Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language spoken chiefly in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname. It is an official language of the Netherlands and Belgium.
Dutch phonology: The sound system of Dutch, including its vowels, consonants, stress, and sound patterns. Its distinctive vowels and consonant patterns shape spoken Dutch.
Old Dutch: The earliest recorded stage of Dutch, spoken approximately from the sixth through the eleventh centuries. Its surviving texts provide the earliest evidence for Dutch as a distinct language.
Netherlands: A country in northwestern Europe where Dutch is the principal official language. Dutch is the principal language of public life and government there.
German language: A West Germanic language spoken chiefly in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. German is Dutch's close continental relative, but the languages are not mutually identical.
Dutch grammar: The rules governing Dutch word forms, sentence structure, and grammatical relationships. Word order and verb placement are central features of Dutch sentences.
Middle Dutch: The stage of Dutch used from roughly the twelfth through the fifteenth centuries. Its literary and administrative texts bridge Old Dutch and modern Dutch.
Flanders: The Dutch-speaking northern region of Belgium and one of the country's three regions. Dutch is the official language of Flanders and its principal public language.
English language: A West Germanic language that became a global lingua franca and is spoken worldwide. English and Dutch share Germanic ancestry while differing substantially in grammar and vocabulary.
Dutch orthography: The conventions for spelling and writing Dutch, including letter combinations and capitalization. Dutch spelling represents its sounds and marks grammatical distinctions.
Dutch language standardization: The historical process through which shared norms for Dutch spelling, grammar, and usage were established. Standard norms helped connect Dutch speakers across regional and political boundaries.