = fo
| iso2             = fao
| iso3             = fao
| glotto           = faro1244
| glottorefname    = Faroese
| lingua           = 52-AAA-ab
| notice           = IPA
| map2             = Lang Status 80-VU.svg
| mapcaption2      = {{center|{{small|Faroese is classified as Vulnerable by the [[Organization:UNESCO|UNESCO]] Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger}}}}
}}
'''Faroese'''{{efn|While the spelling ''Faeroese'' is also seen, ''Faroese'' is the spelling used in grammars, textbooks, scientific articles and dictionaries between Faroese and English.}} ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|f|ɛər|oʊ|ˈ|iː|z|,_|ˌ|f|ær|-}} {{respell|FAIR|oh|EEZ|,_|FARR|-}};<ref>{{Cite OED|Faroese|access-date = 8 May 2019}}</ref> {{Lang-fo|label=endonym|føroyskt mál}} {{IPA-fo|ˈføːɹɪst ˈmɔaːl|}}) is a North Germanic language spoken as a [[Social:First language|first language]] by about 69,000 Faroe Islanders, of which 21,000 reside mainly in {{wipe|Denmark}} and elsewhere.

It is one of six languages descended from [[Social:Old Norse#Old West Norse|Old West Norse]] spoken in the [[History:Middle Ages|Middle Ages]], the others being [[Social:Nynorsk|Norwegian]], [[Social:Icelandic language|Icelandic]], and the extinct [[Social:Norn language|Norn]] and [[Social:Greenlandic Norse|Greenlandic Norse]]. Faroese and Icelandic, its closest extant relative, are not easily [[Social:Mutual intelligibility|mutually intelligible]] in speech, but the written languages resemble each other quite closely, largely owing to Faroese's etymological orthography.<ref name="BarbourCarmichael2000">{{cite book|last1=Barbour|first1=Stephen|last2=Carmichael|first2=Cathie|title=Language and Nationalism in Europe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ixmu8Iga7gC&pg=PA106|year=2000|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-158407-7|page=106}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Sheep Letter, p 1.jpg|thumb|left|The Sheep letter ({{lang-fo|Seyðabrævið}}) is the oldest surviving document of the Faroe Islands. Written in 1298 in Old Norse, it contains some words and expressions believed to be especially Faroese.<ref name="Medieval sources">{{cite web|url=http://wanthalf.saga.cz/dokumenty/faerstina/zdroje/nejstarsi_pisemnosti/GR_medieval_sources.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305152327/http://wanthalf.saga.cz/dokumenty/faerstina/zdroje/nejstarsi_pisemnosti/GR_medieval_sources.pdf |archive-date=2016-03-05 |url-status=live|title=History and Diachronic Variations - Medieval sources|publisher=wanthalf.saga.cz (part of a book)|access-date=22 October 2015}}</ref>]]
{{Old Norse language map}}
[[File:The Famjin Stone a Faroese Runestone.JPG|thumb|The Fámjin stone, a Faroese [[History:Runestone|runestone]]]]
{{Cladogram |cladogram={{North Germanic clade}}}} <!-- Made the clade a cladogram due to unfortunate text, if the opportunity to incorporate this into the main body ever comes, feel free to remove the {{Cladogram}} and leave just the {{North Germanic clade}} -->

Around 900 AD, the language spoken in the Faroes was [[Social:Old Norse|Old Norse]], which Norse settlers had brought with them during the time of the settlement of Faroe Islands ({{lang|non|landnám}}) that began in 825. However, many of the settlers were not from [[Place:Scandinavia|Scandinavia]], but descendants of Norse settlers in the Irish Sea region. In addition, women from Norse Ireland, Orkney, or Shetland often married native Scandinavian men before settling in the Faroe Islands and Iceland.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} As a result, the [[Social:Irish language|Irish language]] has had some influence on both Faroese and [[Social:Icelandic language|Icelandic]]. 

