Abstract：In explorations of language conflicts, Croatia is a case in point, where language, triggering conflicts, was instrumentalized in conflicts as well. Political and intellectual elites in Croatia deliberately separated their language from those used by other South Slavs with resort to collective narratives of languages, and attempted to justify Croatian national identity through the naming of the Croatian language as a national language, as well as language standardization and normalization. Pluricentric variation in language policies and public reactions to policy changes during the period of Yugoslavia fully reflected Croatian elites’ intended use of language naming in constructing an independent Croatian national identity. The relationship between the Croatian and the Serbian languages named as one single language or separate ones, entangled with national sentiments and political issues, witnessed Croatia’s historical process of seeking independence. After the establishment of Croatia as an independent state, academic criticisms of the old name Serbo-Croatian and claiming credit for the Croatian language standardization and development reflected a long-lasting minority language mentality. This article’s historical account of the Croatian language and nation-building demonstrates the significant role of language in constructing national identity and establishing an independent nation to the effect that language conflicts could be a vital force in breaking a nation and its national identity. In line with the above discussion, in the contemporary context of protecting Chinese dialects and ethnic minority languages, we must keep alert to detrimental effects of perceived “separatist linguistic nationalism” and historical misreading or distorted interpretations on the building of a Community for the Chinese Nation, and thus the whole society is encouraged to join efforts in promoting Putonghua and its writing system as our national common language.
戴曼纯. 冲突视角下的克罗地亚语言与民族建设[J]. 语言战略研究, 2024, 9(2): 53-63.
Dai Manchun. The Croatian Language and National Construction from the Perspective of Conflict. , 2024, 9(2): 53-63.
