Classical language

A classical language is any language with an independent literary tradition and a large body of ancient written literature. Typically associated with civilizations of antiquity, these languages serve as foundational sources for historical, philosophical, religious, and scientific texts, often enduring long after their everyday spoken use has declined.

Many classical languages are considered extinct or no longer in vernacular use, while some exist in liturgical or literary contexts. Those that are still in use today tend to show diglossic characteristics in areas where they are used, as the difference between spoken and written languages has widened over time.

The term "classical language" may refer more narrowly to only Ancient Greek and Latin, especially in the context of classical studies.

Classical studies in Europe

In the context of traditional European classical studies, the "classical languages" refer to Greek and Latin, which were the literary languages of the Mediterranean world in classical antiquity.

Greek was the language of Homer and of classical Athenian, Hellenistic and Byzantine historians, playwrights, and philosophers. It has contributed many words to the vocabulary of English and many other European languages and has been a standard subject of study in Western educational institutions since the Renaissance. Latinized forms of Ancient Greek roots are used in many of the scientific names of species and in other scientific terminology. Koine Greek, which served as a lingua franca in the Eastern Roman Empire, remains in use today as a sacred language in some Eastern Orthodox churches.