Venceslaus Ulricus Hammershaimb

Venceslaus Ulricus Hammershaimb was a Faroese linguist and folklorist who established the written language of the Faroese language in 1846. His orthography, though unphonetic, gave Faroese a strong Icelandic appearance and was instrumental in its development as a distinct language.1

Faroese is a North Germanic language spoken in the Faroe Islands, closely related to Icelandic but mutually unintelligible. It preserves many characteristics of Old Norse. Before Hammershaimb's work, Danish was the official language, and literary activity was minimal. The establishment of an independent orthography allowed for the development of modern Faroese literature, which began in the second half of the 19th century. Faroese was authorized for use in schools and churches by 1912 and became the primary language taught after home rule was established in 1948.12