Croatian Language Institute want term ‘lockdown’ replaced with Croatian word

ZAGREB, Nov 2 (Hina) – The Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics recommended on Monday that the Croatian word “zatvaranje” be used in public and in the media in Croatia instead of the English word “lockdown” which is currently being used.

The English word lockdown is formed from the components ”lock” – zaključati in Croatian – and “down” – dolje in Croatian. The English word lockdown means “closure, locking, blocking, isolation”, says a statement signed by the director of the Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics, Željko Jozić.

This word began to be used in the Croatian language with the arrival of coronavirus and according to the Coronavirus Glossary of the Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics it means “the introduction of quarantine or restrictive measures to increase security”. The term “shutdown” also has the same meaning.

“There is a difference between a complete lockdown (sometimes only a lockdown is used in this sense) and a partial or soft lockdown.”

The words “potpuno zatvaranje” (complete closure) and “djelomično zatvaranje” (partial closure) also appear in the Croatian media, so these words should be recommended in the Croatian standard language in place of lockdown, according to the Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics.