CATECHISM IN BURGENLAND CROATS

Catechistic writings are mostly written and studied within a sphere of specific interest and are only rarely linked with literature proper. This is, however, not the case with the catechistic writings in the literature of Burgenland Croats, where they are not intended solely for a spiritual - invariably utilitarian - scope, but also as an aesthetic realisation. Owing to this fact, they are regarded as a literary genre in its own right. This paper provides a framework for their study and points to some particularities, underlying the cultural and literary value of catechism in Burgenland Croats