There is speculation about Irish language place names in the Faroes: for example, the names of Mykines, Stóra Dímun, Lítla Dímun and Argir have been hypothesized to contain Celtic roots.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Faroese Language - Learn about the Faroe Islands language|url=https://www.faroeislands.fo/arts-culture/language/|access-date=2021-09-13|website=faroeislands.fo|language=en}}</ref> Other examples of early-introduced words of Celtic origin are: {{wikt-lang|fo|blak}}/{{lang|fo|blaðak}} (buttermilk), cf. [[Social:Middle Irish|Middle Irish]] {{wikt-lang|mga|bláthach}}; {{lang|fo|drunnur}} (tail-piece of an animal), cf. Middle Irish {{lang|mga|dronn}}; {{wikt-lang|fo|grúkur}} (head, headhair), cf. Middle Irish {{wikt-lang|mga|gruaig}}; {{wikt-lang|fo|lámur}} (hand, [[Biology:Paw|paw]]), cf. Middle Irish {{wikt-lang|mga|lámh}}; {{wikt-lang|fo|tarvur}} (bull), cf. Middle Irish {{wikt-lang|mga|tarbh}}; and {{wikt-lang|fo|ærgi}} ([[Earth:Pasture|pasture]] in the outfield), cf. Middle Irish {{lang|mga|áirge}}.<ref>Chr. Matras. Greinaval – málfrøðigreinir. FØROYA FRÓÐSKAPARFELAG 2000</ref>

Between the 9th and the 15th centuries, a distinct Faroese language evolved, although it was probably still mutually intelligible with Old West Norse, and remained similar to the [[Social:Norn language|Norn language]] of Orkney and Shetland during Norn's earlier phase.

Faroese ceased to be a written language after the union of Norway with Denmark in 1380, with Danish replacing Faroese as the language of administration and education.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.uv.es/capelo/thefaroeselanguage.html|title=The Faroese Language |publisher=[[Organization:University of Valencia|University of Valencia]] |access-date=2017-08-23}}</ref> The islanders continued to use the language in [[Social:Ballad|ballad]]s, [[Social:Folklore|folktales]], and everyday life. This maintained a rich [[History:Oral history|spoken tradition]], but for 300 years the language was not used in written form.

In 1823, the Danish Bible Society published a diglot of the Gospel of Matthew, with Faroese on the left and Danish on the right.

Venceslaus Ulricus Hammershaimb and the Icelandic grammarian and politician Jón Sigurðsson published a written standard for Modern Faroese in 1854, which still exists.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Faroese-language |title=Faroese language |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date=2017-08-23 }}</ref> They set a standard for the [[Social:Orthography|orthography]] of the language, based on its Old Norse roots and similar to that of Icelandic. The main purpose of this was for the spelling to represent the diverse dialects of Faroese in equal measure. Additionally, it had the advantages of being etymologically clear and keeping the kinship with the Icelandic written language. The actual pronunciation, however, often differs considerably from the written rendering. The letter ''ð'', for example, has no specific [[Social:Phoneme|phoneme]] attached to it.

Jakob Jakobsen devised a rival system of orthography, based on his wish for a phonetic spelling, but this system was never taken up by the speakers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://snar.fo/tema-og-tvoergreinalig-evni/skaldskapur-og-midlar/rithoevundar/j/jakobsen-jakob/|website=Snar.fo |title=Jakob Jakobsen (1864-1918)|access-date=2014-04-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140310065447/http://snar.fo/tema-og-tvoergreinalig-evni/skaldskapur-og-midlar/rithoevundar/j/jakobsen-jakob/|archive-date=2014-03-10|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1908, Scripture Gift Mission published the Gospel of John in Faroese.

In 1937, Faroese replaced [[Social:Danish language|Danish]] as the official school language, in 1938, as the church language, and in 1948, as the national language by the Home Rule Act of the Faroe Islands. {{cn-span|However, Faroese did not become the common language of media and advertising until the 1980s.|date=December 2010}} Today, Danish is considered a foreign language, {{cn-span|although around 5% of residents on the Faroes learn it as a first language|date=June 2021}}, and it is taught in school from the first grade.{{cn|date=June 2021}}

