Archaeologia Adriatica, Vol. 2 No. 2, 2008.
Original scientific paper
The Early Mediaeval Toponymy of the Split Peninsula
Petar Šimunović
; Institut za hrvatski jezik i jezikoslovlje HAZU
Abstract
This article examines the Roman praedial toponyms on the basis of the early mediaeval toponomastic data related to the Split Peninsula – as testimony to this peninsula's cultivated landscape, where, in the 4th century A.D., the Emperor Diocletian chose to have his palace built. Based upon the pre-Roman, and particularly the Romanic toponyms, the article furthermore examines the linguistic interfusion between the Dalmatic and the Croatian languages in the first centuries of the Croatian settlement. Toponyms, including the Romanic adjective santu in connection with the names of saints, which may be
recognized by the adjustment of santu > sut-/st- and by other phonetic substitutions having taken place within names in the era of the first evangelization of the Croats in this region, are also examined.
Moreover, the first confirmations for the Croatian name of Split are examined. The author refers to the polemics occurring in the early 20th century, which had discussed whether the name of Split should continue to be written and pronounced in its traditional form, or should the form Spljet be introduced instead, as a group of philologists argued. However, the traditional form – Split – won this debate.
Keywords
Split; toponyms; oikonyms; urbonyms
Hrčak ID:
37201
URI
Publication date:
23.5.2009.
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