Press conference about the Declaration on the Common Language

The Declaration on the Common Language (Serbo-Croatian: Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku / Декларација о заједничком језику) was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia who were working under the banner of a project called "Language and Nationalism". The Declaration states that Bosniaks, Croats, Montenegrins and Serbs have a common standard language of the polycentric type.

Great interest of television companies in the Press conference about the Declaration

Before any public presentation, the Declaration was signed by over 200 prominent writers, scientists, journalists, activists and other public figures from the four countries. After being published, it has been signed by over 10,000 people from all over the region. The Declaration on the Common Language is an attempt to counter nationalistic factions. Its aim is to stimulate discussion on language without nationalism and to contribute to the reconciliation process.

Contents of the Declaration

The Declaration states that Bosniaks, Croats, Montenegrins and Serbs have a common standard language of the polycentric type. It refers to the fact that the four peoples communicate effectively without an interpreter due to their mutual intelligibility, which is a key notion when talking about languages. Furthermore, it points out that the current language policy of emphasizing differences has led to a number of negative phenomena, and linguistic expression is imposed as a criterion of ethnonational affiliation and a means of affirming political loyalty. The Declaration states that language and people do not have to coincide, and that each state or nation may independently codify its own variant of the common language, and that the four standard variants enjoy equal status. The Declaration calls for abolishing all forms of linguistic segregation and discrimination in educational and public institutions. It also advocates for the freedom of individual choice and respect for linguistic diversity.

International project "Languages and Nationalisms"

The Declaration followed the international project Languages and Nationalisms (founded by two German foundations: Forum Ziviler Friedensdienst and Allianz Kulturstiftung), within which conferences were held in the four countries during 2016, thus providing an insight into the current situation and problems. The project was inspired by the book Language and Nationalism, and was organized by four non-governmental organizations from each of the countries included: P.E.N. Center Bosnia-Herzegovina from Sarajevo, the Association Kurs from Split, Krokodil from Belgrade and the Civic Education Center from Podgorica. An interdisciplinary series of expert conferences in Podgorica, Split, Belgrade and Sarajevo took place under participation of linguists, journalists, anthropologists and others. Numerous audiences were also included. The titles of debates on the conferences were:

The book Language and Nationalism (left) inspired the project Languages and Nationalisms (right).
Series of international expert conferences Languages and Nationalisms in 2016
PlaceTitles of debatesDate
PodgoricaDoes every people in Montenegro speak a different language?21 April
What is the purpose of increasing language differences?22 April
SplitDoes anarchy threaten if we do not prescribe how to speak?19 May
What if Croats and Serbs have a common language?20 May
BelgradeWho is it that steals the language?5 October
The ideology of the correct language6 October
SarajevoPolitical manipulations of the topic of language23 November
Proofreaders as nationality-imposers24 November

The creation of the Declaration

More than thirty experts participated in the drafting of the Declaration, half of whom were linguists of different nationalities from the four states. The process of writing lasted for several months. The initiative emerged just after the last conference in Sarajevo, when young people from Bosnia-Herzegovina who experienced the educational segregation in the so-called "two schools under one roof" came up with the idea of composing a text that would encourage change of the language policy in all four countries. They entitled the text Declaration on the Common Language and gave it for rewriting to professional linguists, so that the Declaration was redrafted in Zagreb in the following months and can therefore be called the "Zagreb Declaration."

As a continuation of the project Languages and Nationalisms, a committee of experts of different nationalities from all four countries was formed that worked on the final version of the Declaration on 16 and 17 January 2017 in Zagreb. After the meeting, the text was sent to some twenty consultants, whose proposals are then embedded in the final form of the text.

Presentation of the Declaration

Collecting signatures for the Declaration

The Declaration on the Common Language, with more than two hundred signatures of prominent intellectuals from Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia was simultaneously presented to the public on 30 March 2017 in Zagreb, Podgorica, Belgrade and Sarajevo, where a press conference was held and two panel discussions with titles "What is a common language?" and "Language and the Future". Then the Declaration was opened for signing to other people. Over the next few days, more than 8,000 people signed it. Two months later, in the framework of the 10th Subversive Festival in Zagreb, a round table on the Declaration, titled "Language and Nationalism", was held. Then a debate "About the Declaration on the Common Language and Other Demons" was held at the Crocodile Literature Festival in Belgrade. After that, in Novi Sad, a panel discussion "Whose is Our Language?" at the Exit festival and a forum "What are the Achievements of the Declaration on the Common Language?" at the International literary conference, Book Talk, were organised. In Montenegro, there was a round table on the Declaration in the framework of the 7th Njegoš's Days. At the end of 2017, a discussion "What to do With the Language: Who speaks (or does not speak) the common language?" was organised at the 6th Open University in Sarajevo.

