A multicultural city, Vilnius' language changed over the centuries. The predominant spoken language in medieval Lithuania was Lithuanian. It had no literary tradition, however, and was not used in writing except for religious texts such as the Lord's Prayer and the Hail Mary. Vytautas the Great spoke in Lithuanian with Jogaila, whose son Casimir IV Jagiellon also spoke Lithuanian. Saint Casimir, the patron saint of Lithuania, knew Lithuanian, Polish, German and Latin. Fifteenth-century Byzantine historian Laonikos Chalkokondyles reported that the Lithuanians had a distinct language.
A multicultural city Vilnius' language changed over the centuries. The predominant spoken language in medieval Lithuania was Lithuanian. It had no literary tradition, however, and was not used in writing except for religious texts such as the Lord's Prayer and the Hail Mary. Vytautas the Great spoke in Lithuanian with Jogaila, whose son Casimir IV Jagiellon also spoke Lithuanian Saint Casimir, the patron saint of Lithuania, knew Lithuanian, Polish, German and Latin. Fifteenth-century Byzantine historian Laonikos Chalkokondyles reported that the Lithuanians had a distinct language.