ABSTRACT
The Syriac language is a vital component of the broader Syriac cultural heritage. In this contribution, I locate Syriac within its Aramaic (and Semitic) setting as well as its various socio-historical contexts, with a focus on Late Antiquity and, to a lesser extent, the mediaeval period. In addition, particular attention is paid to several topics that are of immense importance to our understanding of the Syriac language but are rarely discussed, including periodisation, written versus spoken varieties, geographic variation and diachronic change, and standardisation.
