SKLAVUN SETTLEMENTS IN SOUTHERN ITALY AND OUR FIRST RECORDED BUGARSCICA

Studying the speech and anthroponymy of Croats from Molise, as well as the anthroponymic survivals of other s k I a v u n settlements in southern Italy, the author exami­ nes our first recorded bugarscica which Professor M. Pantic had read and published as the first Serbian bugarscica. The author has compared the text of the bugarscica song with the language of the Molise Croats, as well as the recorded names of its performers (149) with the anthropo­nymy of the sklavun settlers in southern Italy. He draws the conclusion that the song reflects linguistic properties of the Neretva river delta in the 15th century (ikavian charac­ teristics, s t, zd instead of s c, zj and the like; many cakavian traits etc.). The names of the bugarscica per­ formers match the first and last names of the Molise Croats and other medieval Croatian settlers in southern Italy; by their origin, structure and wider anthroponymic content, both are ascribed to the same linguistic and cultural mi­ lieu