The Tribes of Albania

The Tribes of Albania

Author: Robert Elsie

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2015-04-24

Total Pages: 384

ISBN-13: 0857725866

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Northern Albania and Montenegro are the only regions in Europe to have retained a true tribal society up to the mid-twentieth century. This book provides the first scholarly investigation of this tribal society, a pioneer work that offers a detailed survey of all the major Albanian-speaking tribes in Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. Robert Elsie provides comprehensive material on the 69 different tribes, including data on their locations, religious affiliations, tribal structures and relations, population statistics, tribal folklore, legends and history. Also included are excerpts from the works of prominent nineteenth and early-twentieth century writers, such as Edith Durham and Johann Georg von Hahn, who travelled through the tribal regions, as well as short biographies on prominent figures linked to the tribes. As the first book of its kind, The Tribes of Albania will be of interest to scholars and students of the Balkans, of southeastern European anthropology, ethnography and history.


Book Synopsis The Tribes of Albania by : Robert Elsie

Download or read book The Tribes of Albania written by Robert Elsie and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-04-24 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Northern Albania and Montenegro are the only regions in Europe to have retained a true tribal society up to the mid-twentieth century. This book provides the first scholarly investigation of this tribal society, a pioneer work that offers a detailed survey of all the major Albanian-speaking tribes in Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo. Robert Elsie provides comprehensive material on the 69 different tribes, including data on their locations, religious affiliations, tribal structures and relations, population statistics, tribal folklore, legends and history. Also included are excerpts from the works of prominent nineteenth and early-twentieth century writers, such as Edith Durham and Johann Georg von Hahn, who travelled through the tribal regions, as well as short biographies on prominent figures linked to the tribes. As the first book of its kind, The Tribes of Albania will be of interest to scholars and students of the Balkans, of southeastern European anthropology, ethnography and history.

Nobody's Kingdom

Nobody's Kingdom

Author: T.J. Winnifrith

Publisher: Andrews UK Limited

Published: 2021-05-05

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 1909930954

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The Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empires, foreign invasion, communism and tribal conflict: these have been the realities of life in Northern Albania for centuries. In this rich and comprehensive history, Tom Winnifrith examines the many different elements that have shaped this independent and little-known region of the Balkans. He explores the fundamental division between the South of Albania and its mysterious, romantic North - more feudal, more tribal, more Catholic and more prone to Austrian and Italian influence. It is also a region less affected by Greece, both ancient and modern, and by medieval Byzantium or the Orthodox faith. Northern Albania, with a terrain and climate much harsher than the south of the country, has traditionally had little respect for law and authority while its inhabitants remain in thrall to an ancient honour code -- the kanun -- demanding blood feuds and terrible revenge. Nobody's Kingdom traces the history of this ruggedly beautiful region, frequently disturbed by both invaders and internal strife yet retaining a distinct national identity and character. From its origins in the ancient kingdom of Illyria and the Roman province of Illyricum, through Byzantine and Ottoman rule, the granting of Albanian independence in 1912, the rise and fall of communism to its current fragile democracy, Northern Albania can be seen as a cultural crossroads - especially remarkable given its mountainous and difficult landscape. This book, both scholarly and readable, is the first modern comprehensive history of Northern Albania and is a timely and accessible introduction to a remote and inaccessible region.


Book Synopsis Nobody's Kingdom by : T.J. Winnifrith

Download or read book Nobody's Kingdom written by T.J. Winnifrith and published by Andrews UK Limited. This book was released on 2021-05-05 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empires, foreign invasion, communism and tribal conflict: these have been the realities of life in Northern Albania for centuries. In this rich and comprehensive history, Tom Winnifrith examines the many different elements that have shaped this independent and little-known region of the Balkans. He explores the fundamental division between the South of Albania and its mysterious, romantic North - more feudal, more tribal, more Catholic and more prone to Austrian and Italian influence. It is also a region less affected by Greece, both ancient and modern, and by medieval Byzantium or the Orthodox faith. Northern Albania, with a terrain and climate much harsher than the south of the country, has traditionally had little respect for law and authority while its inhabitants remain in thrall to an ancient honour code -- the kanun -- demanding blood feuds and terrible revenge. Nobody's Kingdom traces the history of this ruggedly beautiful region, frequently disturbed by both invaders and internal strife yet retaining a distinct national identity and character. From its origins in the ancient kingdom of Illyria and the Roman province of Illyricum, through Byzantine and Ottoman rule, the granting of Albanian independence in 1912, the rise and fall of communism to its current fragile democracy, Northern Albania can be seen as a cultural crossroads - especially remarkable given its mountainous and difficult landscape. This book, both scholarly and readable, is the first modern comprehensive history of Northern Albania and is a timely and accessible introduction to a remote and inaccessible region.

