Why is Basque an Ancient Language?
In an article entitled “Peace at Last” in this month’s Smithsonian Magazine, Joshua Hammer describes the Basque country as “an enclave marked by an ancient language”. What does this mean? Some languages, such as Egyptian, Sumerian, and Hurrian, are referred to as “ancient” because they were used in ancient times and are no longer in use, but that cannot be what Hammer means since Basque is still spoken today. Since most languages are the result of a continuous transmission that stretches indefinitely far back into the mists of time, it doesn’t make sense to describe one language as older than another. Most frequently, people who describe one language as older than another are confusing the origin of the language with the date of first attestation in writing, a confusion that Sally Thomason has written about here and here. But that can’t be what Hammer means either. Basque is first attested only about five hundred years ago, much later than its Romance neighbors. Even its relative and p
