Perspectives of Study of Aljamiado Literacy

A Project of Transliteration and Transcription Aljamiado Texts

Abstract

The author takes a look at the project of transliteration of the Aljamiado texts and dictionary which was initiated to emerge out of the project at the Institute for language and literature in 1976. So far, results of the aforementioned project are not published because none of nine volumes that were the result of the project have been published. The reason for not publishing any results is related to the conception, which included transliteration of then unknown texts in order to study an older language. However, it turns out that it would be wise to combine the aforementioned transliterated materials into one collection and prepare them for future research since at this moment there are no aforementioned volumes in the Institute. Due to importance of this, we suggest that this project gets reactivated with the goal of presenting the totality of the linguistic expression of Bosnian Aljamiado literacy in the broadest sense of the word, encompassing manuscripts and written publications, thus creating conditions for wide future research. Meanwhile, since 1980, after one phase of this project had been completed, a whole variety of monuments of Bosnian Aljamiado literature have been found, which is still in need of systematic analyses, storing and preparing for future research. Thus, the most logical solution would be that this project is reaffirmed and, with certain updates in methodology and production of some new models of presenting discovered materials, restarted as a new old research project. Due to complexity of high important work duties, it would be necessary to start up cooperation between Bosnian and Oriental Studies, because of which,this research could be started as mutual project of the Institute for language and the Oriental Institute.