In 2017, the tourist board Visit Faroe Islands launched a website entitled Faroe Islands Translate. Text can be entered in thirteen languages, including English, Chinese, Russian, Japanese, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. Instead of an instant machine translation being given, the text goes to a volunteer who will provide a live video translation, or else a recorded one later. The aim of this project was to get Faroese featured on [[Software:Google Translate|Google Translate]].
<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-41524790|title=Faroe Islands launch live translation service |date=2017-10-06|website=BBC |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230627145833/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-41524790 |archive-date= Jun 27, 2023 }}</ref>

== Old Faroese ==

Old Faroese ({{lang|fo|miðaldarføroyskt}}, ca. mid-14th to mid-16th centuries) is a form of [[Social:Old Norse|Old Norse]] spoken in medieval times in the Faroe Islands. The most crucial aspects of the development of Faroese are diphthongisation and palatalisation.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Nordic languages: An international handbook of the history of the North Germanic languages |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Nordic_Languages_Volume_2/Z17C7s3r_nwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA1091 |volume= 2|date=2005 |editor1-last=Bandle|editor1-first=Oskar|editor2-last=Braunmuller |editor2-first=Kurt |editor3-last=Hakon Jahr |editor3-first= Ernst  |editor4-last= Karker |editor4-first= Allan|editor5-last=Naumann |editor5-first=Hans-Peter |editor6-last=Teleman|editor6-first=Ulf |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter|isbn=3110197065|location=Berlin|page=1091|oclc=567851019}}</ref>

There is not enough data available to establish an accurate chronology of Faroese, but a rough one may be developed through comparison to the chronologies of Old Icelandic and Old Norwegian. In the 12th/13th centuries, ''á'' and ''ǫ́'' merged as {{IPA|/ɔː/}}; later on at the beginning of the 14th century, delabialization took place: ''y'', ''øy'', ''au'' > {{IPA|/i, ɔi, ɛi/}}; ''í'' and ''ý'' merged in addition to ''i'' and ''y'', but in the case of ''í'' and ''ý'', it appears that labialisation took place instead as is documented by later development to {{IPA|/ʊi/}}. Further, the language underwent a palatalisation of ''k'', ''g'' and ''sk'' before [[Social:Old Norse|Old Norse]] ''e'', ''i'', ''y'', ''ø'', ''au'' > {{IPA|/kʲ, ɡʲ, skʲ/}} > {{IPA|/cᶜ̧, ɟᶨ, ɕcᶜ̧/}} > {{IPA|/tʃʰ, tʃ, ʃ/}}. Before the palatalisation ''é'' and ''ǽ'' merged as {{IPA|/ɛː/}} and approximately in the same period epenthetic ''u'' is inserted into word-final {{IPA|/Cr/}} and {{IPA|/CrC/}} clusters. 

A massive quantity shift also operated in Middle Faroese. In the case of ''skerping'', it took place after delabialization but before loss of post-vocalic ''ð'' and ''g'' {{IPA|/ɣ/}}. The shift of ''hv'' {{IPA|/hw/}} to {{IPA|/kw/}}, the deletion of {{IPA|/h/}} in (remaining) word-initial {{IPA|/h/}}–sonorant clusters (''hr'', ''hl'', ''hn'' > ''r'', ''l'', ''n''), and the dissolution of ''þ'' (''þ'' > ''t''; ''þ'' > ''h'' in demonstrative pronouns and adverbs)<ref>{{citation|last=Petersen|first=Hjalmar P.|title=The Change of ''þ'' to ''h'' in Faroese |url=https://setur.fo/uploads/tx_tcpublications/Petersen_HP_The_Change_of_%C3%BE_to_h.pdf}}{{dead link|date=December 2023}}</ref> appeared before the end of the 13th century. Another undated change is the merger of ''ǫ'', ''ø'' and ''ǿ'' into {{IPA|/ø/}}; pre-nasal ''ǫ'', ''ǫ́'' > ''o'', ''ó''. ''enk'', ''eng'' probably became {{lang|fo|eing}}, {{lang|fo|eink}} in the 14th century; the development of ''a'' to {{IPA|/ɛ/}} before ''ng'', ''nk'' appeared after the palatalisation of ''k'', ''g'', and ''sk'' had been completed, such a change is quite a recent development, as well as change ''Cve'' > ''Cvø''.

