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Manx dialect

Manx

Also known as: Gaelg

A Goidelic Celtic language of the Isle of Man. Functionally extinct in 1974 with the death of its last native speaker; revived through education and now spoken as a second language by hundreds.

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Frequently asked questions

What language is Manx?

Manx is a dialect of the Manx language.

Where is Manx spoken?

Manx is primarily spoken in Isle of Man.

Which region is Manx associated with?

Manx is part of the Europe region on DialectAtlas.

Is Manx known by other names?

Yes — Manx is also referred to as Gaelg.

Is Manx endangered?

Manx is severely endangered. It is largely spoken by older generations; parents may understand it but typically do not pass it on to their children.

Nearby dialects

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Hiberno-English

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The English of Ireland, shaped by long contact with Irish Gaelic. Distinctive grammar, intonation, and vocabulary set it apart from British and American varieties.

Geordie

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The dialect of Newcastle and the Tyneside region. Retains a number of Old English and Norse-derived features lost elsewhere in England.

Scottish English

216 km away

The variety of English spoken across Scotland. Distinct from Scots (which is sometimes counted as a separate language) but heavily influenced by it.

Welsh Romani

229 km away

The inflected Northern Romani variety historically spoken by the Kååle of Wales. It was extensively documented by John Sampson in the early twentieth century and is now extinct as a first language, the last fluent speakers having died in the mid-twentieth century. It is notable as the last conservatively inflected Romani dialect attested in Britain.

Romanichal

253 km away

The Romani variety of the Romanichal Travellers of England and the wider British Isles. The older inflected dialect is no longer spoken; it survives as Angloromani, a para-Romani register in which a substantial Romani-derived lexicon is embedded in an English grammatical frame. Diaspora communities exist in North America and Australia.

Welsh

309 km away

A Brittonic Celtic language and the most-spoken Celtic language. Co-official in Wales, with around 900,000 speakers and a strong contemporary literary and broadcast presence.

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