How important were church and school in the past? – Banat-Bulgarian Collection

Ioan Vasilcin on the importance of teaching the Bulgarian language, recorded in Dudeștii Vechi (Romanian Banat).

Vanishing Languages and Cultural Heritage (VLACH) ID-number: bana1308ROV0008a

Description:
Banat Bulgarians were finally allowed to study and teach their language in schools around the middle of the 19th century. By the end of the 19th century, their language had already been recognised as a literary language. Nonetheless priests still played a very important role in passing on cultural traditional knowledge whilst sustaining language activism as well. One important activist from this sphere was Jozu Rill, author of the first grammar and a trailblazer in the language planning process. Shortly after however, the Banat Bulgarian teaching process took an unfavorable turn: due to the assimilation process of the Hungarian government the community was forced to wait until 1930 to revive its activities. Yet more difficult times would follow. In this interview, we discover the prominent role priests had in ensuring the survival and dissemination of the Banat Bulgarian language, despite the difficult years under the communist regime when it was prohibited in schools.

Cite as:
Čərkva i škula naprek' – How important were church and school in the past? Performer: Ioan Vasilcin; camera/ interview: Thede Kahl, Andreea Pascaru; transcription/ translation: Petru Ciocani; editor: Ani Antonova; retrieved from www.oeaw.ac.at/VLACH, ID number: bana1308ROV0008a.

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The Commission Vanishing Languages and Cultural Heritage (VLACH) aims to contribute to the academic knowledge of the world’s linguistic diversity by investigating undocumented and lesser-documented languages and varieties. VLACH is committed to develop strategies of language maintenance and to nurture cultural heritage in close collaboration with the diverse communities involved in the VLACH projects.

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