{|class="wikitable"
|+ Development of vowels from Old Norse to Modern Faroese<ref name="Loanwords">According to Hjalmar Petersen in: Tórður Jóansson: ''English loanwords in Faroese''. Tórshavn: Fannir 1997, S. 45 (in red: later corrections, 21. July 2008). In green: corrections of German Wikipedia article :de:Färöische Sprache</ref>
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | 9th century<br />(Old Norse)
! align="center" | up to 14th century<br />(Early Faroese)
! colspan="2" align="center" | 14th–16th centuries<br />(Old Faroese)
! colspan="4" align="center" | 17th century<br />(Late Old Faroese)
! colspan="4" align="center" | 20th century<br />(New Faroese)
! colspan="4" | &nbsp;
|-
| colspan="4" align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | &nbsp;
| rowspan="2" align="center" | North
| rowspan="2" align="center" | South
| colspan="2" align="center" | North
| colspan="2" align="center" | South
| colspan="2" align="center" | North
| colspan="2" align="center" | South
| colspan="4" | &nbsp;
|-
| colspan="4" align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| colspan="4" | &nbsp;
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | i and y
| align="center" | {{IPA|/i/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɪ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɪ/}}
|align="center" | {{IPA|[iː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɪ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[iː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɪ]}}
! i, y
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" style="color:green;" | e and æ
| align="center" | {{IPA|/e/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/e/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! e
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ø
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ø/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ø/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ǫ
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ͔/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ͔ː/}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | u
| align="center" | {{IPA|/u/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[uː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[uː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊ]}}
! u
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | o
| align="center" | {{IPA|/o/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/o/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[oː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[oː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! o
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | a
| align="center" | {{IPA|/a/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/æ/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/æ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
! a
|-
| colspan="19" align="left" | Long vowel -> Diphthong
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | í and ý
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/yː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ui]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ui]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊi]}}
! í, ý
|-
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" style="color:green;" | é and ǽ
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛəː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛə/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! æ
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ǿ
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/œː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/œː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ú
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉʏ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉʏ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʉu]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʉu]}}
! ú

|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ó
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɜu/}}
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔu/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɜu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɜ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œu, ɛu]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔu]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! ó
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | á and ǫ́
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔa]}}
! á
|-
| colspan="19" align="left" | True diphthongs
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | au
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɶu/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! ey
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | øy
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/œy/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔi]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! oy
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ei
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/æi/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ai]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ai]}}
! ei
|}

== Alphabet ==
The Faroese alphabet consists of 29 letters derived from the Latin script:

{|class="wikitable" style="border-collapse:collapse;"
|-   
|bgcolor="#EFEFEF" align="center" colspan="29" | '''Majuscule forms''' (also called '''uppercase''' or '''capital letters''')
|-
|width=3% align="center"|A||width=3% align="center"|Á||width=3% align="center"|B||width=3% align="center"|D||width=3% align="center"|Ð||width=3% align="center"|E||width=3% align="center"|F||width=3% align="center"|G||width=3% align="center"|H||width=3% align="center"|I||width=3% align="center"|Í||width=3% align="center"|J||width=3% align="center"|K||width=3% align="center"|L||width=3% align="center"|M||width=3% align="center"|N||width=3% align="center"|O||width=3% align="center"|Ó||width=3% align="center"|P||width=3% align="center"|R||width=3% align="center"|S||width=3% align="center"|T||width=3% align="center"|U||width=3% align="center"|Ú||width=3% align="center"|V||width=3% align="center"|Y||width=3% align="center"|Ý||width=3% align="center"|Æ||width=3% align="center"|Ø
|-  
|align="center" colspan="29" | '''Minuscule forms''' (also called '''lowercase''' or '''small letters''')
|-
|align="center"|a||align="center"|á||align="center"|b||align="center"|d||align="center"|ð||align="center"|e||align="center"|f||align="center"|g||align="center"|h||align="center"|i||align="center"|í||align="center"|j||align="center"|k||align="center"|l||align="center"|m||align="center"|n||align="center"|o||align="center"|ó||align="center"|p||align="center"|r||align="center"|s||align="center"|t||align="center"|u||align="center"|ú||align="center"|v||align="center"|y||align="center"|ý||align="center"|æ||align="center"|ø
|}

