Anton Bernolák

Anton Bernolák
Born	3 October 1762 Slanica (Hungarian: Szlanica) now part of Námestovo), then Kingdom of Hungary - now Slovakia
Died	15 January 1813 (aged 50) Nové Zámky (Hungarian: Érsekújvár), Kingdom of Hungary (now Slovakia)
Occupation	Priest, official, linguist
Known for	codified the first Slovak language standard

Anton Bernolák (Hungarian: Bernolák Antal) (3 October 1762 in Slanica (Hungarian: Szlanica), a now inundated village near Námestovo) – 15 January 1813 in Nové Zámky (Érsekújvár) was a Slovak linguist and Catholic priest, and the author of the first Slovak language standard.

He was born to a lower noble family in Orava (region). He studied at a grammar school (gymnasium) in Ružomberok (Rózsahegy) 1774-78, and later in Trnava (Nagyszombat) and Vienna, and graduated in theology at the general seminary in Pressburg (present-day Bratislava) in 1787. In the very same year, he codified the first Slovak language standard, which he based on western Slovak dialects spoken around Trnava, with some elements from the central dialects. The language, called bernolákovčina, wasn't accepted as a national standard language, although it was a milestone on the way to the formation of the modern Slovak nation. From 1787 to 1791, he was a curate in Čeklís (Cseklész, present-day Bernolákovo), from 1791 to 1797 a secretary in the archbishopric vicar's office in Trnava, and from 1797 until his death in 1813, a priest in Nové Zámky).

His language was the basis for the activities of the Slovenské učené tovarišstvo (Slovak Educated Brotherhood), established in 1792 in Trnava, and also for the movement of Bernolák's followers, which lasted three generations.

...
Wikipedia