The theme of this book is the debate surrounding the grouping of Germanic languages and the research history of this controversial question. The author discusses the methods applied to past attempts and outlines those applicable to future research in the field.

A definite need [existed] for an up-to-date overall treatment of the early stages of the Germanic languages, including their mutual interrelationships and the relationship to the larger Indo-European language family, that could function as a basic text in an introductory course in Germanic linguistics and as a handy reference and refresher not only for more advanced students but also for linguists outside the field of Germanic who need a basic orientation. Now, I am happy to say, we have this work in English for all the world to read. - Diachronica; ""The Germanic Languages may easily be read by scholars with limited knowledge of Germanic philology. It provides a solid introduction to the debate generated by attempts at classification. In addition, it contains an extensive bibliography of related works and pays considerable attention to necessary background information."" - Language