== Phonology ==
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto:" style=text-align:center
|+Faroese vowels
!rowspan=3|
!colspan=4| Front
!rowspan=2 colspan=2| Central
!rowspan=2 colspan=2| Back
|-class=small
!colspan=2| unrounded
!colspan=2| rounded
|-class=small
! short
! long
! short
! long
! short
! long
! short
! long
|-
! Close
| {{IPAlink|ɪ}}
| {{IPAlink|iː}}
| {{IPAlink|ʏ}}
| {{IPAlink|yː}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ʊ}}
| {{IPAlink|uː}}
|-
! Mid
| {{IPAlink|ɛ}}
| {{IPAlink|eː}}
| {{IPAlink|œ}}
| {{IPAlink|øː}}
| 
| 
| {{IPAlink|ɔ}}
| {{IPAlink|oː}}
|-
! Open
|
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|a}}
| {{IPAlink|aː}}
|
|
|}
As with most other Germanic languages, Faroese has a large number of vowels, with 26 in total. Vowel distribution is similar to other North Germanic languages in that short vowels appear in closed syllables (those ending in consonant clusters or long consonants) and long vowels appearing in open syllables.

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|+caption|Faroese vowel alternations<ref>{{citation|last=Árnason|first=Kristján|year=2011|title=The Phonology of Icelandic and Faroese|place=New York|publisher=Oxford University Press|page=68}}</ref>
!colspan=7|Monophthongs
|-
! colspan="4" |Long vowel
! colspan="3" |Short vowel
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{IPA|/i/}} ||''linur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈliːnʊɹ]}} || 'soft' 
|''lint'' ||{{IPA|[lɪn̥t]}} || 'soft (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/e/}} ||''frekur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈfɹeː(ʰ)kʊɹ]}} || 'greedy' 
|''frekt'' ||{{IPA|[fɹɛʰkt]}} || 'greedy (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/y/}} ||''mytisk'' ||{{IPA|[ˈmyːtɪsk]}} || 'mythological' 
|''mystisk'' ||{{IPA|[ˈmʏstɪsk]}} || 'mysterious'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/ø/}} ||''høgur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈhøːʋʊɹ~ˈhøœʋʊɹ]}} || 'high (M.)' 
|''høgt'' ||{{IPA|[hœkt]}} || 'high (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/u/}} ||''gulur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈkuːlʊɹ]}} || 'yellow' 
|''gult'' ||{{IPA|[kʊl̥t]}} || 'yellow (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/o/}} ||''tola'' ||{{IPA|[ˈtʰoːla]}} || 'to endure' 
|''toldi'' ||{{IPA|[ˈtʰɔltɪ]}} || 'endured'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/a/}} ||''Kanada'' ||{{IPA|[ˈkʰaːnata]}} || 'Canada' 
|''land'' ||{{IPA|[lant]}} || 'land'
|- style="text-align:center;"
!colspan=7|Diphthongs
|-
! colspan="4" |Long vowel
! colspan="3" |Short vowel
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/ʊi/}} ||''hvítur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈkvʊiːtʊɹ]}} || 'white (M.)' 
|''hvítt'' ||{{IPA|[kvʊiʰtː]}} || 'white (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ɛi/}} ||''deyður'' ||{{IPA|[ˈteiːjʊɹ]}} || 'dead (M.)' 
|''deytt'' ||{{IPA|[tɛʰtː]}} || 'dead (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ai/}} ||''feitur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈfaiːtʊɹ]}} || 'fat (M.)' 
|''feitt'' ||{{IPA|[faiʰtː~fɔiʰtː]}} || 'fat (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ɔi/}} ||''gloyma'' ||{{IPA|[ˈklɔiːma]}} || 'to forget' 
|''gloymdi'' ||{{IPA|[ˈklɔimtɪ]}} || 'forgot'
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{IPA|/ɛa/}} ||''spakur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈspɛaː(ʰ)kʊɹ]}} || 'calm (M.)' 
|''spakt'' ||{{IPA|[spakt]}} || 'calm (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ɔa/}} ||''vátur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈvɔaːtʊɹ]}} || 'wet (M.)' 
|''vátt'' ||{{IPA|[vɔʰtː]}} || 'wet (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ʉu/}} ||''fúlur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈfʉuːlʊɹ]}} || 'foul (M.)' 
|''fúlt'' ||{{IPA|[fʏl̥t]}} || 'foul (N.)'
|- style="text-align:center; white-space:nowrap;"
|{{IPA|/ɔu/}} ||''tómur'' ||{{IPA|[ˈtʰɔuːmʊɹ~ˈtʰœuːmʊɹ]}} || 'empty (M.)' 
|''tómt'' ||{{IPA|[tʰœm̥t~tʰɔm̥t]}} || 'empty (N.)'
|}

