Editing Faroese language (section)

== Old Faroese ==
{{more citations needed section|date=January 2016}}

Old Faroese ({{lang|fo|miðaldarføroyskt}}, ca. mid-14th to mid-16th centuries) is a form of [[Old Norse]] spoken in medieval times in the Faroe Islands. The most crucial aspects of the development of Faroese are [[diphthongisation]] and [[Palatalization (sound change)|palatalisation]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Nordic languages: An international handbook of the history of the North Germanic languages |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z17C7s3r_nwC&pg=PA1091 |volume= 2|date=2005 |editor1-last=Bandle|editor1-first=Oskar|editor2-last=Braunmuller |editor2-first=Kurt |editor3-last=Hakon Jahr |editor3-first= Ernst  |editor4-last= Karker |editor4-first= Allan|editor5-last=Naumann |editor5-first=Hans-Peter |editor6-last=Teleman|editor6-first=Ulf |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter|isbn=3110197065|location=Berlin|page=1091|oclc=567851019}}</ref>

There is not enough data available to establish an accurate chronology of Faroese, but a rough one may be developed through comparison to the chronologies of Old Icelandic and Old Norwegian. In the 12th/13th centuries, ''á'' and ''ǫ́'' merged as {{IPA|/ɔː/}}; later on at the beginning of the 14th century, delabialization took place: ''y'', ''øy'', ''au'' > {{IPA|/i, ɔi, ɛi/}}; ''í'' and ''ý'' merged in addition to ''i'' and ''y'', but in the case of ''í'' and ''ý'', it appears that labialisation took place instead as is documented by later development to {{IPA|/ʊi/}}. Further, the language underwent a palatalisation of ''k'', ''g'' and ''sk'' before [[Old Norse]] ''e'', ''i'', ''y'', ''ø'', ''au'' > {{IPA|/kʲ, ɡʲ, skʲ/}} > {{IPA|/cᶜ̧, ɟᶨ, ɕcᶜ̧/}} > {{IPA|/tʃʰ, tʃ, ʃ/}}. Before the palatalisation ''é'' and ''ǽ'' merged as {{IPA|/ɛː/}} and approximately in the same period [[epenthetic]] ''u'' is inserted into word-final {{IPA|/Cr/}} and {{IPA|/CrC/}} clusters.

A massive quantity shift also operated in Middle Faroese. In the case of [[Faroese phonology#Skerping|''skerping'']], it took place after delabialization but before loss of post-vocalic ''ð'' and ''g'' {{IPA|/ɣ/}}. The shift of ''hv'' {{IPA|/hw/}} to {{IPA|/kw/}}, the deletion of {{IPA|/h/}} in (remaining) word-initial {{IPA|/h/}}–sonorant clusters (''hr'', ''hl'', ''hn'' > ''r'', ''l'', ''n''), and the dissolution of ''þ'' (''þ'' > ''t''; ''þ'' > ''h'' in demonstrative pronouns and adverbs)<ref>{{citation|last=Petersen|first=Hjalmar P.|title=The Change of ''þ'' to ''h'' in Faroese |url=https://setur.fo/uploads/tx_tcpublications/Petersen_HP_The_Change_of_%C3%BE_to_h.pdf}}{{dead link|date=December 2023}}</ref> appeared before the end of the 13th century. Another undated change is the merger of ''ǫ'', ''ø'' and ''ǿ'' into {{IPA|/ø/}}; pre-nasal ''ǫ'', ''ǫ́'' > ''o'', ''ó''. ''enk'', ''eng'' probably became {{lang|fo|eing}}, {{lang|fo|eink}} in the 14th century; the development of ''a'' to {{IPA|/ɛ/}} before ''ng'', ''nk'' appeared after the palatalisation of ''k'', ''g'', and ''sk'' had been completed, such a change is quite a recent development, as well as change ''Cve'' > ''Cvø''.

{|class="wikitable"
|+ Development of vowels from Old Norse to Modern Faroese<ref name="Loanwords">According to Hjalmar Petersen in: Tórður Jóansson: ''English loanwords in Faroese''. Tórshavn: Fannir 1997, S. 45 (in red: later corrections, 21. July 2008). In green: corrections of German Wikipedia article [[:de:Färöische Sprache]]</ref>
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | 9th century<br />(Old Norse)
! align="center" | up to 14th century<br />(Early Faroese)
! colspan="2" align="center" | 14th–16th centuries<br />(Old Faroese)
! colspan="4" align="center" | 17th century<br />(Late Old Faroese)
! colspan="4" align="center" | 20th century<br />(New Faroese)
! &nbsp;
|-
| colspan="4" align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | &nbsp;
| rowspan="2" align="center" | North
| rowspan="2" align="center" | South
| colspan="2" align="center" | North
| colspan="2" align="center" | South
| colspan="2" align="center" | North
| colspan="2" align="center" | South
| &nbsp;
|-
| colspan="4" align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | &nbsp;
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| align="center" | long
| align="center" | short
| &nbsp;
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | i and y
| align="center" | {{IPA|/i/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɪ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/iː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɪ/}}
|align="center" | {{IPA|[iː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɪ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[iː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɪ]}}
! i, y
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" style="color:green;" | e and æ
| align="center" | {{IPA|/e/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/e/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! e
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ø
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ø/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ø/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ǫ
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ͔/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ͔ː/}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | u
| align="center" | {{IPA|/u/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[uː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[uː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊ]}}
! u
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | o
| align="center" | {{IPA|/o/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/o/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[oː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[oː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! o
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | a
| align="center" | {{IPA|/a/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/æ/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/æ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
! a
|-
| colspan="16" align="left" | Long vowel -> Diphthong
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | í and ý
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/yː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʊi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ui]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ui]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʊi]}}
! í, ý
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" style="color:green;" | é and ǽ
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛəː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɛə/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/eː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[a]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[eː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! æ
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ǿ
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/œː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/œː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/øː/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/œ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[øː]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
! ø
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ú
| align="center" | {{IPA|/uː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉʏ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ʉʏ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʉu]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʏ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ʉu]}}
! ú

|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ó
| align="center" | {{IPA|/oː/}}
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɜu/}}
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔu/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɜu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɜ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔu/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œu, ɛu]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[œ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔu]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! ó
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | á and ǫ́
| align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| colspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔː/}}
| align="center" style="color:green;" | {{IPA|/ɔ/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔa]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔa]}}
! á
|-
| colspan="16" align="left" | True diphthongs
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | au
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɶu/}}
| colspan="6" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɛi/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɛ]}}
! ey
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | øy
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/œy/}}
| colspan="6" align="center" | {{IPA|/ɔi/}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔi]}}
| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔi]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ɔ]}}
! oy
|-
! colspan="4" align="center" | ei
| style="color:green;" align="center" | {{IPA|/æi/}}
| colspan="6" align="center" | {{IPA|/ai/}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ai]}}
| align="center" | {{IPA|[ai]}}
! ei
|}