engleski

Early printed Glagolitic books as a message of a cultural identity

Language and script are considered to be among key holders of cultural identity, especially in small nations like Croatia whose history testifies periods of independence interrupted with periods of foreign dominance. Merging of Eastern and Western culture and tradition on Croatian territory is visible in diversity of scripts and languages in use in Mediaeval Croatia. Thus, a specificum of Croatian Mediaeval period is the use of three languages (Latin, Old Slavic, and Croatian type of Old Slavic) and three scripts (Latin, Glagolitic and Bosnian type of Cyrillic, Bosančica) whose coexistence is a unique feature, unknown at any other country in Western Europe. The Croats printed Glagolitic books at the very beginning of European printing, showing the cultural and intellectual power of Croatian Glagolitic priests. By printing in Glagolitic they sent several messages connected with its identity, orientation and culture which will be explained: (1) by printing at that early age of printing (1484) they showed their high cultural and intellectual level ; (2) by using Croatian type of Old Slavic language they showed their endeavour to use vernacualr language in liturgy, instead of Latin ; (3) by printing on Glagolitic script they testified its belonging to Slavic culture ; (4) by using angular Glagolitic script they showed its diversity from Slavic, predominantly Ortodoxorum church and (5) by printing Missale Romanum they showed commitment to Catholic Church and Rome pope.

early printed books; Glagolitic incunabula; incunabula; identity

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