The editorial board of the Croatian language journal Jezik has once again selected new Croatian words from among 419 submitted proposals. This year’s shortlisted entries include zazabava, zamrežje, brzovid, lomoples, and strojumlje.
The winning word is presudnik, proposed as the Croatian equivalent of VAR (Video Assistant Referee). However, reactions from the public and language experts suggest that the term is unlikely to gain widespread use in everyday speech. Critics point out that VAR is already a well-known and easily understood acronym, while presudnik may cause confusion because it suggests a referee who makes the final decision rather than a video assistant referee.
A similar situation applies to other proposed words, such as strojumlje, intended as a replacement for artificial intelligence. Many consider it overly complicated and unnecessary, as most speakers already use the established expression.
The chair of the commission, Sanda Ham, emphasized that all of these words are merely proposals and that their acceptance ultimately depends on language users themselves. If commentators or the media begin using them, they could eventually become part of the language, but most such proposals remain confined to linguistic circles and language reference books. Although new words have been selected for more than twenty years, very few have actually entered everyday speech. One example that has gained wider acceptance is uspornik, which replaced the expression “sleeping policeman” (speed bump).
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Source: Dnevnik.hr, Foto: ChatGPT prompt by Serbian Times