Question: The High German consonant shift  took place in the Germanic family of languages that is larger than which other two branches?
Related documents: [0]  [DOC] The West Germanic languages constitute the largest of the three branches of the Germanic family of languages (the others being the North Germanic and the extinct East Germanic languages). [END] 
[1]  [DOC] In historical linguistics, the High German consonant shift or second Germanic consonant shift is a phonological development (sound change) that took place in the southern parts of the West Germanic dialect continuum in several phases. It probably began between the third and fifth centuries and was almost complete before the earliest written records in High German were produced in the ninth century. The resulting language, Old High German, can be neatly contrasted with the other continental West Germanic languages, which for the most part did not experience the shift, and with Old English, which remained completely unaffected. [END] 
Answer: 
North Germanic and the extinct East Germanic languages
North Germanic and the extinct East Germanic languages