noun
classical language; dead language
Refers to languages no longer spoken as a native tongue, studied through historical texts, such as Latin, Sanskrit, or Classical Japanese.
ラテン語は古典語として大学で学ばれている。
Latin is studied at universities as a classical language.
古典語の文法は現代語と大きく異なることが多い。
The grammar of classical languages often differs greatly from that of modern languages.
古語 (archaic word) refers to individual old words, whereas 古典語 refers to the entire classical language system.
Compound of 古典 (classics) and 語 (language).