Which is the oldest language in the world that is still surviving?

Answer 1

Amharic or Geez which is spoken in Ethiopia. Its the oldest language still spoken. Same language mentioned in the bible and before biblical times and now spoken in Ethiopia.

Answer 2

One authoritative source that has collected data from all over the world, The Ethnologue, listed the total number of current languages in the world as 6809 (1). These languages have come from about 20 “proto-langauges.” A “protolanguage” is simply: a ”recorded ancestral language.”

Based on the criteria of your question the answer is:

Aramaic

Aramaic is one of the world's oldest languages. Last year, Aramaic was heard by large audiences in the film "Passion of the Christ", which portrayed the last 12 hours of Christ’s life. Today this ancient language is spoken by around 15,000 people and is in danger of dying out.
Aramaic precedes Greek, Hebrew, Arabic and Sanskrit and is also older then the “proto-language” from which Chinese originated.

Source(s):
(1) Grimes, Barbara F. editor, The Ethnologue, SIL International, Dallas TX, 2001
(2) http://www.omniglot.com/writing/aramaic....

Answer 3

I don't know for sure, but these are some old languages still spoken that I know of:

Latin - official language in Vatican City
Icelandic - it hasn't change much since the first Viking settlers came to Iceland. Icelanders can read textes from that time without any difficulties. It's closely related to the Norwegian Nynorsk.
Sanskrit - it is a classical language of India. It has mainly meaning in descripting ancient texts, however it is still an official language in India.
Aramaic - the language Jesus supposedly spoke. It's still used today. I went to school with an Aramaic girl.

Answer 4

Really, they all could be. No history can go back so far as the beginning of speech. Change is a characteristic of language, so, eg, it can be shown that Irish and Farsi are related languages, though their speakers might have separated 5000 years ago and they appear to have nothing in common in their current incorporations. It is simply impossible to reconstruct aboriginal languages with any degree of certainty.

I suggest you watch the film Quest for Fire, where Anthony Burgess tookon the task of creating several early languages, any of which might have become the basis for modern English.

Answer 5

Flan This is the oldest language still spoken on an everyday basis

Answer 6

Ethiopia is the oldest country that is still in existence, so it is possible that their language is also the oldest. However I don't have any sources, but really nobody else who answered does either.

Answer 7

Hebrew is the oldest language still used in the modern world.

Answer 8

Greek

Answer 9

Greek

Answer 10

maybe Basque