Filologija, No. 84, 2025.
Review article
https://doi.org/10.21857/y6zolb7npm
70 years since the Novi Sad agreement and its consequences on Montenegrin language and its studies
Novica Vujović
Abstract
In this overview paper, the consequences for Montenegrin philology of the Novi Sad agreement from 1954, which sought to resolve the issue of language and spelling in the Yugoslav federation, and which was initiated by Matica srpska, are investigated. The main tone of the Conclusions of the meeting of linguists and writers in Novi Sad was aimed at consolidating the politically projected Serbo-Croatian linguistic unity, the creation of the Spelling of the Serbo-Croatian Literary Language (1960), and Matica Srpska and Matica Hrvatska were engaged in writing a joint dictionary. One aspect of this paper concerns the numerous organized polemics that were opened in the reactions of Croatian and Serbian scholars regarding the Conclusions of the aforementioned conference. Croatian linguists soon declared the Novi Sad Agreement invalid. The joint work on the dictionary was also terminated. Voices of opposition to the agreement were also heard in the Montenegrin scholarly and cultural community, as were several voices who held the position of a single (Serbo-Croatian/Croatian-Serbian) language with variants created in different socio-historical contexts.
The establishment of Montenegrin philology proceeded much more slowly than the development of national philologies in other cultures of the former Yugoslav community. These processes took place in the circumstances of the late establishment of scholarly and cultural institutions, and mostly with personnel educated outside of Montenegro. By analyzing the rare announcements that represented Montenegrin philology - in the paper we try to make more understandable the context in which the name and identity of the Montenegrin language began to be discussed more intensively awith respect to the conclusions of the Novi Sad agreement. By factually establishing the history of this issue, and predominantly by facts from the external history of the Montenegrin language, it is shown that Pan-Serbian linguists and the language policy subordinated to their ideology continuously present the varieties of the Montenegrin language as part of the Serbian linguistic heritage. Also, the most important emancipatory processes in Montenegrin philology and culture were mostly opposed by calling the bearers of those processes the creators of extreme Montenegrin nationalism. Resistance to the development of Montenegrin philology was also encouraged from outside, even after 2006, when the independence of Montenegro was formally, institutionally and politically restored. The interpretation and contextualization of these details is still burdened by both objective ignorance of the facts and extra-scientific motivation.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
339783
URI
Publication date:
24.11.2025.
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