What is Britain's oldest language?

The ancient roots of Britain's speech

Before English, before even Latin, there was something else. Something older, more mysterious — and, honestly, barely remembered today by most Brits. The oldest known language of Britain is Brittonic Celtic, from which Welsh directly descends.

Yep, Welsh is Britain’s oldest surviving language, still spoken today by hundreds of thousands of people. Mind-blowing, right?

But hang on — let’s dig a bit deeper. Because, like most old things, this story is full of twists, migrations, and the occasional Viking raid.

Celtic beginnings: where it all started

When did Brittonic arrive?

Historians believe Brittonic — a branch of the Celtic language family — was spoken in Britain as early as 600 BCE, maybe even earlier.
This language spread across much of the island long before the Romans rocked up in their togas.

So imagine: rolling hills, stone circles, people chatting in ancient Celtic tongues around fires.
No tea. No Shakespeare. Just sheep and serious vowel mutations.

Brittonic vs. Goidelic

Not to be confused with the Celtic languages of Ireland (like Old Irish), Brittonic evolved separately on the island of Britain.
That’s where Welsh, Cornish, and Breton (yep, in France now) come from.

So technically, Welsh is a direct descendant of Brittonic, while Gaelic — spoken in parts of Scotland — has a different Celtic root: Goidelic.

The survival of Welsh: stubbornness pays off

Latin came, but didn’t kill it

When the Romans invaded around 43 CE, Latin became the language of the ruling class.
But guess what? The common folk kept speaking Brittonic — especially in the western parts of the island (hello, Wales!).

After the Romans left, Anglo-Saxons flooded in with Old English. And still, Welsh held on in the hills and valleys. Like, impressively so.

A living language today

Fast forward a couple of millennia, and Welsh is still very much alive.
With around 875,000 speakers (as of 2021 census data), it’s taught in schools, broadcast on TV, and you’ll see bilingual signs all across Wales.

Honestly, nothing quite hits like seeing “Araf” (slow) painted on a road. Very wholesome.

What about Cornish and Scottish Gaelic?

Cornish: gone, then back again?

Cornish, another Brittonic language, actually died out in daily use during the 18th century.
But in a plot twist worthy of Netflix, it’s made a comeback.
Yep, people revived it. It’s now taught, sung, and spoken by enthusiasts — although fluency is still rare.

Scottish Gaelic: old, but not Britain’s oldest

Now here’s where it gets tricky. Some assume Scottish Gaelic is older because, well, Scotland feels ancient, right?

But Scottish Gaelic only arrived around the 4th or 5th century CE — brought over from Ireland by settlers.
That means Welsh was already chillin' on the island for centuries before Gaelic landed.

Does English have any ancient roots?

Short answer: sorta. But it came much later.

Old English developed after the Anglo-Saxon invasions in the 5th and 6th centuries.
It borrowed a lot from Latin, Norse, and eventually French. And yes, modern English has Celtic words in it (like “tor” for hill), but they’re few and far between.

So, nope — English isn’t ancient by Britain’s standards. It’s more like the new kid who got super popular.

Conclusion: the oldest language of Britain is... still alive!

So, to wrap it all up:
Welsh, a descendant of Brittonic Celtic, is the oldest language of Britain — and it’s still spoken today.
It’s survived Romans, Saxons, Vikings, Normans, and now... Netflix and Spotify.

Whether you’re a language nerd, a history buff, or just mildly curious, one thing’s clear:
Britain’s oldest voice never went silent — it just adapted, sang, and kept on talking.

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