III.

Cornish

Cornish (Kernewek) is descended from the speech of the Ancient Britons in what is now south-western England. Passion plays and other mainly religious texts written in Middle Cornish are still in existence from the late Middle Ages (see Cornish Literature). The language survived until at least the 18th century as the vernacular language of Cornwall. In the 20th century, Cornish was revived by enthusiasts, who reconstructed it on the basis of medieval Cornish grammar and syntax, the sound system of modern Cornish English, and reconstructed vocabulary based on comparable Welsh and Breton forms.

In November 2002, the UK government officially recognized Cornish as a language under the European Charter for Regional or Minority languages. Official recognition means the language is protected and measures will be taken to promote its preservation.