provides defense from Bulgaria’s linguistic negationism
![[Image: old-church-slavonic-book.jpg]](https://macedoniatimes.news/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/old-church-slavonic-book.jpg)
Jasminka Pavlovska of the Macedonian daily newspaper Nova Makedonija reports a finding that attests to the deep and unique roots of the modern Macedonian language. Namely, a textbook primer from the year 1597, printed for the learning of the vocabulary of Old Slavonic, which was the language of the Church and clergy, contains a letter that is unique to the Macedonian language and alphabet.
The letter which in Macedonian Cyrillic is written as S and pronounced as ‘dz’ has prominent use in the Macedonian language, but it is absent from Serbian and Bulgarian. Macedonian activists who have been arguing at scientific conferences and online to repel the persistent Bulgarian attacks on the Macedonian language, have offered the letter S – Dz as one of the characteristics about the separate geographic and ethnic development of the Macedonian language and its vocabulary.
Interestingly enough, the letter Dz is prominent in words that are almost exclusive to Macedonian. The characteristic sound of this letter can be heard in words like dzvezda – ѕвезда (star), dzunitsa – ѕуница (rainbow), obdzira – обѕира (observe), lundza – лунѕда (to roam), dzun – ѕун (ringing sound), dzvono – ѕвоно (bell), dzid – ѕид (wall), dzrndzurka – ѕрнѕурка (trinket, part of the traditional costume), dzumba – ѕумба (sound), and many other.
Jasminka Pavlovska of the Macedonian daily newspaper Nova Makedonija reports a finding that attests to the deep and unique roots of the modern Macedonian language. Namely, a textbook primer from the year 1597, printed for the learning of the vocabulary of Old Slavonic, which was the language of the Church and clergy, contains a letter that is unique to the Macedonian language and alphabet.
The letter which in Macedonian Cyrillic is written as S and pronounced as ‘dz’ has prominent use in the Macedonian language, but it is absent from Serbian and Bulgarian. Macedonian activists who have been arguing at scientific conferences and online to repel the persistent Bulgarian attacks on the Macedonian language, have offered the letter S – Dz as one of the characteristics about the separate geographic and ethnic development of the Macedonian language and its vocabulary.
Interestingly enough, the letter Dz is prominent in words that are almost exclusive to Macedonian. The characteristic sound of this letter can be heard in words like dzvezda – ѕвезда (star), dzunitsa – ѕуница (rainbow), obdzira – обѕира (observe), lundza – лунѕда (to roam), dzun – ѕун (ringing sound), dzvono – ѕвоно (bell), dzid – ѕид (wall), dzrndzurka – ѕрнѕурка (trinket, part of the traditional costume), dzumba – ѕумба (sound), and many other.
