Croatian Women from Mainz Brought the Glagolitic Script Closer to the German Public

In a former military bakery in Mainz, the Kulturbäckerei institution was officially opened, marking a new center for art, culture, and community gatherings. As part of the opening program, which runs until Sunday, members of the Croatian Cultural Community of Mainz participated by presenting a piece of Croatian cultural heritage to the visitors—the Glagolitic script.

The workshop, titled "Glagolitic Script – A Creative Experience," was held on Saturday, October 24. Led by Martina Parlov and Tanja Bizjak-Bayer, members of the Croatian Cultural Community of Mainz brought the history and unique characteristics of this ancient script closer to the visitors, inviting them to try their hand at writing and creatively shaping it.

Instead of just stopping at presenting the alphabet, the organizers designed practical activities tailored to the visitors. Participants could select their favorite Glagolitic letter, write their name, or compose a message, transferring the letters onto various items, including wooden objects and elements used for making mosaics.

The idea for the workshop came about after Tanja Bizjak-Bayer, a council member of the Kulturbäckerei association, asked members of the Croatian Cultural Community of Mainz during a meeting if they would be interested in participating in the open-house weekend.

"We agreed, but we had to flesh out the idea and decide what we would offer. We thought about making the activity not too demanding, without any rote memorization. We decided on paper, writing names, and making keychains. Instead of other materials, we chose wooden objects," explains Martina Parlov.

Martina’s interest in the Glagolitic script began back in college when friars placed small paper notebooks featuring the letters onto the students' desks. That was her first encounter with the script, and her curiosity later drove her to learn more about it.

"The Glagolitic script stayed somewhere in the back of my mind, and every so often, I would come across those letters again. However, I didn’t learn it in any extra classes, so I wondered how I could find out more about it," she recalls.

Martina Parlov also follows content about the Glagolitic script posted on social media by researcher Tomislav Beronić. She is highly interested in activities and projects related to the script both within Croatia and abroad.

"I constantly follow what is being done in Croatia because I miss that kind of content over here. That is why I wanted to be at least a small part of that story and help spread the Glagolitic script here as well," she emphasizes.

She proposed the workshop alongside members of the Croatian Cultural Community of Mainz, who were ready to try something new and bring the Glagolitic script to a wider audience.

The interest shown by visitors proved that no prior knowledge is needed to get to know the ancient script. Some were surprised by the number of letters, while others immediately wanted to learn how to write their own name.

Source: Glas Hrvatske / HRT