North Germanic languages
The North Germanic languages (oftentimes casually termed the Nordic or Scandinavian languages) are the Germanic languages spoken in the Nordic countries of Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. They are distinguished from the West Germanic languages exemplified by English, German, and Dutch, and from the extinct East Germanic language Gothic.
The North Germanic languages are the descendants of the Old Norse language, itself the continuation of the ancient Proto-Germanic language which split into Proto-Norse (later Old Norse) and Proto-West Germanic (later West Germanic languages) before the 2nd century AC.
