The role of Liječnički vjesnik in nurturing professional language – That our speech will not be full of German, and often superfluous Latin and Greek terms, and that our written works will not be full of clumsy coins

Abstract

The topic of language has been shaped from the very beginning of the publication of Liječnički vjesnik into an interactive area of discussions on terminological dilemmas that physicians encounter in their daily practice until today. Based on 129 articles published in differently titled sections of Liječnički vjesnik, the paper discusses the role and influence of this journal in raising awareness of professional language/terminology. It came to light that efforts related to the correctness of writing medical articles and the use of Croatian medical terminology are a continuous concern of both the Croatian Medical Association and its journal Liječnički vjesnik, which manifested itself through several significant initiatives. In earlier periods, initiatives for collecting material for Croatian medical terminology were highlighted, while in more recent periods discussions related to the correct writing of diagnoses, use of Latinisms, correct use of dubious names, avoidance of foreign words and the like are more current. Formal language editing was introduced in 1975, when Branko Erdeljac was mentioned as language advisor and proofreader. The authors emphasize the need for further work on nurturing and improving the medical language and terminology on the pages of Liječnički vjesnik and the continued commitment to the correct writing and regular publication of medical texts in the Croatian language.

Keywords

• terminology as topic; periodicals as topic – history; speech; history
• 19th century; history
• 20th century; history