The Albanian Bektashi

The Albanian Bektashi

Author: Robert Elsie

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2019-07-25

Total Pages: 392

ISBN-13: 1788315715

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The Bektashi dervish order is a Sufi Alevite sect found in Anatolia and the Balkans with a strong presence in Albania. In this, his final book, Robert Elsie analyses the Albanian Bektashi and considers their role in the country's history and society. Although much has been written on the Bektashi in Turkey, little has appeared on the Albanian branch of the sect. Robert Elsie considers the history and culture of the Bektashi, analyses writings on the order by early travellers to the region such as Margaret Hasluck and Sir Arthur Evans and provides a comprehensive list of tekkes (convents) and tyrbes (shrines) in Albania and neighbouring countries. Finally he presents a catalogue of notable Albanian Bektashi figures in history and legend. This book provides a complete reference guide to the Bektashi in Albania which will be essential reading for scholars of the Balkans, Islamic sects and Albanian history and culture.


Book Synopsis The Albanian Bektashi by : Robert Elsie

Download or read book The Albanian Bektashi written by Robert Elsie and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-07-25 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Bektashi dervish order is a Sufi Alevite sect found in Anatolia and the Balkans with a strong presence in Albania. In this, his final book, Robert Elsie analyses the Albanian Bektashi and considers their role in the country's history and society. Although much has been written on the Bektashi in Turkey, little has appeared on the Albanian branch of the sect. Robert Elsie considers the history and culture of the Bektashi, analyses writings on the order by early travellers to the region such as Margaret Hasluck and Sir Arthur Evans and provides a comprehensive list of tekkes (convents) and tyrbes (shrines) in Albania and neighbouring countries. Finally he presents a catalogue of notable Albanian Bektashi figures in history and legend. This book provides a complete reference guide to the Bektashi in Albania which will be essential reading for scholars of the Balkans, Islamic sects and Albanian history and culture.

The Unwritten Law in Albania

The Unwritten Law in Albania

Author: Margaret Hasluck

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-12-03

Total Pages: 303

ISBN-13: 1107586933

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Originally published posthumously in 1954, this book presents a study of the unwritten law of the Albanian mountain tribes by the renowned Scottish anthropologist, classical scholar and ethnographer Margaret Hasluck (1885-1948). In recording the legal aspects of tribal life, Hasluck also provides detailed information on the everyday existence of the tribes. Four chapters are given to the vendetta system, describing minutely the obligations of vengeance, the manner of conducting a feud, the degrees of expiation and the ways of ending. Other chapters give information about the daily life of the household; the laws governing the division of property; the administrative hierarchy; oaths, verdicts and penalties; theft and murder. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in the writings of Hasluck, anthropology and the Albanian mountain tribes.


Book Synopsis The Unwritten Law in Albania by : Margaret Hasluck

Download or read book The Unwritten Law in Albania written by Margaret Hasluck and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2015-12-03 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Originally published posthumously in 1954, this book presents a study of the unwritten law of the Albanian mountain tribes by the renowned Scottish anthropologist, classical scholar and ethnographer Margaret Hasluck (1885-1948). In recording the legal aspects of tribal life, Hasluck also provides detailed information on the everyday existence of the tribes. Four chapters are given to the vendetta system, describing minutely the obligations of vengeance, the manner of conducting a feud, the degrees of expiation and the ways of ending. Other chapters give information about the daily life of the household; the laws governing the division of property; the administrative hierarchy; oaths, verdicts and penalties; theft and murder. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in the writings of Hasluck, anthropology and the Albanian mountain tribes.

High Albania

High Albania

Author: Mary Edith Durham

Publisher:

Published: 1909

Total Pages: 394

ISBN-13:

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First published 1909. Author was a British traveller, artist and writer who became famous for her anthropological accounts of Albanian life in the early 20th Century.


Book Synopsis High Albania by : Mary Edith Durham

Download or read book High Albania written by Mary Edith Durham and published by . This book was released on 1909 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published 1909. Author was a British traveller, artist and writer who became famous for her anthropological accounts of Albanian life in the early 20th Century.