Series of panel discussions on the Declaration in 2017
PlaceDiscussion titleEventDate
SarajevoWhat is a Common Language?[a]Presentation of the Declaration30 March
Language and the Future[b]
Who Speaks (or does not Speak) the Common Language?[c]Open University10 November
ZagrebLanguage and Nationalism[d]Subversive Festival19 May
BelgradeAbout the Declaration on the Common Language and Other Demons[e]Krokodil Literary Festival18 June
Novi SadWhose is Our Language?[f]Exit Festival8 July
What are the Achievements of the Declaration on the Common Language?[g]Book Talk29 September
KotorDeclaration on the Common Language[h]Njegoš's Days1 September
Snježana Kordić's plenary lecture on the Declaration at a conference in Japan 2018

During 2018, a series of plenary lectures on the Declaration was held at conferences at the universities of various EU countries, and then at the universities in Japan. On the occasion of the second anniversary of the Declaration, two round tables were held: in Vienna "Language and Nationalisms: Do We Understand Each Other?" and in Zagreb "One Language or Several Languages: Discussion on the Declaration on the Common Language", organized by the Union of Student Associations of the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb,[non-primary source needed] which later also organized a plenary lecture on the Declaration at the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb.[unreliable source?]

Signatories

Noam Chomsky, one of the signatories of the Declaration

Signatories of the Declaration include:

