Bohemia, strictly speaking, designates Bohemia proper, the chief Bohemian country, exclusive of Moravia and Silesia; but the “Bohemian” Crown designates all these countries as a constitutional unit. In that sense the name might designate the whole future State. Its origin appears to be Celtic; the Boii were a Celtic people who inhabited part of the land, and were succeeded by the German tribe of Marcomanni, who, in their turn, were supplanted by the Slav Czechs. Čech is the Slav name for the Slav people and language in Bohemia and its provinces, and as there is a German and Polish minority in these provinces, the terms used to designate the whole country, the State, are “Bohemia” and “Bohemian.” The Czechs themselves do not adopt this distinction but use the word “Czech” in both senses. When writing German or Latin, however, they do use the words “Böhme,” “Bohemus,” but the French have adopted the Slav designation, and this is also used by the Germans.
The Slovaks extend from the south-east corner of Moravia far into Hungary. They are part of the Czech nation. Incorporated in Hungary as early as the tenth century, and being thereby separated from the Czechs, they have formed a national unit against the Magyars. In the eighteenth century they adopted their own dialect as their literary language; but the language question does not play a prominent rôle, inasmuch as every Czech understands Slovak quite well, and vice versâ.
There has always been a party among the Slovaks who; though adhering to their own dialect, are in favour of the union of these two branches of the same nation. The word “Czecho-Slovak” or “Czechoslovak” (the latter form being intended to designate a closer union) is very widely used, although it is not accepted by the radical Slovaks, who claim an absolutely distinct nationality. The political relationship between Bohemia and Slovakia can be variously formulated in terms of the nomenclature. The same questions may arise as those which are discussed in fixing the relationship of Austria to Hungary. It will depend, for instance, how close the union is as to whether the name “Czechoslovak,” “Czecho-Slovak,” or “Czech and Slovak,” will be decided upon. There is no doubt that the union of the two branches will grow. So far, the political spokesmen of the Czechs and Slovaks in the European
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