Oldest Surviving Languages by First Written Record

Throughout human history, languages have evolved, disappeared, and adapted to new forms. However, some languages have endured for millennia, maintaining a continuous written tradition. Below is a list of some of the world’s oldest surviving languages, organized by their earliest known written records.

1. Sanskrit (c. 1500 BCE – Liturgical and Scholarly Use)

First Written Record: c. 1500 BCE (Rigveda, orally preserved; written form later)
Script: Brahmi, Devanagari, etc.
Region: India
Status: Not widely spoken but used in religious and scholarly contexts

2. Greek (c. 1450 BCE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 1450 BCE (Linear B script)
Script: Linear B, later Greek alphabet
Region: Greece, Cyprus
Status: Living language with modern usage

3. Chinese (c. 1250 BCE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 1250 BCE (Oracle bone script)
Script: Chinese characters
Region: China, Taiwan, Singapore
Status: Living language with over a billion speakers

4. Hebrew (c. 1200 BCE – Revived as a Spoken Language)

First Written Record: c. 1200 BCE
Script: Paleo-Hebrew, later Hebrew script
Region: Israel, Jewish communities worldwide
Status: Revived in the 19th–20th century, now spoken by millions

5. Aramaic (c. 900 BCE – Living Language in Some Communities)

First Written Record: c. 900 BCE
Script: Aramaic script
Region: Middle East
Status: Spoken by small communities

7. Latin (c. 700 BCE – Liturgical and Scholarly Use)

First Written Record: c. 700 BCE
Script: Latin script
Region: Historically Rome, now Vatican City and scholarly contexts
Status: Not spoken as a native language, but used in religious and academic settings

8. Persian (c. 522 BCE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 522 BCE (Old Persian cuneiform)
Script: Old Persian cuneiform, later Perso-Arabic script
Region: Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan
Status: Living language with millions of speakers

6. Tamil (c. 500 BCE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 500 BCE (Tamil-Brahmi script)
Script: Tamil script
Region: India, Sri Lanka, Singapore
Status: Living language with over 70 million speakers

9. Basque (c. 1st Century CE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 1st century CE (Roman inscriptions)
Script: Latin script
Region: Spain, France (Basque Country)
Status: Living language with about 750,000 speakers

10. Proto-Norse (c. 200 CE – Ancestor of North Germanic Languages)

First Written Record: c. 200 CE (NITHIJO TAWIDE inscription on a shield grip from the Illerup Ådal weapon deposit)
Script: Elder Futhark runes
Region: Scandinavia
Status: Evolved into Old Norse, which gave rise to modern Scandinavian languages

11. Arabic (c. 328 CE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 328 CE (pre-Islamic inscriptions)
Script: Arabic script
Region: Middle East, North Africa, parts of Asia
Status: Living language with over 400 million speakers

12. Cham (c. 350 CE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 350 CE (Đông Yên Châu inscription)
Script: Cham script
Region: Vietnam, Cambodia
Status: Living language with around 200,000 speakers

13. Armenian (c. 405 CE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 405 CE
Script: Armenian script
Region: Armenia, Armenian diaspora
Status: Living language with over 6 million speakers

14. Georgian (c. 5th Century CE – Living Language)

First Written Record: c. 5th century CE
Script: Georgian script
Region: Georgia
Status: Living language with over 4 million speakers

15. Old Dutch (c. 510 CE – Evolved into Modern Dutch)

First Written Record: c. 510 CE (Malbergse Glossen on the Salic law)
Script: Latin script
Region: Netherlands, Belgium
Status: Evolved into modern Dutch, still spoken today

16. Old High German (Second Half of 6th Century CE – Ancestor of Modern German)

First Written Record: Second half of the 6th century CE (Pforzen buckle inscription)
Script: Latin alphabet (adapted for Germanic sounds)
Region: Central Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)
Status: Evolved into Middle High German and then Modern German