Faroese shares with Icelandic and Danish the feature of maintaining a contrast between stops based exclusively on aspiration, not voicing. Geminated stops may be pre-aspirated in intervocalic and word-final position. Intervocalically the aspirated consonants become pre-aspirated unless followed by a closed vowel. In clusters, the preaspiration merges with a preceding nasal or apical approximant, rendering them voiceless.

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|+Faroese consonants
! colspan=2 rowspan=2|
! colspan=2|Labial
! colspan=2|Alveolar
! colspan=2|Retroflex
! colspan=2|Palatal
! colspan=2|Velar
! rowspan=2|Glottal
|-
! {{small|voiceless}}
! {{small|voiced}}
! {{small|voiceless}}
! {{small|voiced}}
! {{small|voiceless}}
! {{small|voiced}}
! {{small|voiceless}}
! {{small|voiced}}
! {{small|voiceless}}
! {{small|voiced}}
|-
! colspan=2| Nasal
| {{IPAlink|m̥}} || {{IPAlink|m}}
| {{IPAlink|n̥}} || {{IPAlink|n}}
|({{IPAlink|ɳ̊}}) || ({{IPAlink|ɳ}})
| {{IPAlink|ɲ̊}} || {{IPAlink|ɲ}}
| {{IPAlink|ŋ̊}} || {{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|
|-
! rowspan=2| Stop
! {{small|plain}}
| {{IPAlink|p}}
|
| {{IPAlink|t}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|ʈ}})
|
| {{IPAlink|tʃ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|k}}
|
|
|-
! {{small|aspirated}}
| {{IPAlink|pʰ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|tʰ}}
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|tʃʰ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|kʰ}}
|
|
|-
! rowspan=2| Fricative
! {{small|central}}
| {{IPAlink|f}}
| {{IPAlink|v}}
| {{IPAlink|s}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|ʂ}})
|
| {{IPAlink|ʃ}}
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|h}}
|-
! {{small|lateral}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ɬ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan=2| Approximant
! {{small|central}}
| 
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ɹ}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|ɻ}})
|
| {{IPAlink|j}}
|
| {{IPAlink|w}}
|
|-
! {{small|lateral}}
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|l}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|ɭ}})
|
|
|
|
|
|}

There are several [[Social:Phonology|phonological]] processes involved in Faroese, including:
*Nasals generally assume the place of articulation and laryngeal settings of following consonants.
*Velar stops palatalize to postalveolar affricates before {{IPA|/j/ /eː/ /ɛ/ /iː/ /ɪ/}} and {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
*{{IPA|/v/}} becomes {{IPA|[f]}} before voiceless consonants
*{{IPA|/sk/}} becomes {{IPA|[ʃ]}} after {{IPA|/ɛi, ai, ɔi/}} and before {{IPA|/j/}}
*{{IPA|/ɹ/}} becomes retroflex before consonants in consonant clusters, yielding the allophones {{IPA|[ʂ ɭ ʈ ɳ]}} while {{IPA|/ɹ/}} itself becomes {{IPA|[ɻ]}}, example: {{IPA|/rt/}} is realized as {{IPA|[ɻ̊ʈ]}}.
*Pre-occlusion of original {{IPA|/ll/}} to {{IPA|[tl]}} and {{IPA|/nn/}} to {{IPA|[tn]}}.
*Pre-aspiration of original voiceless stops {{IPA|[ʰp ʰt ʰk ʰtʃ]}} after non-high long vowels and diphthongs {{IPA|/ɛaː/ /ɔaː/ /eː/ /oː/ /øː/}} or when a voiceless stop is followed by {{IPA|/n, l, r/}}. All long voiceless stops are pre-aspirated when doubled or in clusters {{IPA|[ʰpː ʰtː ʰkː ʰtʃː]}}.

