The Kočerin Tablet.

The Kočerin Tablet is a medieval tablet with an inscription written in Bosnian Cyrillic, in an archaic West Stokavian dialect of Serbo-Croatian, using Ikavian pronunciation.[1]

History and discovery

The stećak tombstone, which is placed on the grave of Viganj Milošević, was cut and inscribed in 1404 or 1405.[2] The text is positioned on the bottom of the stećak, which is discovered in a necropolis Lipovac, in a field just west and outside of today’s village of Kočerin, 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) away from the town of Široki Brijeg, Bosnia and Herzegovina, where it was discovered in 1983.[2][3] In 1872, stećak was moved to Kočerin and built-in into the right side of the local parochial office wall. In May 2004, it was carefully removed from the office wall and exhibited in the parochial premises in Kočerin.[3]

Dimensions

The tablet measures 54 centimetres (21 in) across on the bottom, 49 centimetres (19 in) in the middle, and 50 centimetres (20 in) at the top. It measures 134 centimetres (53 in) in height. The top part is damaged.[3]

Text

The tablet contains 25 rows of script, with 9-15 characters on each line. There are 300 characters in total and represents the largest known text in Bosnian Cyrillic.[1][3]

The text displays a large number of ligatures.[2] It is written in a Shtokavian Ikavian dialect, without nasal vowels, in a single-yer script, with some apparent Glagolitic influence.[4] The form svetago shows influence from Church Slavonic, but the rest of the inscription is free of Church Slavonicisms in its morphology.[4]

The text mentions how Viganj Milošević served five rulers: Banus Stjepan, King Tvrtko, King Dabiša, Queen Gruba, and King Ostoja.[2] The inscription ends by saying: имолꙋвасьненаст ꙋпаитенамеѣсмь билькаковиесте виꙉетебитикако вьсмьѣ (transl. And I beg you do not step on me because I was as you are and you shall be as I am).

Complete original text with translations
Kočerin tablet
Original text Latin transliteration Modernized Serbo-Croatian English
☩ ваимеѡцаи

синаисветаго
дхааминьсе
леживигань
милошевиꙉь
слꙋжибанꙋс-
типанꙋикралꙋт-
кꙋикралꙋдаби-
шиикралицигрꙋби
икралаостоииꙋт-
овримедоиде
свадисеостоѣ
кральсхерцегом
иꙁбоснмьинаꙋгре
поеостоѣтов-
римеменевигна
доидеконьчина
илегохьнасво-
мьплеменитомь
подькочериномь
имолꙋвасьненаст
ꙋпаитенамеѣсмь
билькаковиесте
виꙉетебитикако
вьсмьѣ

 ☩ va ime ōca i

sina i svetago
d[u]ha aminĭ se
leži viganĭ
miloševiđĭ
služi banu s-
tipanu i kralu t-
[vrĭt]ku i kralu dabi-
ši i kralici grubi
i krala ostoi i u t-
o vrime doide
svadi se ostoě
kralĭ s hercegom[ĭ]
i z bosn[o]mĭ i na ugre
po[id]e ostoě to v-
rime mene vigna
doide konĭčina
i legohĭ na svo-
mĭ plemenitomĭ
podĭ kočerinomĭ
i molu vasĭ ne nast-
upaite na me ě smĭ
bilĭ kako vi este
vi đete biti kako-
vĭ smĭ ě

 ☩ U ime oca i

sina i svetoga
duha, amin. Ovdje
leži Viganj
Milošević.
Služih banu S-
tjepanu i kralju T-
vrtku i kralju Dabi-
ši i kraljici Grubi
i kralja Ostoju, i u t-
o vrijeme dojde
i svadi se Ostoja
kralj s Hercegom
i s Bosnom, i na Ugre
pojde Ostoja. U to v-
rijeme meni, Vignju,
dojde kraj,
i legoh na svo-
m plemenitom
pod Kočerinom.
I molim vas, ne nast-
upajte na mene. Ja sam
bio kako vi jeste,
vi ćete biti kaka-
v sam ja.

 ☩ In the name of the Father and

the Son and the Holy
Spirit, amen. Here
lies Viganj
Milošević.
I served Ban S-
tephen and King T-
vrtko and King Dabi-
ša and Queen Gruba
and King Ostoja and in
that time came
and quarrels Ostoja
the King with the Duke
and with Bosnia on the Hungarians
took Ostoja. At the t-
ime there came to me, Viganj,
my end,
and I lay down on my
heritage [tribal land],
under Kočerin.
And I pray you, do not tread
on me, since I was
as you are [now],
and you shall be as
I am.

References

  1. 1 2 Šimić, Marinka (2004). "Jezik i pismo Kočerinske ploče (The Language and Script of Table from Kočerin)". Vitko: časopis Matice hrvatske Široki Brijeg (in Croatian). III (4): 5. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 2004. Šefik Bešlagić, Leksikon stećaka.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Hrvatska pošta Mostar". Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-11-17.
  4. 1 2 2011. Mateo Žagar, review of Jezik srednjovjekovnih kamenih natpisa iz Hercegovine.
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