After 1918 Central Europe's multiethnic empires were replaced by nation-states, which gave rise to an unusual ethnolinguistic kind of nationalism. This book provides a detailed history and linguistic analysis of how the many languages of Central Europe have developed from the 10th century to the present day.

"It is worth noting that this is not a book written for linguists only. Kamusella relates the mechanics of language creation to major developments in culture, religion and statehood. He diligently explains all terms and concepts introduced in the book." (Malgorzata Szajbel-keck, pol-int.org, March, 2016)

"Kamusella's latest work supplies the reader with an impressive array of historical information on a great number of lects and is highly ambitious in its aim to cover the linguistic developments in Central Europe during the last millennium. ? this book makes a valuable contribution to an important field of study. ? very useful reading for, say, specialists in one Central European lect who wish to learn more about the broader Central European picture." (Gesine Argent, Journal of Historical Sociolinguistics, Vol. 2 (1), 2016)