==Grammar==
Faroese grammar is related and very similar to that of modern Icelandic and [[Social:Old Norse|Old Norse]]. Faroese is an inflected language with three grammatical genders and four cases: nominative, accusative, dative and genitive.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Faroese Words and Phrases in comparison to other Germanic languages
! Faroese
! Icelandic!! Norwegian (nynorsk) !! Norwegian (bokmål) !! Danish !! Swedish !! German !! Dutch!! Frisian !! English
|-
| Vælkomin
| Velkomin|| Velkomen || Velkommen  || Velkommen || Välkommen || Willkommen || Welkom|| Wolkom || Welcome
|-
| Farvæl
| Far vel; Farðu heill|| Farvel, Far vel || Farvel  || Farvel || Farväl || Lebwohl || Vaarwel|| Farwol || Farewell
|-
| Hvussu eitur tú?
| Hvað heitir þú?|| Kva (kvat) heiter du? || Hva heter du? || Hvad hedder du? || Vad heter du? || Wie heißt du? || Hoe heet je?|| Wat is dyn namme? || What is your name?
|-
| Hvussu gongur?
| Hvernig gengur?|| Korleis gjeng / går det? || Hvordan går det? || Hvordan går det? || Hur går det? || Wie geht's? || Hoe gaat het?|| Hoe giet it? || How is it going? (How goes it?)
|-
| Hvussu gamal (m) / gomul (f) ert tú?
| Hversu gamall (m) / gömul (f) ert þú?|| Kor gamal er du? || Hvor gammel er du? || Hvor gammel er du? || Hur gammal är du? || Wie alt bist du? || Hoe oud ben je?|| Hoe âld bisto? || How old are you?
|-
| Reyður / reyð / reytt
| Rauður / rauð / rautt|| Raud(t) || Rød(t) || Rød(t) || Rött / Röd || Rot || Rood / Rode|| Read || Red
|-
| Bláur / blá / blátt
| Blár / blá / blátt|| Blå(tt) || Blå(tt) || Blå(t) || Blå(tt) || Blau || Blauw(e)|| Blau(e) || Blue
|-
| Hvítur / hvít / hvítt
| Hvítur / hvít / hvítt|| Kvit(t) || Hvit(t) || Hvid(t) || Vit(t) || Weiß || Wit(te)|| Wyt || White
|}

== See also ==
*[[Social:Faroese language conflict|Faroese language conflict]]
*Goidelic languages
*Gøtudanskt accent
*[[Social:Old Norwegian|Old Norwegian]]

== Further reading ==

===To learn Faroese as a language===

*Adams, Jonathan & Hjalmar P. Petersen. ''Faroese: A Language Course for beginners'' Grammar & Textbook. Tórshavn, 2009: Stiðin (704 p.) {{ISBN|978-99918-42-54-7}}
*W. B. Lockwood: ''An Introduction to Modern Faroese.'' Tórshavn, 1977. (no ISBN, 244 pages, 4th printing 2002)
*Michael Barnes: ''Faroese Language Studies'' Studia Nordica 5, Supplementum 30. Tórshavn, 2002. (239 pages) {{ISBN|99918-41-30-X}}
*Höskuldur Thráinsson (Þráinsson), Hjalmar P. Petersen, Jógvan í Lon Jacobsen, Zakaris Svabo Hansen: ''Faroese. An Overview and Reference Grammar''. Tórshavn, 2004. (500 pages) {{ISBN|99918-41-85-7}}
*Richard Kölbl: ''Färöisch Wort für Wort''. Bielefeld 2004 (in German)
*[https://faroeseonline.com/ Faroeseonline.com]