Signatories about the Declaration – Selected bibliography

  • Arsenijević, Boban (15 April 2017). [The Polycentric Common Language and the Declaration produced stormy reactions (interview conducted by Nemanja Stevanović and Vladimir Đorđević)] (in Serbo-Croatian). Niš: Media & Reform centar. from the original on 12 May 2017.
  • Arsenijević, Boban (18 May 2017). [The Declaration Has Shaken the Foundation of Nationalist Abuse of Language (interview conducted by Vladislav Stojičić)] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: P-portal. from the original on 7 January 2019.
  • Arsenijević, Vladimir; Klajn, Ivan (8 April 2017). [Do Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks and Montenegrins Speak the Same Language? (by Kristina Šarić)]. TV news Vojvođanski dnevnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Novi Sad: Radio Television of Vojvodina. from the original on 12 April 2017.
  • Bahr, Manuel (31 March 2017). [Declaration: B/C/S/M is One Language – "I Have Signed!"] (in German). Vienna: Kosmo. from the original on 7 August 2018.
  • Bogavac, Milena (8 July 2017). [How I Signed that I Was not a Polyglot] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Noizz. from the original on 10 July 2017.
  • Bugarski, Ranko (5 April 2017). [Well-Intentioned Appeal to the Public (interview conducted by Sonja Ćirić)]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . from the original on 26 August 2017.
  • Bugarski, Ranko (13 April 2017). [Declaration is not a Political Platform (interview conducted by Mirjana Mitrović)] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Ekspres. from the original on 12 June 2017.
  • Bugarski, Ranko (7 May 2017). [A Small Catalog of Flaws]. Danas (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade. ISSN . from the original on 14 May 2017.
  • Cingel, Ivan (14 April 2017). [Ancient and Magic Language of Croats] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Forum.tm. ISSN . from the original on 21 May 2017.
  • Cingel, Ivan (27 April 2017). [This is not Another Text About the Declaration] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Forum.tm. ISSN . from the original on 19 May 2017.
  • Dežulović, Boris (1 April 2017). [Fish Bites Fish's Tongue]. Nedeljski Dnevnik (in Slovenian). Ljubljana: Dnevnik. ISSN . from the original on 10 July 2019.
  • Dežulović, Boris (9 April 2017). [Hapsus Linguae] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Novosti. ISSN . from the original on 6 June 2017.
  • Glušica, Rajka (20 April 2017). [Read Carefully (interviewed by Sonja Ćirić)]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . from the original on 8 October 2017.
  • Gudžević, Sinan (18 April 2017). [Reklaration] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Novosti. ISSN . from the original on 22 May 2017.
  • Gudžević, Sinan (2 May 2017). [Letter to Cardinal Bozanić] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Novosti. ISSN . from the original on 12 May 2017.
  • Halilović, Senahid (26 April 2018). [Halilović for N1: We Have to Listen to the Public Word]. TV show N1 na jedan (host Nikola Vučić) (in Serbo-Croatian). Sarajevo: N1. min 19:34
  • Ivančić, Viktor (8 April 2017). [New Novi list] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Novosti. ISSN . from the original on 8 June 2017.
  • Ivančić, Viktor (17 April 2017). [How not to be a Yugoslav?] (in Serbo-Croatian). Podgorica: Proletter. from the original on 21 May 2017.
  • Kazaz, Enver (27 April 2017). [Language is not a Mental Prison (interview conducted by Sonja Ćirić)]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . from the original on 7 January 2019.
  • Kljajić, Jagoda (3 April 2017). [Sign the Declaration on the Common Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Prozaonline. from the original on 6 May 2017.
  • Kordić, Snježana (4 April 2017). [Some Serbs Think the Declaration Favors Croats (interviewed by Denis Derk)]. Večernji list (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb. pp. 36–37. ISSN . . from the original on 21 September 2017.
  • Kordić, Snježana (5 April 2017). [Read Carefully, Whatever You Call the Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Bonn: Deutsche Welle. . from the original on 2 July 2017.
  • Kordić, Snježana (13 April 2017). [The Language of Several Peoples (interview conducted by Sonja Ćirić)]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . . from the original on 26 August 2017.
  • Kordić, Snježana; Ibrahimović, Nedžad (3 May 2017). [About the Declaration on the Common Language]. TV show Globalno (host Boris Malagurski (in Serbo-Croatian). BN Televizija. from the original on 22 October 2017. min 84:14
  • Kordić, Snježana (10 January 2018). [Reaction to the Boris Buden's Text Regarding the Declaration on the Common Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Slobodni Filozofski. . from the original on 16 April 2018.
  • Kordić, Snježana (30 March 2018). [There is no Purity of Nation and Language (interviewed by Gordana Sandić-Hadžihasanović)]. Radio Slobodna Evropa (in Serbo-Croatian). Prague: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. . from the original on 30 March 2018.
  • Kordić, Snježana (26 February 2018). [The Declaration Breaks Down the Last Taboo (interviewed by Maja Abadžija)] (in Serbo-Croatian). Sarajevo: Oslobođenje. pp. 18–19. ISSN . . from the original on 7 August 2018.
  • Kordić, Snježana (24 August 2018). [Short Legs of Lies (reply to Boris Buden)] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Slobodni Filozofski. . from the original on 26 August 2018.
  • Kordić, Snježana (2019). [Reactions to the Declaration on the common language] (PDF). Njegoševi dani 7: zbornik radova s međunarodnog naučnog skupa, Kotor 30.8.-3.9.2017 (in Serbo-Croatian). Nikšić: Univerzitet Crne Gore, Filološki fakultet. pp. 145–152. ISBN 978-86-7798-062-7. S2CID . SSRN . . (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2019.
  • Krajišnik, Đorđe (18 April 2017). [Why do the Bards of National-Linguistics Squall?] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: XXZ regionalni portal. from the original on 21 April 2017.
  • Lucić, Predrag (3 April 2017). [Declaration on SAO Rijeka] (in Serbo-Croatian). Rijeka: Novi list. ISSN . from the original on 7 May 2017.
  • Lukić, Marija (2020). "Declaración sobre la langua común" [Declaration on the Common Language]. [To whom does (our) language belong? The struggle for linguistic peace in the Balkans. The Serbo-Croatian between memory, rejection and longing] (PDF). tesis doctoral (in Spanish). Granada: Universidad de Granada. pp. 168–182.
  • Markovina, Dragan (30 March 2017). [Why I have signed the Declaration on the Common Language]. Telegram (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb. ISSN . from the original on 31 May 2017.
  • Methadžović, Almir (2 April 2018). [Chomsky on the Bus] (in Serbo-Croatian). Mostar: Tačno.net. from the original on 10 April 2018.
Health warning "smoking kills" from Bosnia-Herzegovina repeats a phrase three times: twice in the Latin script and once in Cyrillic.
  • Mustafić, Dino (31 March 2018). [Mustafić for N1: We Speak the Same Language, We Understand Each Other]. TV show Novi dan (host Merima Šemić) (in Serbo-Croatian). Sarajevo: N1. from the original on 7 August 2018. min 17:36
  • Nezirović, Elvedin (30 March 2017). [Presentation of the Declaration on the Common Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Mostar: Tačno.net. from the original on 31 March 2020.
  • Pančić, Teofil (30 March 2017). [1, 2, 3, 4 languages... 4, 3, 2, 1 language]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . from the original on 26 August 2017.
  • Pančić, Teofil (4 May 2017). [Painful, funny and instructive]. Vreme: Nedeljnik (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Vreme. ISSN . from the original on 8 July 2017.
  • Pavelić, Boris (30 March 2017). [Provocation by Common Sense] (in Serbo-Croatian). Rijeka: Novi list. ISSN . from the original on 5 June 2017.
  • Pilsel, Drago (6 April 2017). [Why a Declaration on the Common Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Ekspres. from the original on 1 June 2017.
  • Pilsel, Drago (17 April 2017). [Bozanić Threatens Again: Neither We Invoke Yugoslavia nor a New War Threatens!] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Autograf.hr. ISSN . from the original on 22 May 2017.
  • Pilsel, Drago (17 April 2017). [Bozanić Congratulates Only Those Who Are in the Cathedral]. TV show Novi dan (host Tihomir Ladišić) (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: N1. from the original on 23 May 2017. min 13:00
  • Slapšak, Svetlana (19 September 2017). [Language Environment] (in Serbo-Croatian). Belgrade: Peščanik. from the original on 22 September 2017.
  • Tomičić, Ladislav (31 March 2017). [Provocation!]. Večer (in Slovenian). Maribor. ISSN . from the original on 25 January 2019.
  • Tomičić, Ladislav (15 April 2017). [Cardinal Bozanić's Forked Tongue] (in Serbo-Croatian). Rijeka: Novi list. ISSN . from the original on 21 May 2017.
  • Tomić, Ante (29 March 2017). [Why I Have Signed the Declaration on the Common Language of Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks and Montenegrins]. Jutarnji list (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb. ISSN . from the original on 3 April 2017.
  • Tomić, Ante; Ilić, Saša (16 April 2017). [Which Language do Grabar-Kitarović and Vučić Talk In? (interviewed by Omer Karabag)]. Radio Slobodna Evropa (in Serbo-Croatian). Prag: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. from the original on 20 April 2017.
  • Tripunovski, Stiven (2017). [Commonality Against the Will? Language in the South Slavic Area]. In Grunert, Heiner; Kührer-Wielach, Florian (eds.). Grenzen im Fluss (in German). Regensburg: Regensburg Schnell et Steiner. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-3-7917-2940-4. OCLC .
  • Vajzović, Hanka; Kordić, Snježana (20 March 2018). [Linguistic Disagreements]. TV show Kontekst (in Serbo-Croatian). Al Jazeera. from the original on 24 March 2018. min 15:47
  • Vučić, Nikola (7 May 2017). [Reaction to the Nikola Petković's Text on Language] (in Serbo-Croatian). Zagreb: Autograf.hr. ISSN . from the original on 16 May 2017.

