NATURE OF STANDARD MACEDONIAN LANGUAGE
  by Mladen Srbinovski, "Glas", Skopje, No. 23/Dec. 1995

PART I
It is forbidden for everybody, who works on and with the
language of Macedonia, to do remarks on it. From this restriction,
only the people from the scientific institutions, secretly blessed
by the official authorities by some strange "criteria", are excluded.
The other people, which do not think like the Macedonian linguists
and historians, and dare to express openly a disagreement, are
under many troubles and dangers. ...<del>

My opinion on the forbidden Macedonian subjects is a humble one,
but on the other hand, is completely mine. Similar is my opinion on
the nature of the standard Macedonian language, the language on
which I am educated and brought up, the language which I use and
on which I write. Everybody can reach to similar concept of
Macedonian traumas if decides to study the Macedonian problematics -
it is not necessary a high intelectual level, only a bit of
honesty. But the latter is in lack of Skopjean Macedonists, and
because of this lack are our disagreements.

I shall begin with the compulsory education, which was imposed
over me, and with the thoughtlessnesses, which I had to absorb
until I studied the national problematics.

We meet everyday, read and hear since our childhood, that
"Macedonian language is the youngest, but simultaneously the
oldest from all Slavic languages." The logical thoughtlessnesses
and stupidities which are put into us in the schools are many
ones, but the best way is they to be accepted without contradiction
and mockery, because otherwise you can be regarded from your
teenagers years as a suspicious one. The doubt in the logics of
the above sintagma led me to my first collision with my teachers,
which gave me troubles. "What for an audacity! How is it possible,
that a student cannot understand, that his language is the youngest,
but simultaneously the oldest from all Slavic languages because
of the specific conditions of its development! Here is nothing for
doubt or nonunderstanding, the suspicious is YOU!" - was the
reply, which I received.

If you are not satisfied with the similar solutions of the
ideological knots, on which the macedonism is based, and you
begin to untie them, you will inevitably reach my position, but
for the unbinding it is necessary you longly to investigate the
patology of the macedonist lie. My humble person will try now
to give his explanation about the above mentioned enigma about
"the youngest, but simultaneously the oldest from all languages",
which on first glance is like the sophism of the priority of
the egg or the hen. The attempt to unbind this maybe the most
tightened knot of the Gordian unit of macedonism can be regarded
as an attempt to understand and explain the nature of the
standard Macedonian language. The question is very serious, but
as it is given by Skopjean linguists, it is like Gogol
literary material from his unwritten satire. But who does know,
maybe the Skopjean linguists had (and have) Gogol sence of
humour. In this case the (d)effect is like that of Buster Keeton -
everybody laughts, but you remain deadly serious.

PART II
The historical continuity of the youngest of all Slavic
languages goes only 50 years ago - since ASNOM from 1944, and
the three language commissions, which created our language.
Using those political steps, it was decided one western
Macedonian dialect to be written on the reformed Vuk
alphabet, and to be raised to the level of literary language.

The grounds for that approach towards the new language are
best described by the contributors in the language commissions.
Venko Markovski: "You can accept it as a directive, to write
with the Vuk alphabet." Milka Balvanlieva-Georgevich: "With
the Serbo-Croatian alphabet we shall have Yugoslav alphabet."

The transition over the high artificial fence, and seeking
the connection with the older written tradition before the last
half of the XX century, denotes the transition from the
youngest to the oldest of the Slavic languages. The psychological
barrier for separation from the oldest litarary Slavic language
is created in us from our bringing up. For my generation,
educated after the war and using the youngest literary Slavic
language, the oldest literary Slavic language is uninteligible
already. Except some linguist somewhere, it is very seldom
some of us to read even one sentence from "his" oldest Slavic
language. With nowadays spelling, we, the new generations,
cannot even write down correctly our names and families. This
is the most bright illustration of the continuity between the
youngest literary Slavic language and the oldest one. The
macedonists care to give us "translated" from the oldest to the
youngest of all Slavic languages even texts written in the
20-ies of this century in order they to be inteligible for us.
Even the "apostol of macedonism", Misirkov, we can only read
transcribed, because as he wrote is ininteligible for us.
This artificial division, glottotomy by which from one language
were created two ones, was a dexterious political step, and
a stage, which was in the past. Insistment in Macedonia our
texts to be read in original is regarded as a scandal one.
In our past can dare to penetrate only selected persons,
which can freely use the "scientific" method - falsification.
Glottotomy led to the fact, that the Macedonian language today
is in crazy fast motion, and according to Heisenberg principle,
because of the excess velocity, the direction of this motion
cannot be determined.

