Skopje, 4 May 2025 (MIA) - The 2025 “Goce Delchev” state award for outstanding achievement in the field of science in the interest of the state was presented Sunday to a group of authors: Veselinka Labroska, Marjan Markovikj, Kosta Peev, Vasil Drvoshanov, Elena Stoevska-Denchova, Stevlana Davkova-Gjorgieva, Goce Cvetanovski, Angelina Panchevska, Sonja Milenkovska, Davor Jankulovski, Makedonka Dodevska, Darko Tomovski, Gjorgje Genovikj, Ariton Popovski, Marijana Kish, and Ubavka Gajdova, for their work on a linguistic atlas mapping Macedonian dialects.

Minister of Education and Science Vesna Janevska addressed the award ceremony in Parliament.

“The Macedonian Dialect Atlas, created by a group of authors, reflects the work of all predecessors and contemporaries, thereby depicting not only an image of the lexical wealth present in the Macedonian linguistic area, but also an image of the longstanding engagement by dialectologists in this very significant project for Macedonian and Slavic studies,” Janevska said, congratulating the recipients of the award. 

One of the recipients, Veselinka Labroska, said the atlas represents an example of the harmony and cooperation between the “Krste Misirkov” Macedonian Language Institute and the Research Center for Areal Linguistics at the Macedonian Academy for Sciences and Arts (MANU). 

“This prestigious award obliges us to work even closer and show that teamwork accompanied by individual responsibility is the real formula for success, not only in linguistics but in all areas. A self-respecting people value their own language first – the language in which they shape their thoughts and feelings – and only then do they learn other languages. The Macedonian language is our language and for us, it is the richest and most beautiful language,” Labroska said. 

Photo: MIA Archive