What is the Point of Studying the History of the Swedish Language in Philological Studies in Poland in the Twenty-First Century? A Cross-Cultural Communication at Work in Foreign Language Learning Context

The aim of this article is to show how selected topics traditionally taught in academic courses on the history of the Swedish language can contribute to the development of the linguistic competence of adult learners of Swedish as a foreign language. The issues are discussed on the basis of Polish instructed teaching environments but they may also have some relevance in a broader perspective. The different competences addressed are: translating texts to/from Swedish, assessing such translations and evaluating the suitability of machine translations, as well as treating Swedish as a window to other Nordic languages. Language history is presented as an important part of foreign language learning and intercultural communication.