Sorbs (; ; also known as
Wends,
Lusatian Sorbs or
Lusatian Serbs) are a
Western Slavic people of
Central Europe living predominantly in
Lusatia, a region on the territory of
Germany and
Poland. In Germany they live in the states of
Brandenburg and
Saxony. They traditionally speak the
Sorbian languages (
Wendish,
Lusatian) – closely related to
Polish and
Czech – officially recognized and protected as a minority language of Germany. Due to a gradual and increasing
assimilation between the 17th and 20th centuries, virtually all Sorbs also spoke German by the late 19th century and many of the descendants of Sorbs no longer speak the Sorbian languages. They are predominantly
Roman Catholics and
Lutherans.