The name "West Frisian" is only used outside the Netherlands, to distinguish this language from the closely related Frisian languages of Saterland Frisian and North Frisian spoken in Germany. Within the Netherlands, … See more

Most speakers of West Frisian live in the province of Friesland in the north of the Netherlands. Friesland has 643,000 inhabitants (2005), of whom 94% can understand spoken West Frisian, 74% can speak West Frisian, 75% can read West Frisian, and 27% … See more

With Dutch
The mutual intelligibility in reading between Dutch and Frisian is poor. A cloze test in 2005 revealed … See more

West Frisian uses the Latin alphabet. A, E, O and U may be accompanied by circumflex or acute accents.
In alphabetical listings both I and Y are usually found … See more

Old Frisian
In the early Middle Ages the Frisian lands stretched from the area around Bruges, in what is now See more

In 1951, Frisian language activists, protesting at the exclusive use of Dutch in the courts, caused a riot in Leeuwarden. The resulting inquiry led to the establishment of a committee of inquiry. This committee recommended that the Frisian language … See more

Not all Frisian varieties spoken in Dutch Friesland are mutually intelligible. The varieties on the islands are rather divergent, and Glottolog distinguishes four languages: See more