De skriuwtaal fan de boargers yn Westerlauwersk Fryslân (oant 1550)

Abstract

By 1550 Frisian had been all but completely, ousted by Dutch as a written medium. This article investigates how the switch from Frisian to Dutch came about among the members of a certain social group, to wit the citizens (city dwellers). We know next to nothing about the preferred written language of citizens in the fifteenth century. During the period 1500-1530 we can point to citizens writing either Frisian or Dutch. Until about 1520 at least they seem mainly to have opted for Frisian. In the records of the most important hospital ('gasthuis') of Westerlauwers Friesland Frisian turns out  to have been replaced by Dutch in 1530. The period 1530-1550 provides evidence of only sporadic use of written Frisian by citizens.