{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.frisian","code":"thing-q25325","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q25325/","name":"Frisian","alternateNames":["West Frisian","Friso-Franconian languages","North Frisian","Old Frisian","East Frisian","Middle Frisian","Skylgersk","Standard West Frisian","Southwest Frisian","Clay Frisian","Wood Frisian","North Clay Frisian"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.3","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Information and virtual systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"INF","domain":["INF.MED"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"A group of West Germanic languages closely related to English, spoken along the North Sea coast, comprising West Frisian with about 450000 speakers in the Dutch province of Friesland, North Frisian in Schleswig-Holstein with a few thousand speakers in many dialects, and Saterland Frisian, the last remnant of East Frisian, with about 2000 speakers; Frisian attestation includes early medieval runic inscriptions predating the substantial Old Frisian manuscript tradition from the thirteenth century, while Middle Frisian names a later period specifically in the history of West Frisian, not a shared ancestral stage of all three branches. Frisian languages are recognised minority languages and are distinct from the Friso-Franconian dialects associated with Dutch and Low Franconian varieties in former Frisian areas.","purpose":"Let an agent explain the Frisian languages and their branches, relay status, speakers and history from linguistic and official sources, describe revitalisation, and distinguish Frisian from Dutch, Low German and Friso-Franconian dialects.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Closest relatives of English","Three separated branches","Minority status","Endangered northern and eastern branches"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"understand","name":"Understand","description":"What Frisian is.","layers":[{"id":"definition","name":"Definition","description":"Definition and classification.","findings":[{"id":"definition-finding","name":"Definition","description":"Definition.","questions":[{"text":"What are the Frisian languages, and how are they related to English and Dutch?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is the question about Frisian, a specific branch or a Friso-Franconian dialect?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"branches","name":"Branches","description":"Branches.","findings":[{"id":"branches-finding","name":"Branches","description":"Branches.","questions":[{"text":"How do West, North and Saterland Frisian differ, and why are they not mutually intelligible?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which entry fits the specific branch?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"structure","name":"Structure","description":"Grammar and writing.","layers":[{"id":"grammar","name":"Grammar","description":"Grammar.","findings":[{"id":"grammar-finding","name":"Grammar","description":"Grammar.","questions":[{"text":"What are the main features of Frisian phonology and grammar?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"writing","name":"Writing","description":"Orthography.","findings":[{"id":"writing-finding","name":"Writing","description":"Writing.","questions":[{"text":"How are the Frisian languages written and standardised?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits West Frisian orthography?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"status","name":"Status","description":"Status and revitalisation.","layers":[{"id":"status","name":"Status","description":"Legal status.","findings":[{"id":"status-finding","name":"Status","description":"Status.","questions":[{"text":"What status do the Frisian languages hold in the Netherlands and Germany?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which sources are cited?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"revitalisation","name":"Revitalisation","description":"Revitalisation.","findings":[{"id":"revitalisation-finding","name":"Revitalisation","description":"Revitalisation.","questions":[{"text":"How are education, media and institutions supporting Frisian, and how endangered are the branches?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits language revitalisation?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"context","name":"Context","description":"History and literature.","layers":[{"id":"history","name":"History","description":"History.","findings":[{"id":"history-finding","name":"History","description":"History.","questions":[{"text":"How did Frisian develop from Old Frisian law texts through Middle Frisian to the modern branches?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits Old Frisian?","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"literature","name":"Literature","description":"Literature.","findings":[{"id":"literature-finding","name":"Literature","description":"Literature.","questions":[{"text":"What are the major works of Frisian literature, from Gysbert Japicx onward?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits Frisian literature?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Translate, describe and teach the Frisian languages, naming which branch is meant.","Relay status and speaker estimates for West, North and Saterland Frisian from sources with dates.","Support Frisian speakers in using their language where they choose."],"mustNot":["Treat the three Frisian branches as one interchangeable language.","Present Frisian as a dialect of Dutch or German.","Confuse Frisian with Low German or Friso-Franconian dialects."],"requiresHuman":["Choosing a branch or spelling standard for public translations."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Frisian languages are minority languages; neglect by tools speeds their decline.","Speakers have a right to use their language in public life where the law recognises it."],"affectedParties":["Frisian speakers","Learners","Frisian communities"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody owns a language; it belongs to its speakers, with regional language institutions supporting it.","roles":[],"masterSystems":[]},"relations":[{"target":"Q30134","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q5329170","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Anglo-Frisian","type":"related","note":"in registry terms"},{"target":"North Sea Germanic","type":"related","note":"in registry terms"},{"target":"English language","type":"related","note":"as sister branch"},{"target":"Friesland","type":"related","note":"alongside Dutch"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.frisian","Wikidata: Q25325 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25325)","ISO 639-2: fry, frr, frs West, North and East Frisian","ISO 639-3: fry, frr, stq"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":["West Frisian speakers: about 450000 count","North Frisian speakers: about 5000-10000 count","Saterland Frisian speakers: about 2000 count","Old Frisian attested: 13th century period"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"optional","items":["Frisian comprises Anglo-Frisian languages of the North Sea coast.","The branches are West Frisian, North Frisian and East Frisian, surviving as Saterland Frisian, while Old Frisian and Middle Frisian are historical designations.","Friso-Franconian dialects such as Stadsfries are associated with Dutch and Low Franconian varieties, rather than Low German.","Not a visible object; written in the Latin alphabet."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain the branches","relay status and speakers","relay history","distinguish from neighbouring languages"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Confusing Frisian with Friso-Franconian or Low German dialects","Stale speaker estimates","Treating the three branches as one language"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Dutch law on the use of Frisian and its official status in Friesland","Schleswig-Holstein Frisian Act","European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages","Fryske Akademy standardisation"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Not applicable; a language group.","West Frisian in Friesland","North Frisian mainland and island dialects","East Frisian, surviving as Saterland Frisian","Old Frisian and Middle Frisian historical stages","Friso-Franconian mixed varieties as related contact dialects"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q25325: Frisian","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25325","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Frisian languages","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frisian_languages","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should West, North and Saterland Frisian be separate primary entries?","How should linguistic references be linked?","The registry entry has merged aliases naming branches and historical stages; should they be split off?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q25325/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q25325/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-13T04:13:25Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-08T18:54:38+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane INF: no invented physical properties."},"score":1.0}}