People who speak Latvian may find it easier to learn languages similar to Latvian. In such a case, it would be useful to be aware of all possible options.
These languages include Lithuanian, Old Prussian, Polish, Czech, and Russian. There are many other options on the list. Keep reading to know all!
Languages Similar To Latvian – 8 Languages
Latvian is a Baltic language, making it part of the same family as Lithuanian and Old Prussian.
There are many other languages similar to Latvian, including Lithuanian, Czech, and Old Prussian. It’s also closely related to Slovak.
Further, Latvian bears similarities with other languages within its geographic region. Such as Russian, Polish, and Belarusian.
Even languages beyond Europe have influenced the Latvian due to centuries of foreign rule.
For example, Hebrew, German, and English words are present in the language today. All this makes learning Latvian an interesting journey.
If you know languages similar to Latvian, learning the language will be much simpler. This is because of the common grammar rules and structures.
Moreover, these languages share many similarities with Latvian. So if you learn Latvian, it will be easier for you to learn other options.
So what are you waiting for? Start exploring languages similar to Latvian today! Who knows—you might just pick up some valuable linguistic insights along the way.
1. Lithuanian:
Lithuanian is the closest language relative to Latvian. It is an official language in Lithuania and has around 3.2 million speakers.
It is a part of the Baltic languages, like Latvian, and shares many similarities.
Like, it is very similar in terms of grammar and vocabulary. They both have similar cases and syntax, making it easy to understand each other.
For example, both use noun declension and verb conjugation. This means the form of the word depends on its function in the sentence.
Another similarity is that they both have a lot of borrowed words, many of which are from German.
For example, some words like “musu” in Lithuanian and “mūs” in Latvian mean “ours”.
In addition, these two languages assign genders to nouns. For example, both languages have a feminine, masculine, and neuter gender.
Vowel harmony is another similarity between Lithuanian and Latvian languages. This means vowels in the same word must be of the same type.
For example, in Latvian, the word “mežs” (forest) has all front vowels, while the word “bad” (bath) has all back vowels. The same happens in Lithuanian. So, both are quite close.
2. Slovak:
Another language similar to Latvian is Slovak. It shares many of the same grammar and syntax rules. For instance, both languages have seven cases.
These grammatical cases help define the relationships between nouns, pronouns, and adjectives.
Moreover, Slovak (like Latvian) has three genders. Each noun is either masculine, feminine, or neutered.
For instance, the words for “apple” in Slovak and Latvian are masculine (jablko and ābols,).
Finally, both languages also have vowel harmony rules. This stipulates that all vowels in a word must be the same type.
It helps make words more predictable and easier to pronounce.
Further, the use of declension and conjugation is also similar in both cases. Declension denotes grammatical cases, while conjugation is for verb tenses.
They both help make languages more expressive. Thus, Latvian and Slovak have numerous similarities.
3. Belarusian:
Belarusian also falls into the group of languages similar to Latvian. This is because its grammar and syntax structures are quite similar.
For instance, declension and conjugation are also present in this language.
Nouns and verbs are changeable to fit different grammatical cases and conjugational forms.
In Belarusian, nouns decline differently based on gender, case, and number. Just like they do in Latvian.
For example, in the singular nominative case, masculine nouns end in -і or -а; neuter nouns end in -о or -е; and feminine nouns end in -а in most cases.
The languages also share many cognates or similar words in form and meaning.
For instance, several Latvian words such as “darbs” (work) and “suns” (son) are similar in Belarusian.
Finally, both languages use a lot of compound words – two separate words that come together to create a new word.
For instance, in Latvian, the word “spogulis” (mirror) is made up of two separate words: “spogu” (to show) and “lis” (light reflection). The same is true for Belarusian.
4. English:
English and Latvian have a few things in common. For example, both languages use the Latin alphabet.
Also, word order in both languages follows the same SVO pattern (subject-verb-object).
For example, the English sentence “I eat an apple” follows this pattern. And so does its Latvian equivalent: “Es ēdu ābolu.”