Light and Shadow

Light and Shadow

Author: Michael L. Galaty

Publisher: Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press

Published: 2013-12-31

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 1938770919

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Employing survey archaeology, excavation, ethnographic study, and multinational archival work, the Shala Valley Project uncovered the many powerful, creative ways whereby the men and women of Shala shaped their world: through dynamic, world-systemic relationships with the powers that surrounded but never fully conquered them. The Shala Valley Project presents the highlanders, the malesore, in the full complexity of their lives, while also unveiling a new, deeper history for the region--a history that reaches back to an unexpected fortified Iron Age site. Light and Shadow tells many stories. Archaeologists, historians, and students of tribes, of empires, of imperial-indigenous relations, of blood feud, of kinship, of the built landscape, of world-systems theory and sustainability science, and more, will find much here to digest. The people of Shala, to which Light and Shadow is dedicated, may serve as an example in our modern age, one in which persistent, tribal peoples still fight for their survival, and seek to preserve some degree of independence from capitalist economies bent on their incorporation.


Book Synopsis Light and Shadow by : Michael L. Galaty

Download or read book Light and Shadow written by Michael L. Galaty and published by Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press. This book was released on 2013-12-31 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Employing survey archaeology, excavation, ethnographic study, and multinational archival work, the Shala Valley Project uncovered the many powerful, creative ways whereby the men and women of Shala shaped their world: through dynamic, world-systemic relationships with the powers that surrounded but never fully conquered them. The Shala Valley Project presents the highlanders, the malesore, in the full complexity of their lives, while also unveiling a new, deeper history for the region--a history that reaches back to an unexpected fortified Iron Age site. Light and Shadow tells many stories. Archaeologists, historians, and students of tribes, of empires, of imperial-indigenous relations, of blood feud, of kinship, of the built landscape, of world-systems theory and sustainability science, and more, will find much here to digest. The people of Shala, to which Light and Shadow is dedicated, may serve as an example in our modern age, one in which persistent, tribal peoples still fight for their survival, and seek to preserve some degree of independence from capitalist economies bent on their incorporation.

National Romanticism

National Romanticism

Author: Balázs Trencsényi

Publisher: Central European University Press

Published: 2007-01-10

Total Pages: 502

ISBN-13: 6155211248

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67 texts, including hymns, manifestos, articles or extracts from lengthy studies exemplify the relation between Romanticism and the national movements in the cultural space ranging from Poland to the Ottoman Empire. Each text is accompanied by a presentation of the author, and by an analysis of the context in which the respective work was born.The end of the 18th century and first decades of the 19th were in many respects a watershed period in European history. The ideas of the Enlightenment and the dramatic convulsions of the French Revolution had shattered the old bonds and cast doubt upon the established moral and social norms of the old corporate society. In culture a new trend, Romanticism, was successfully asserting itself against Classicism and provided a new key for a growing number of activists to 're-imagine' their national community, reaching beyond the traditional frameworks of identification (such as the 'political nation', regional patriotism, or Christian universalism). The collection focuses on the interplay of Romantic cultural discourses and the shaping of national ideology throughout the 19th century, tracing the patterns of cultural transfer with Western Europe as well as the mimetic competition of national ideologies within the region.


Book Synopsis National Romanticism by : Balázs Trencsényi

Download or read book National Romanticism written by Balázs Trencsényi and published by Central European University Press. This book was released on 2007-01-10 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 67 texts, including hymns, manifestos, articles or extracts from lengthy studies exemplify the relation between Romanticism and the national movements in the cultural space ranging from Poland to the Ottoman Empire. Each text is accompanied by a presentation of the author, and by an analysis of the context in which the respective work was born.The end of the 18th century and first decades of the 19th were in many respects a watershed period in European history. The ideas of the Enlightenment and the dramatic convulsions of the French Revolution had shattered the old bonds and cast doubt upon the established moral and social norms of the old corporate society. In culture a new trend, Romanticism, was successfully asserting itself against Classicism and provided a new key for a growing number of activists to 're-imagine' their national community, reaching beyond the traditional frameworks of identification (such as the 'political nation', regional patriotism, or Christian universalism). The collection focuses on the interplay of Romantic cultural discourses and the shaping of national ideology throughout the 19th century, tracing the patterns of cultural transfer with Western Europe as well as the mimetic competition of national ideologies within the region.

