Jože Toporišič facts for kids
Jože Toporišič (born October 11, 1926 – died December 9, 2014) was a famous Slovene language expert. He wrote the most important scientific grammar book for the Slovene language in the second half of the 1900s. He was also a member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts. He helped create the Academy's guide for correct Slovene language use, called Slovenski pravopis. Because of his work, the language section of the Academy became the main place for setting rules for the Slovene language.
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Life Story of Jože Toporišič
Toporišič was born in a village called Mostec near Brežice in Slovenia. At that time, this area was part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.
Early Life and War Experience
During Nazi rule, his family was forced to leave their home. They had to live in Silesia between 1941 and 1945. This was a difficult time for them.
Education and Career Beginnings
After returning to Yugoslavia, he studied the Russian and Slavic languages in Ljubljana. He earned his first degree in 1952. In the early 1950s, he started working as a junior teacher at the University of Zagreb. There, he learned from the Prague school of structural linguistics, which is a way of studying language structure.
Becoming a Language Expert
He came back to Slovenia in the early 1960s. In 1963, he earned his doctorate degree at the University of Ljubljana. His special paper was about the ideas and style in the writings of a person named Finžgar. He then began teaching at the University of Ljubljana. He is known as the person who started modern Slovene language studies.
Influencing Language Teaching
Jože Toporišič was a leader among new language experts. He brought fresh and structured ways of teaching language. Because of this, the education leaders in Socialist Republic of Slovenia trusted him. From the late 1960s, he helped change how language was taught in Slovenian schools. He wrote or helped write many important textbooks. He also wrote the most important grammar book for the Slovene language. His work greatly changed how modern Slovene language is taught.
International Work and Languages
In 1968, he worked as a research assistant at the University of Chicago in the United States. Later, he was a guest teacher at universities in Hamburg, Regensburg, Klagenfurt, and Graz. Besides Slovene, he spoke German, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, and English very well. He could also read Polish and other Slavic languages.
Jože Toporišič's Ideas on Language
Toporišič believed that language use should have clear rules, especially for how words are said. He thought this was more important than local ways of speaking.
Strong Language Rules
He often said he admired how language policy in France worked. He suggested that Slovenia should have similar laws for language use. He was also known for creating many new words, called neologisms, in Slovene. Because of this, people often thought he made up every new word they heard in the media or at school, even if he didn't.
Views on Foreign Words
Toporišič was sometimes criticized for being a language purist. This means he preferred to use only words from the Slovene language. He often disagreed with journalists and politicians who used words from other languages. For example, in 2010, he criticized the Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor. He said the Prime Minister used too many English interjections, which are short words like "oh" or "wow."
Why Strong Language Policy is Needed
Toporišič believed that a strong and central language policy was important. He felt this was needed because the Slovene language has many different dialects. Also, it didn't have a long history of being used in public life.
Toporišič's Lasting Impact
In 2015, a primary school in Dobova was renamed after him. This school is near the village where Toporišič was born. It is now called Dr. Jože Toporišič Primary School (Osnovna šola dr. Jožeta Toporišiča).
Books by Jože Toporišič
- Jože Toporišič, Enciklopedija slovenskega jezika (Ljubljana: Cankarjeva založba, 1992)
- Jože Toporišič, Slovenska slovnica (Maribor: Obzorja, 2002)
- Jože Toporišič et al., Slovenski pravopis (Ljubljana: Znanstvenoraziskovalni center SAZU, 2007)
