Introduction and Notes
Welcome to the unofficial Duolingo Stories for Frisian! My name is Duo! And this is my friend Falstaff!
Hi there!Let's start off with a short introduction to the Frisian languages!The Frisian languages are a closely related group of West Germanic languages, spoken by about 500,000 Frisian people. The Frisian languages are the closest living language group to the Anglic languages.However, modern English and Frisian are not mutually intelligible, nor are Frisian languages intelligible among themselves.Wow, I didn't know English and Frisian were so closely related!So... which Frisian language is this Duolingo Stories about?Good question, Falstaff! There are three different Frisian branches: West Frisian, North Frisian and Saterland Frisian. This Duolingo Stories revolves around West Frisian only!West Frisian, or simply Frisian, is by far the most spoken of the three with about 400,000 speakers. It is an official language in the Dutch province of Friesland, where it is spoken on the mainland and on two of the West Frisian Islands: Terschelling and Schiermonnikoog. It is also spoken in four villages in the Westerkwartier of the neighbouring province of Groningen!That's interesting.What about North Frisian and Saterland Frisian?That's right! Although those Frisian languages will not be used in this Duolingo Stories, they deserve some attention as well!North Frisian, with about 10,000 speakers, is spoken in the northernmost German district of Nordfriesland in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. Saterland Frisian, with only about 1,000 speakers, is spoken in the municipality of Saterland in the Lower Saxon district of Cloppenburg in Germany.Huh, that sounds very interesting! I can't wait to learn more! We'll start soon, right?That's right! But, before we start learning, we have some tips and notes for you!Tips & Notes
Duolingo Stories provides short stories between Frisian characters covering a wide array of topics!All Frisian sentences contain hints, which appear when you hover over a word or a set of words!Here is Janneke to give you an example. Try using the hints!
Hoi! Myn namme is Janneke. Ik wenje yn Ljouwert.Pretty useful, huh?In the Duolingo Stories we'll test your comprehension with four types of exercises: multiple choice, arrange, point to phrase and match. I'll give you an example of each of them!Hoi! Myn namme is Janneke. Ik wenje yn Ljouwert.Hoi! Myn namme is Janneke. Ik wenje yn Ljouwert.That's pretty straight forward, huh?I think you're good to go now!I can't wait to learn more Frisian!Good luck and have fun!