Attempts Toward the Standardization of Balkan Languages in the 19th Century: From Cosmopolitanism to Nationalism – A Comparative Perspective

Abstract

The standardization of Balkan non-Slavic languages (Greek, Albanian, Aromanian) and South Slavic languages (Macedonian, Bulgarian, Serbian) remains a relevant and productive field of research within Balkan studies, as well as within linguistics more broadly. This paper offers a comparative overview of efforts toward language standardization across the region. Among the politically and socially subordinated South Slavic populations and other ethnocultural communities of the Balkan Peninsula, the early 19th century marked the beginning of a national awakening, inspired in part by the Romantic movements in Europe, which brought increased attention to linguistic issues. The complex processes of standardization involved various approaches concerning the choice of dialectal basis, the development of graphemic systems, and the formulation of orthographic principles. Philological thought in the Slavic linguistic context at the time was shaped by two contrasting tendencies: one promoting linguistic unification rooted in cosmopolitan ideals, and the other advocating for the development of distinct national languages driven by nationalist ideologies. KEYWORDS: language standardization, Balkan linguistics, 19th century, cosmopolitanism, nationalism