See also

Notes

a. ^ Participants: Borka Pavićević, Rajka Glušica and Snježana Kordić; Moderator: Sandra Zlotrg

b. ^ Participants: Ivana Bodrožić, Balša Brković and Asim Mujkić; Moderator: Igor Štiks

c. ^ Participants: Nerzuk Ćurak and Vladimir Arsenijević; Moderator: Žarka Radoja

d. ^ Participants: Tomislav Longinović, Viktor Ivančić, Snježana Kordić, Boris Buden and Mate Kapović; Moderator: Katarina Peović Vuković

e. ^ Participants: Teofil Pančić, Dragan Markovina, Snježana Kordić and Igor Štiks; Moderator: Vladimir Arsenijević and Ana Pejović

f. ^ Participants: Dragan Bjelogrlić, Snježana Kordić, Marko Šelić Marčelo, Vladimir Arsenijević and Vlatko Sekulović; Moderator: Milena Bogavac Minja

g. ^ Participants: Ivan Ivanji, Goran Miletić, Mirjana Đurđević, Srđan Tešin and Pero Zlatar; Moderator: Eržika Pap Reljin

h. ^ Participants: Rajka Glušica, Ivo Pranjković, Snježana Kordić, Ranko Bugarski, Vladimir Arsenijević and Svein Mønnesland; Moderator: Nikola Vučić

External links