Abstract
The paper deals with one particular period of Czech language purism. Whereas it is generally accepted that the puristic attitude to language influenced the development of Standard Czech in a rather positive way (at least in the first half of the 19th century), it can hardly be questioned that in the second half of the 19th century (particularly between 1870 and 1900) the Czech language purism turned into a fierce combat whose aim was to erase all forms, both grammatical and lexical, of German origin by replacing them by archaic forms taken from the "pure" old language.
Svatopluk Čech did not approve of this attitude and repeatedly critised (or rather: ridiculed) it in his short stories and feuilletons. He was well aware of the fact that no one can succeed in reviving archaic forms that fell out of use long ago.