Here, the subject is “es” (I), the verb is “ēdu” (eat), and the object is “ābolu” (apple).
Additionally, English and Latvian share many cognates. For example, words such as “brother” and “power” sound almost identical in both languages.
Moreover, Both languages are gender-based, meaning that nouns and adjectives have different genders.
For instance, mountain is masculine in Latvian, and feminine in English.
Latvian is one of the few languages that has preserved dative and accusative cases. These cases indicate the object’s position relative to the subject in a sentence.
This makes it easier for English speakers to understand Latvian grammar rules.
5. Polish:
Polish is another language that has a lot of similarities with Latvian. For example, both have rich vocabulary and similar alphabet structures.
Polish also contains many cognates that are present in Latvian. For instance, both languages have the same word for “bread,” which is “chleb”.
Just like Latvian, Polish is an inflective language. This means the word’s suffix changes depending on its role in a sentence.
For example, the word for “bread” in Polish, chleb, changes to chleba if it’s the subject of a sentence. However, it becomes chlebie if it’s the object.
Another similarity between Polish and Latvian is the use the same word order, “subject – verb – object”.
This is important when learning a language so you can understand the sentence easily.
6. Old Prussian:
Old Prussian, an extinct West Baltic language, is closely related to Latvian.
Though it’s no longer spoken, some features remain in modern languages. For example, similarities in vocabulary and grammar rules.
Like, many words have similar meanings in both languages, such as “man” in Latvian, being “mon” in Old Prussian.
Moreover, grammar rule such as word order is common. For example, nouns and adjectives usually come before the verb in Old Prussian, just as in Latvian.
In addition, verb conjugation is similar in both languages. Verb conjugation denotes the changing of a verb’s form to indicate the time, mood, and aspect of the action.
Furthermore, both languages have the same two-case system (nominative and accusative). These cases help define the function of a word in a sentence.
Another point of similarity is that both languages use the Latin alphabet. Therefore, languages similar to Latvian include languages Old Prussian.
7. Czech:
Czech is another language similar to Latvian. It’s spoken in the Czech Republic and has many similarities with Latvian.
Both languages use the same word order and share a few similar words.
For instance, “sít” in Czech is similar to “sit” in Latvian. Also, “červená” in Czech is similar to “sarkana” in Latvian.
These languages also use the same Latin alphabet, making it easier for people to learn either of them.
Another similarity between Latvian and Czech is the rich and complex grammar.
For example, they have seven cases(to indicate noun use) and countless declensions.
Czech has a unique feature called “declension”. This shows nouns, pronouns, and adjectives change their forms depending on their role. This is same for both languages.
For example, the Czech word for “apple” is jablko. But when it is in the genitive case, its form changes to jablka, meaning “of the apple”. The same goes for Latvian.
8. Russian:
Russian is another language similar to Latvian in many ways. The languages are both Slavic languages and share several features.
Russian has a unique feature called “aspect”. This shows whether the verb completed the action or not.
For example, you can conjugate the verb “to go” in Russian in two different ways. It depends on the aspect – ходить (goes) and походить (has gone).
Aspect is found in the Latvian language as well.
Another similarity between Russian and Latvian is the use of a declension system. For example, nouns and adjectives change depending on their function in a sentence.
This allows for more accurate communication than languages that rely only on word order to convey meaning.
If we talk about vocabulary, Russian and Latvian languages share many cognates. Particularly regarding words related to everyday life activities.
For instance, both languages have the word ‘картошка’ (pronounced as kartoshka) for potato.
In the same way, one can find a lot of examples that show common points between both languages.
Conclusion:
Some people love to explore languages and their similarities. For those curious minds, languages similar to Latvian exist too.
For example, languages belonging to the Baltic languages are quite close to Latvian.
This means options like Lithuanian and Old Prussian share grammar, phonology, and vocabulary.
Also, Russian, Polish, Czech, and English languages share some features with Latvian.
So, there is much to explore for those interested in languages similar to Latvian. Moreover, the best thing is it is an incredibly rewarding experience too!
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