Revoluţie lingvistică/Revoluţie naţională. Problema limbii naţionale la popoarele din Imperiul Habsburgic în prima jumătate a secolului al XIX-lea
Linguistic Revolution, National Revolution. The Issue of National Languages Among the Peoples in the Habsburgic Empire During the First Half of the 19

Summary/Abstract: One of the essential characteristic features of a nation is the ability of its members to communicate with one another, an ability generally conditioned by linguistic homogeneity. During the 19th century, the national literary language becomes the most important expression of national identity. In Central and Eastern Europe we can speak about two main groups of languages: the first one has developed significantly during the medieval times and then a major historical event stopped its evolution. The second group is represented by languages without a solid literary tradition, without grammar or standard orthography. Both groups underwent a linguistic revolution during the 19th century, which meant the codification of the literary language, the development of a national culture in this language, its introduction in the educational system and the equality of all languages in administration, justice and the political life. The main goal was, of course, to encourage the use of the national language inside the national group. However, the local elites could not accept a language close to the dialects of the illiterate peasants and, on the other hand, too elitist a language was hard to impose to ordinary people. Often a compromise is reached, and the national language resembles the dialects which are considered to be the purest and without foreign influences, or those spoken in the politically and economically powerful regions. The first step is folklore publication. The next step is the publication of grammars, spelling guides, dictionaries, and, symbolically, the translation of the Bible in the new national language. The language is celebrated: it has melodious tones and a very old and important tradition: Slavic, Latin even Indo-European, so it has its place among the world’s major languages. Yet, there are cases when language dissemination inside the members of a national group takes place after the formation of the nation-state and after a national education system, which uses the language, is set up. This linguistic process developed, in some cases, with amazing speed: in several decades the Czech and the Hungarian languages became the languages of secondary education, of the political debates and of private urban life. For the Slovene, the Slovakian, the Croatian and the Serb languages the situation was more complex. During the first half of the 19th century, different scientists, linguists and historians, suggested different forms the literary language should take. Each codification attempt had its supporters. But for the national movement to be successful, it was necessary to adopt a single norm. Moreover, a literary language approved by the elites represented a very good instrument in the national struggle. The national program was written in this language and the large mass of people could easily understand it and follow it.

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