===Dictionaries===

*Johan Hendrik W. Poulsen: ''Føroysk orðabók''. Tórshavn, 1998. (1483 pages) {{ISBN|99918-41-52-0}} (in Faroese)
*Annfinnur í Skála / Jonhard Mikkelsen: ''Føroyskt / enskt – enskt / føroyskt'', Vestmanna: Sprotin 2008. (Faroese–English / English–Faroese dictionary, 2 volumes)
*Annfinnur í Skála: ''Donsk-føroysk orðabók''. Tórshavn 1998. (1369 pages) {{ISBN|99918-42-22-5}} (Danish–Faroese dictionary)
*M.A. Jacobsen, Chr. Matras: ''Føroysk–donsk orðabók.'' Tórshavn, 1961. (no ISBN, 521 pages, Faroese–Danish dictionary)
*Hjalmar Petersen, Marius Staksberg: ''Donsk–Føroysk orðabók''. Tórshavn, 1995. (879 p.) {{ISBN|99918-41-51-2}} (Danish–Faroese dictionary)
*Eigil Lehmann: ''Føroysk–norsk orðabók''. Tórshavn, 1987 (no ISBN, 388 p.) (Faroese–Norwegian dictionary)
*Jón Hilmar Magnússon: ''Íslensk-færeysk orðabók''. Reykjavík, 2005. (877 p.) {{ISBN|9979-66-179-8}} (Icelandic–Faroese dictionary)
*Gianfranco Contri: ''Dizionario faroese-italiano = Føroysk-italsk orðabók''. Tórshavn, 2004. (627 p.) {{ISBN|99918-41-58-X}} (Faroese–Italian dictionary)

===Faroese literature and research===

*V.U. Hammershaimb: ''Færøsk Anthologi.'' Copenhagen 1891 (no ISBN, 2 volumes, 4th printing, Tórshavn 1991) (editorial comments in Danish)
*Tórður Jóansson: ''English loanwords in Faroese''. Tórshavn, 1997. (243 pages) {{ISBN|99918-49-14-9}}
*Petersen, Hjalmar P. 2009. ''Gender Assignment in Modern Faroese. Hamborg. Kovac''
*Petersen, Hjalmar P. 2010. ''The Dynamics of Faroese-Danish Language Contact. Heidelberg. Winter''
*Faroese/German anthology "From Djurhuus to Poulsen – Faroese Poetry during 100 Years", academic advice: Turið Sigurðardóttir, linear translation: Inga Meincke (2007), ed. by Paul Alfred Kleinert

===Other===

* {{citation
|last1=Barnes
|first1=Michael P.
|last2=Weyhe
|first2=Eivind
|editor-last=van der Auwera
|editor-first=Johan
|editor-last2=König
|editor-first2=Ekkehard
|year=2013
|orig-year=First published 1994
|title=The Germanic Languages
|chapter=7 Faroese
|publisher=Routledge
|pages=190–218
|isbn=978-0-415-05768-4
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DVBdAgAAQBAJ
}}

==References==
===Footnotes===
{{notelist}}
===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
{{InterWiki|code=fo}}
{{Wikivoyage|Faroese phrasebook|Faroese|a phrasebook}}
* [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_XfvZ9J4oABwC/page/3/mode/2up Faroese-English dictionary]
* [http://giellatekno.uit.no/cgi/d-fao.eng.html Faroese online syntactic analyser and morphological analyser/generator]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101209133511/http://www.fmn.fo/malnevndin/about.htm FMN.fo – Faroese Language Committee] (Official site with further links)
* [http://goscandinavia.about.com/od/languagehelp/qt/faroesephrases.htm Useful Faroese Words & Phrases for Travelers] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905154651/http://goscandinavia.about.com/od/languagehelp/qt/faroesephrases.htm |date=2017-09-05 }}
* [http://www.languagesandnumbers.com/how-to-count-in-faroese/en/fao/ How to count in Faroese]
*[https://www.faroeislandstranslate.com/ Faroe Island Translate]



[[Category:Subject–verb–object languages]]

{{Sourceattribution|Faroese language}}