Author :
Abstract
In the Macedonian language, little, or no attention at all is given to the important role of the punctuation and orthographic marks regarding the coherence and stylistic effects of the written texts they provide. Bearing in mind that the last edition of the Orthography (1988) has been used approximately 20 years, the new edition of the Orthography of the Macedonian language was welcomed with hope that it will resolve, if not all, then, at least some of the dilemmas, unclearness and impreciseness of the orthographic rules present in the late Orthography. Indeed, the new edition of the Orthography (2015) brings in changes, supplements and provides accurate information. However, the written practice is overloaded with countless examples of incorrect use, which refer to the use of punctuation and orthographic marks, especially of the dash, and this is not in accordance with the standard norm of the language. Hence, the paper’s aim is to compare several basic rules regarding the use of the dash in the two editions of the Orthography (1998 and 2015) and to show that many mistakes are present in one relevant segment of the written practice, i.e. in the journalistic sub-style. The research has qualitative paradigm (analysis of content) and descriptive design. The methods used to process the data and to draw scientifically conclusions are analysis, synthesis and comparison. From the analysis, it can be noticed, that the incorrect use of the dash appears partly due to the fact that some rules in the two editions are not clear and precise enough and are exposed to dual interpretations, as well as to the disrespect and the scarce concern of the language norm from the Macedonian language’s speakers. The analysis supports the need of more frequent appearances of new editions of the Orthography in order to make the already existed rules more precise, and to give more publicity to the changes that have already been made in the new edition.
Keywords
Abstract
In the Macedonian language, little, or no attention at all is given to the important role of the punctuation and orthographic marks regarding the coherence and stylistic effects of the written texts they provide. Bearing in mind that the last edition of the Orthography (1988) has been used approximately 20 years, the new edition of the Orthography of the Macedonian language was welcomed with hope that it will resolve, if not all, then, at least some of the dilemmas, unclearness and impreciseness of the orthographic rules present in the late Orthography. Indeed, the new edition of the Orthography (2015) brings in changes, supplements and provides accurate information. However, the written practice is overloaded with countless examples of incorrect use, which refer to the use of punctuation and orthographic marks, especially of the dash, and this is not in accordance with the standard norm of the language. Hence, the paper’s aim is to compare several basic rules regarding the use of the dash in the two editions of the Orthography (1998 and 2015) and to show that many mistakes are present in one relevant segment of the written practice, i.e. in the journalistic sub-style. The research has qualitative paradigm (analysis of content) and descriptive design. The methods used to process the data and to draw scientifically conclusions are analysis, synthesis and comparison. From the analysis, it can be noticed, that the incorrect use of the dash appears partly due to the fact that some rules in the two editions are not clear and precise enough and are exposed to dual interpretations, as well as to the disrespect and the scarce concern of the language norm from the Macedonian language’s speakers. The analysis supports the need of more frequent appearances of new editions of the Orthography in order to make the already existed rules more precise, and to give more publicity to the changes that have already been made in the new edition.
