noun
ancient Japanese; Old Japanese
Historical term referring to the Japanese language as spoken up to the Middle Ages. Used in linguistic or historical contexts.
See also: 中世
古代語の文法は現代語と大きく異なる。
The grammar of ancient Japanese differs greatly from modern Japanese.
この文献は古代語で書かれている。
This document is written in ancient Japanese.
Modern Japanese, as opposed to 古代語 which refers to the ancient form of the language.
Compound of 古代 (kodai, 'ancient times') and 語 (go, 'language').