by Ric o Shea on August 11th, 2009

Ric o Shea

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Whats the oldest language in the world?

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Answers. 13 helpful answers below.

  • by Nada Normal on August 11th, 2009

    Nada Normal

    body language - the wink & wiggle has not changed meaning in a million years

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  • by Jadey - Vive la difference on August 12th, 2009

    Jadey - Vive la difference

    Sumerian is sometimes suggested to be the oldest written language, and it may well be, however it is generally accepted that Sanskrit is the oldest language - it is found in texts dating back to 5000bc.

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  • by Sharona Life is a Tale Told by an Idiot on August 11th, 2009

    Sharona Life is a Tale Told by an Idiot

    Sanskrit is one of the oldest. The language of Mesopotamia, I believe it is Sumarian, is also ancient. The oldest is the Word which started the Big Bang, but if I go there, people are going to start giving me their priceless opinons. So I'll say Sanskrit.

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  • by Anonymous on October 1st, 2009

    Anonymous

    TAMIL IS OLDEST LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD IF YOU BELIEVE IN SCIENCE......WELL IF PEOPLE ARE NOT EDUCATED AND READY TO BELIEVE STORIES LIKE MAHABARATHA...THEN ANY FREAKIN LANGUAGE LIKE SANSKRIT CAN BE OLD....I BELIEVE IN SCIENCE AS IM EDUCATED....I DONT CARE ABOUT ILLETRATES

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  • by Anonymous on October 1st, 2009

    Anonymous

    TAMIL IS OLDEST LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD IF YOU BELIEVE IN SCIENCE......WELL IF PEOPLE ARE NOT EDUCATED AND READY TO BELIEVE STORIES LIKE MAHABARATHA...THEN ANY FREAKIN LANGUAGE LIKE SANSKRIT CAN BE OLD....I BELIEVE IN SCIENCE AS IM EDUCATED so tamil is oldest language based on scientific evidence....I DONT CARE ABOUT ILLETRATES

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  • by Spicy Hot on August 27th, 2009

    Spicy Hot

    Language of Love

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  • by temporary name on August 12th, 2009

    temporary name

    Since you ask for the "oldest," and not the "earliest" language, we should only consider languages that have been in constant use from an ancient time. We can only really look at languages that have a written form, since spoken languages that do not have a written form can change constantly and there's no way to know if they are the same as ancient versions.
    Therefore my vote would be for Chinese, which dates to 1500BC in its early forms. Ancient Chinese writing can still be at least partially read by average contemporary Chinese readers. Ancient Greek texts, which dates back to at least 9th Century BC, are mostly readable by contemporary Greeks.

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  • by SaulofNazareth on August 12th, 2009

    SaulofNazareth

    That would be sign language and one of the oldest words of sign language is the middle finger still used frequently today.

    You're welcome.

  • by DevilDoc on August 12th, 2009

    DevilDoc

    Aramaic?

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  • by MyGiveaDamnsBusted on August 12th, 2009

    MyGiveaDamnsBusted

    I always thought it was Latin. I don't know.

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  • by -Icy- on August 12th, 2009

    -Icy-

    pictographs

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  • by Mastodon on August 12th, 2009

    Mastodon

    Probably some sort of sign language since most human communication is nonverbal.

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  • by MarkOlson on August 12th, 2009

    MarkOlson

    The oldest language that is still spoken? Probably an African language, but I'm not sure.

    That's probably true of the FIRST language as well. But we can't trace back nearly that far. We can't even trace back to the first European language, which we call--in theory--"Proto-Indo-European," the language from which all Germanic, Slavic, Armenian, Italic, Celtic, Hellenic, and Indo-Iranian languages derive (so it includes Sanskrit, for example).

    I'd guess that Chinese, in one form or another, is a very old language. But perhaps not as old as some African languages. Semitic languages are old, too. I'm just grasping at straws now, though.

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