Language contact in medieval Frisia: Middle Low German spelling interferences in Old East Frisian manuscripts

Abstract

In the course of the Middle Ages, speakers of Frisian increasingly came under pres-sure of Low German. Eventually, in the fifteenth century, Low German gained the upper hand, first in writing, but soon enough in speaking too, leading to a complete language shift in the Frisian lands east of the river Lauwers. Previous scholarship on this topic focused on Low German loans in Old East Frisian. However, a detailed studies reveals that also the spelling habits of Frisian scribes reveal an increased Low German interference.