
VIDEO INTERVIEW | Džurovski: Using foreign letters in inscriptions and advertisements does not preserve the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet
I don't know if I'm the reincarnation of Cyril and Methodius, but the Cyrillic alphabet we use now in the digital world is a reincarnation of what they did back then, so that we can communicate in our language in the new era - he tells Free Press Lasko Djurovski, typographer and graphic designer.
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He zealously fights to correct the shortcomings, to cover the holes, to change the mistakes, and will often offer his work and effort for free, just so that the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet can live. Djurovski is angry when he comes across inscriptions, advertisements, and even announcements from institutions that bypass our letters, even though there is a possibility that they could be used.
– I don't understand why such mistakes are made, especially in institutions. I express my revolt in the way that when I notice that some things are happening that are wrong, that do not correspond to the real Macedonian Cyrillic script, unfortunately this is very present on social networks and other media, I note it. But I also try to offer a solution. That solution should be accepted by the users of the Macedonian Cyrillic script. Rarely does anyone thank me and want to correct the mistake – says Djurovski.
According to him, what is most worrying is that the institutions are not reacting to this. With a desire to note the mistakes and not allow us to lose our Cyrillic script as one of the foundations of our identity, Djurovski has been trying to establish contact with the authorities over the years, but as he says, in vain.
– I rarely have the opportunity to communicate directly with institutions about this problem. I took the initiative, made a selection of the basic mistakes that are repeated in the media and offered solutions to all of them, that is, concrete solutions that would solve all of those problems for the future. Unfortunately, I did not encounter understanding or any reaction from our official institutions, which I believe should do this independently of me – he said.

There is no excuse for the mistakes that are made, our interlocutor emphasizes, because, as he says, the letters of the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet are available for free through fonts.
– The most common response when I suggest it is: “I have nothing to do, that’s the font.” That’s not an excuse. The most commonly used Microsoft system fonts, Miriam and Cambria, what a paradox, contain Macedonian Cyrillic letters. So, if you use that font, you should just choose them – says Djurovski.

The biggest problem that is unknown to the general public is that with these fonts, priority is given to the most numerous users of that Cyrillic font. In most cases, these are the Russian population. And that is why priority is given to the Russian Cyrillic letters. That is why mistakes are made.
– Be careful, if the font says it contains Cyrillic, that does not mean it contains Macedonian Cyrillic – said Djurovski.
The first font where the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet has priority has been created
The new font "Lasko initialis" created by Djurovski stands out in several ways: it is the first font with priority for the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet, in addition to containing ornaments, it is variable.
– This is the first font where priority is given to the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet, in “Lasko” you have no problems using real Macedonian Cyrillic letters. It has basic standard weights, the variable technology allows you, in that space between “light and black”, to choose thousands of other weights that you will need to define for use in your project. That is what makes “Lasko initialis” special – says Djurovski.

According to Djurovski, this is a very important issue in order to preserve the language in the new era, and for this it is necessary to take something on an institutional level in order to increase the use of the Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet in the digital world.
– We are Macedonians, we speak Macedonian and it is quite logical to write in Macedonian Cyrillic. However, the problem that is lingering and is of a technical nature, but it is solvable. An official institution, the Government, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Macedonia, the Institute of Macedonian Language should contact the International Organization that issues codes for each letter, “Unicode”. We are lucky that most of our letters already have Unicode numbers, they are not registered as Macedonian, however, the appearance of those letters is the same as some other letters, Cyrillic or Latin. Only our letter “ф” does not have this number – said Djurovski.
