Eric Hobsbawm writing about Macedonia and 'Greece'

[TrueMacedonian]

page 97

page 107






Your thoughts. Especially on page 107.

[Pelister]

I think he is referring to attempts by various colonial propogandists to use "language" as the basis of nationality, i.e., Bulgarian, Serbian ...etc. The Ottomans attempted to conduct a census in 1904 on the basis of "mother-tongue" but due to protests by Greeks and Bulgarians, it was scrapped. Clearly he is saying that there was a separate Macedonia nationality.

In this context I think he means that the Greeks had to invent or "imagine" an ethnic Greek presence in Macedonia, because one simply did not exist. There were Macedonians-speakers, and Macedonian-speakers who also knew how to speak Greek, but his point I think is that they were no more ethnic Greek, than the Apache's in America.

[TrueMacedonian]

Originally Posted by Pelister

I think he is referring to attempts by various colonial propogandists to use "language" as the basis of nationality, i.e., Bulgarian, Serbian ...etc. The Ottomans attempted to conduct a census in 1904 on the basis of "mother-tongue" but due to protests by Greeks and Bulgarians, it was scrapped. Clearly he is saying that there was a separate Macedonia nationality.

In this context I think he means that the Greeks had to invent or "imagine" an ethnic Greek presence in Macedonia, because one simply did not exist. There were Macedonians-speakers, and Macedonian-speakers who also knew how to speak Greek, but his point I think is that they were no more ethnic Greek, than the Apache's in America.

I feel the same about that text as well.

[Bratot]

Soon to be published:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/28422580


Thx TM!

[TrueMacedonian]

Originally Posted by Bratot

Soon to be published:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/28422580


Thx TM!

Bratot you are resourceful my friend. We should be thanking you for collecting this info and translating it into Macedonian. Fala Bratot

[Bill77]

Bump. I searched for the Name "ERIC HOBSBAWM" and why am i not suprised, there is something about him here at MTO

Anyway, This is an edited version of a lecture given by Eric Hobsbawm at the Central European University of Budapest. Unfortunately no date is given.

ERIC HOBSBAWM
Fact, fiction and historical revisionism

"The most usual ideological abuse of history is based on anachronism rather than lies. Greek nationalism refused Macedonia even the right to its name on the grounds that all Macedonia is essentially Greek and part of a Greek nation-State, presumably ever since the father of Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia. became the ruler of the Greek lands on the Balkan peninsula. Like everything about Macedonia, this is far from a purely academic matter, but it takes a lot of courage for a Greek intellectual to say that, historically speaking, it is nonsense. There was no Greek nation-state or any other single political entity for the Greeks in the fourth century BC: the Macedonian empire was nothing like the Greek or any other modern nation-State, and in any case it is highly probable that the ancient Greeks regarded the Macedonian rulers, as they did their later Roman rulers, as barbarians and not as Greeks..."

[Nomad]

Rip eric hobsbawm