The Discovery of Albania

The Discovery of Albania

Author: Johann George von Hahn

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2015-05-12

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 0857738186

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Johann Georg von Hahn - a nineteenth-century Austrian diplomat and explorer - is generally considered to be the founder of Albanian Studies as a scholarly discipline. It was he who first studied the Balkan country and its people, and who brought them to the attention of the academic world. Despite this acclaim, his work has not been widely available in English until now. In this volume, Robert Elsie has translated Hahn's most important works relating to his travels and studies in Albania during the mid-nineteenth century. Hahn's interests were broad, but he was especially interested in the tribes of Albania and Kosovo and made several ethnographic studies of the cultures and traditions of the tribes he encountered on his travels - including the Kelmendi, Hoti and Kastrati tribes. This volume will be invaluable readers for scholars of Balkan history and anthropology.


Book Synopsis The Discovery of Albania by : Johann George von Hahn

Download or read book The Discovery of Albania written by Johann George von Hahn and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-05-12 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Johann Georg von Hahn - a nineteenth-century Austrian diplomat and explorer - is generally considered to be the founder of Albanian Studies as a scholarly discipline. It was he who first studied the Balkan country and its people, and who brought them to the attention of the academic world. Despite this acclaim, his work has not been widely available in English until now. In this volume, Robert Elsie has translated Hahn's most important works relating to his travels and studies in Albania during the mid-nineteenth century. Hahn's interests were broad, but he was especially interested in the tribes of Albania and Kosovo and made several ethnographic studies of the cultures and traditions of the tribes he encountered on his travels - including the Kelmendi, Hoti and Kastrati tribes. This volume will be invaluable readers for scholars of Balkan history and anthropology.

The Albanians

The Albanians

Author: Edwin E. Jacques

Publisher:

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 408

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis The Albanians by : Edwin E. Jacques

Download or read book The Albanians written by Edwin E. Jacques and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Rebels, Believers, Survivors

Rebels, Believers, Survivors

Author: Noel Malcolm

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2020-07-10

Total Pages: 480

ISBN-13: 0192599232

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Thanks to its half-century under Communism, as well as its little-known language, Albania has suffered from neglect and a sense of isolation. Yet, as this study helps to show, the Albanian lands have a long history of interaction with others. They have been a meeting-ground of Christianity and Islam; a channel through which Venice connected with the Ottoman Balkans; a place of interest to the Habsburgs; and a focus for the ambitions of neighbouring powers in the late Ottoman period. Albanians themselves could have many different identities. The studies in this volume, by one of the world's leading experts on Albanian history, range from the fifteenth century to the twentieth, taking in politics, social history, religion and diplomacy. Each is based on original research; the longest, on Ali Pasha, uses a wealth of manuscript material to tell, for the first time, the full story of the vital role he played in the international politics of the Napoleonic Wars. Other studies bring to life ordinary individuals hitherto unknown to history: women hauled before the Inquisition, for example, or the author of the first Albanian autobiography. Some of these studies have been printed before (several in hard-to-find publications, and one only in Albanian), but the greater part of this book appears here for the first time. This is not only a landmark publication for readers interested in south-east European history. It also engages with many broader issues, including religious conversion, 'crypto-Christianity' among Muslims, methods of enslavement within the Ottoman Empire, and the nature of modern myth-making about national identity.


Book Synopsis Rebels, Believers, Survivors by : Noel Malcolm

Download or read book Rebels, Believers, Survivors written by Noel Malcolm and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-07-10 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thanks to its half-century under Communism, as well as its little-known language, Albania has suffered from neglect and a sense of isolation. Yet, as this study helps to show, the Albanian lands have a long history of interaction with others. They have been a meeting-ground of Christianity and Islam; a channel through which Venice connected with the Ottoman Balkans; a place of interest to the Habsburgs; and a focus for the ambitions of neighbouring powers in the late Ottoman period. Albanians themselves could have many different identities. The studies in this volume, by one of the world's leading experts on Albanian history, range from the fifteenth century to the twentieth, taking in politics, social history, religion and diplomacy. Each is based on original research; the longest, on Ali Pasha, uses a wealth of manuscript material to tell, for the first time, the full story of the vital role he played in the international politics of the Napoleonic Wars. Other studies bring to life ordinary individuals hitherto unknown to history: women hauled before the Inquisition, for example, or the author of the first Albanian autobiography. Some of these studies have been printed before (several in hard-to-find publications, and one only in Albanian), but the greater part of this book appears here for the first time. This is not only a landmark publication for readers interested in south-east European history. It also engages with many broader issues, including religious conversion, 'crypto-Christianity' among Muslims, methods of enslavement within the Ottoman Empire, and the nature of modern myth-making about national identity.