Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.31724/rihjj.46.1.9
Discussion on Nature and Orthography of the Magnificent Croatian Language – Appendini’s Grammatica della lingua illirica from 1808
Ivana Lovrić Jović
; Institut za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje
Abstract
Francesco Maria Appendini was an Italian Jesuit who adopted the Republic of Ragusa as his own country. He was appointed professor of rhetoric at the Scolopi College. In 1808 he published Grammatica della lingua illirica, Grammar of the Croatian language (at that time named Illyrian), which he wrote following the norms of the written Stokavian literature and existing lexicographical works. His Grammar is based on the Dubrovnik (Ragusa) dialect which he recommended as the norm for the Illyrian standard language. The preface is an apology of the Illyrian language and a list of major Slavic “dialects” (Russian, Polish, Bohemian, Illyrian). Appendini gives a critical survey of his predecessors – grammarians and lexicographers (Kašić, Della Bella, Tadijanović, Reljković, Lanosović, Jurin, and Voltić) and proposes a unified orthography. The first edition of his Grammar had 360 pages, divided into two parts, and its greatest value lies in the most extensive pre-Renaissance syntax. It was the subject of controversy as it was both criticized and praised by his contemporaries and as a language manual, it was popular for at least forty years. The paper describes Appendini’s understanding of the Croatian language and the presentation of its orthography. The author of the Grammar described Croatian pronunciation, as heard by an Italian, in detail. In doing so, he tried to take into account the multiplicity of dialectal achievements of the Italian language (Venetian, Roman) and the Croatian language (Dubrovnik, Bosnian, Dalmatian, Istrian, and Kajkavian) – both in terms of pronunciation and spelling. Appendini’s interpretation of orthography issues was relevant as he was the Head of the Commission appointed by the Austrian District Government in Zadar in 1820 and he task of the Commission was to regulate the orthographic issues.
Keywords
prestandard Croatian grammars; Francesco Maria Appendini; genetic affiliation and nature of the Croatian language; Dubrovnik dialect; orthography
Hrčak ID:
243237
URI
Publication date:
2.9.2020.
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