Contact Language
/ˈkɒn.tækt ˌlæŋ.ɡwɪdʒ/noun
A language variety that develops or changes through sustained interaction between speakers of different languages.
Did you know?Some contact languages, including creoles, became fully developed native languages within communities—showing that everyday speech can transform cultural encounters into an entirely new linguistic system.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*tenk- / *tag-
“To touch, reach, or handle; the reconstructed roots behind later words connected with contact.”
Classical Latin
Latin
contactus
“A touching or contact, formed from contingere, “to touch or come into contact.””
Classical Latin
Latin
lingua
“Tongue; by extension, speech or language.”
Middle English
Anglo-Norman / English
langage
“Language or speech, borrowed through Old French from Latin lingua.”
16th Century
English
contact
“Touching or coming together; English adopted it from Latin through French.”
20th Century
English
contact language
“A linguistic term for a language variety shaped by interaction between different speech communities.”
Explore more surprising origins