Paul-Louis Thomas and Vladimir Osipov: Grammaire du bosniaque, croate, monténégrin, serbe

Abstract

Whatever one’s opinions about the breakup of Yugoslavia, the corresponding breakup of its major language, Serbo-Croatian, has provided linguists specializing in the region with unparalleled opportunities for linguistic and sociolinguistic analysis, with the happy result of a number of detailed, insightful, and valuable linguistic studies. What might seem obvious to the outside layman—that just as the federation we knew as Yugoslavia was replaced by separate named states, so was its common language, Serbo-Croatian, replaced by separate languages bearing the names of these new states (Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin)—does not bear up to serious linguistic analysis, since languages cannot be created by political fiat alone. At the same time, Serbo-Croatian was always a polycentric language, with a generally accepted subdivision into variants that correspond roughly to the new “languages.” To what extent, then, can each of these now be treated as a separate language? Does the single language embodying their common core—what used to be called Serbo-Croatian—still exist, and if so, what should it be called? Finally, how can the answers to these questions be put into practical use?