The poor written tradition, which is assigned as written
heritage to the contemporary Macedonian language, is inheritance
written on the western dialects of "prostejshi neknizhoven
bolgarski ezik" (K. Pejchinovich) and Macedonian scientists
catch on that straw as drunkards on the table. Of course, and
that sintagma "prostejshi neknizhoven bolgarski ezik" is
falsified for the students, and is represented before them as the
Macedonian people speach, predecessor of the Macedonian literary
language. In such a case, using political alchemistry, "prostejshi
neknizhoven bolgarski ezik" is raised to the rank of the
youngest of all Slavic literary languages. The same language,
which equally in rights, participated for more than a thousand
of years in the developing and the enrichment of the oldest
of written Slavic languages - the Bulgarian one.

PART III
Until recently, in Greece, there were two official variants of
the Greek literary language - katharevusa, or the pure language,
and dimotiki - the language of the peasants. Both variants
were used in the state, they were equally in rights, and were
simultaneously used. If it was possible two official variants
of one and the same language to exist in one and the same state,
it is even more possible such variants to coexist in two
neighbouring countries. I doubt that somebody which is
concerned with writing, can oppose against the advantage of
existence of two languages, as sprouts of one and the same trunk,
but the things are complex in the Balkans. The Macedonian
language is above all a political puzzle, and the thesis for
mutually enrichment of the languages is a high treason for
the Macedonian linguistics. My unprejudices unbinding of the
most important knot of the Macedonian problems leads me to the
following interpreting of the conceptions of "the oldest and
the youngest written Slavic languages" - the katharevusa, used
as the literary standard in Bulgaria, is the oldest written
Slavic language; and the dimotiki, as literary variant used
in Macedonia, is the youngest written Slavic language. It is
not to be recommended, or allowed (and until recently it was
punishable very strictly) to read anything written on the
oldest language, the katharevusa. The reason is very simple -
in such a case the most important consequence from the use
of both languages ia avoided - the establishment of a point
of quiet. We all know from the physics lessons, that it is
necessary to point to some body, which is in a condition of
quiet, in order to be determined which body is in motion.
Without the support of such a point of quiet, we feel
ourselves as in an auto-station, when it is not possible for
us to say even for a moment, which bus is starting, and
which is standing still. For more than 50 years, the artificial
condition of quiet is maintained, and none contact is allowed
between the youngest and the oldest of the written Slavic
languages. The oldest of all written Slavic languages is
exactly such a point of quiet for the youngest one. It was
enough for me to read one book on the oldest of all written
Slavic languages, in order to discover that point of quiet
for the youngest Slavic language, which I use every day.

In every state, choosing one dialect as an official language
is a political treaty, concensus, a ball of snow, which
with its rolling will be increased and enriched. And
Macedonian literary language is such a snow ball, created
by the force of such political treaty, and put to roll over
a steep slope, until Macedonian adepts are asking and amazing for
50 years how is stained and neglected the youngest of the
Slavic languages. In its accelerating motion, it gathers
from Vuk language everything which is necessary to it - from
spelling to lexics, and even tne idioms... And it is logical,
having motion in this direction, earlier or later, the youngest
of Slavic languages to conclude with its motion, to pacify
and merge with Vuk language. The direction of motion of the
youngest of all Slavic languages can be easily determined,
using Heisenberg principle, the only thing which can be
discused is the velocity of this motion. I sincerely hope,
that this is not the velocity of the light. And if in XIX c.
the big revivalist of Macedonia Konstantin Miladinov expressed
the main attitude of the population of Macedonia on dimotiki
in one beautiful song "T'ga za jug", in XX c. this attitude
ought to be expressed most exactly as "T'ga za Sever". This
is the main reason our service dimotiki to be guarded in
every case and with all means from its meetings with its
katharevusa.

...<del>

PART V
Before the egg - the hen, before the hen - the egg.