Jernej Kopitar

Bartholomew ( Jernej ) Kopitar ( born August 21, 1780 in Repnje, Carniola; † August 11, 1844 in Vienna ) was a Slovene linguist and Slavic studies. Considered together with Josef Dobrovský and Pavel Jozef Šafárik as one of the founders of scientific Slavic and pioneer of the Austro-Slavism.

Life and work

After graduating from high school in Ljubljana ( Ljubljana ) and tutor activities Kopitar went to Vienna, where he studied law and engaged in Slavic languages. Since 1810, he was employed at the Vienna Court Library, including as a censor of Slavic and Greek books.

Kopitar was the beginning of the Slovenian scientific grammar sensitive. He published in 1808 a " grammar of Slavic language in Carniola, Carinthia and Steyermark ", a year later, a " grammar of Slovene ". He also made ​​valuable contributions in the field of Slavic text edition such as Glagolita Clozianus (1836 ) in which the so-called " Freising Manuscripts " are included, the first longer written in the Latin alphabet Slavic text which is considered the first textual witness of the Slovene language. In the introduction to this work Kopitar is on the so-called Pannonian theory which states that the area of ​​origin of the Old Church Slavonic language of Slovenia or Pannonia was.

Furthermore, Vuk Karadžić Kopitar assisted in creating a based on vernacular dialects Serbian literary language.

For his services to him the Order Pour le Mérite was awarded for Science and Arts of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV on May 31, 1842.