Vojvodina Slovak Language - A Phenomenon of Traditions and the Present

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present Vojvodina Slovak language as a language that is a specific phenomenon associated with the history and the present of Slovaks living in Vojvodina, in the autonomous region of the Republic of Serbia. Slovaks in Vojvodina form one of the oldest and most viable Slovak minority communities in the world. Vojvodina Slovak language is one of the existential forms of the contemporary Slovak language. It is the language of an enclave community which, despite its multi-generational separation from the mother country, is in a good condition. In the paper the author explains the context that led to the emergence of the Slovak language community in Vojvodina, which uses Slovak language in the form of dialects and standard language. Slovaks in Vojvodina are bilingual, they have sufficient knowledge of two language systems: Slovak language (in intra-ethnic communication) and Serbian language (in non-ethnic communication). In this environment, Slovak language is strongly influenced by the dominant Serbian language. Despite this pressure, Slovak language in Vojvodina has preserved a significant framework of Slovak language used in Slovakia.