Historical Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family. They originated from a common ancestor known as Proto-Germanic, which was spoken around the 1st century AD. This group includes languages such as Old English, Old High German, and Old Norse, which evolved over time into the modern languages we recognize today, like German, English, and the Scandinavian languages. The Germanic languages are typically divided into three main groups: West Germanic, North Germanic, and East Germanic. The West Germanic group includes languages like Dutch and Afrikaans, while the North Germanic group encompasses the Scandinavian languages. The East Germanic languages, such as Gothic, are now extinct but provide valuable insights into the history and development of the Germanic language family.