DOCSLIB.ORG

Visualizing Virtual Borders: Identity Territorialization Shifts and “Imagined Geographies” in the Albanian Case

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Visualizing Virtual Borders: Identity Territorialization Shifts and “Imagined Geographies” in the Albanian Case Visualizing Virtual Borders: Identity Territorialization Shifts and “Imagined Geographies” in the Albanian case BY Ilir Kalemaj Submitted to Central European University Doctoral School of Political Science, Public Policy and International Relations In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Supervisor: Prof. Erin Jenne (PhD) Budapest, Hungary March 5th, 2013 1 DECLARATION I hereby declare that no parts of this thesis have been submitted towards a degree at any other institution different from CEU. I hereby declare that this thesis contains no materials previously written and/or published by any other person, except where appropriate acknowledgment is made in the form of bibliographical reference. Ilir Kalemaj March 05, 2013 ------------------------------------------------ Signature 2 Abstract The primary research question that this dissertation addresses is: Why national borders change and why they are perceived differently inside versus outside of the state? What motivates such changes and what are the primary actors and factors that make groups have a certain mapping perception and when virtual shifts occur? This broad and general question is broken down into two empirical and specific questions: (1) how the understanding of the Albanian nation takes on different geographical borders over time-- with some periods associated with the Albanian nation mapping onto Albania's state borders and other periods the Albanian nation expanding on the broader concept of "Greater Albania", and (2) why different Albanian communities (in Albania in one hand and Macedonia and Kosovo on the other) have often imagined the borders of the Albanian nation differently at the same point in time? This dissertation, builds on the argument that power struggle between ‗internal‘ and ‗external‘ (diasporic) elites plays the primary role in building political agendas that create national borders. I construct here a theoretical model that captures the dynamics of domestic versus international constraints on elite choices and how this leads to (re)construction of borders. This builds on the logic that the elites engineer and manipulate national(ist) symbols to create the necessary environment for personal political gains, which is mainly getting and retaining political power. In other words, these competing elites use expansionist/contractionary versions of national map and imagined virtual borders that may or may not be congruent with internationally recognized ones. In embracing one or the other map project, such elites, through cost-benefit calculations, are always constrained by external pressures, which conditionalize domestic discourse and place limits their on their actions and how it influences map weaving. Although the primarily case is the Albanian case, studied comparatively in both spatial and temporal dimensions, as well as investigating compatibility/differences in mass and elite discourse and actions, the references include many empirical bits from a multitude of cases. In addition, the findings have general applications in both analytical and policy-level because concurrent maps exist across states and societies and elite clashes are often largely dependent on geopolitical limits, while policy relevance extends to include the degree and scale of map materialization. 3 Acknowledgements First of all I want to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Prof. Erin Jenne. Having her as my mentor and friend in this endeavor has been the greatest honor. Her openness, constructive criticism and continuous support have made this journey tremendously rewarding and I thank her very much. I have also benefited a great deal from Dr. Matteo Fumagalli`s and Dr. Irina Papkova`s comments and feedback of various drafts on progress of this dissertation. I also have learned a lot from exchanges with Professors Alex Astrov, Michael Merlingen and others in the course of the studies at CEU as well as the continuous understanding and support from staff where special thanks go to Irén Varga, Júlia Paraizs and Eszter Fugedi. I also thank the Ministry of Education and Science in Albania for the Excellence Scholarship Fund whose help has been critical in successfully writing up this dissertation. My family has continuously been an enormous support in this endeavour. I thank my parents and brother for their love and for believing in me, while apologizing for all the time that I have not been able to spend with them. 4 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 8 Chapter 1 .......................................................................................................................................... 19 1.1 The Focus of the Study .............................................................................................. 22 1.2 The Research Question(s)/Puzzle .............................................................................. 25 1.3 Why is Important? ...................................................................................................... 29 1.4 The Argument ............................................................................................................ 33 1.6 Methodology/Research Design .................................................................................. 36 1.7 Plan of the Dissertation/ Conclusion .......................................................................... 46 Chapter 2 .......................................................................................................................................... 52 2.1 Existing Theories of Nationalism and How They Explain Borders ........................... 53 2.2 Delineating borders in nationalist discourse and nation`s mental mapping ............... 65 2.3 A Theoretical Framework of Mental Shifts in Virtual Boundaries........................... 69 2.4 The two overlapping maps of the Albanian nations................................................... 78 2.4.1 External constraints during the mapping of virtual borders ................................ 81 2.4.2 Domestic political competitions and (re)drawing of national map ..................... 84 2.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 87 Chapter 3 .......................................................................................................................................... 89 3.1 Albanian identity construction and how it mapped onto territory in pre-1880 era .... 91 3.2 The map resulting from the Albanian elite struggles during the years 1878-1899 and 1911-1912: Hypotheses and Predictions .......................................................................... 99 5 3.3 Great Powers geopolitics and its effect on shaping the newly created Albanian state and borders: the shifts in the periods 1912 to 1914 and 1914 to 1917........................... 107 3.4.1 Elite struggles, ethnic underbidding and map contraction during (1912-1917) period in Albania ............................................................................................................ 113 3.4.2 Elite Struggles, Ethnic Underbidding and Map Contraction During The Pre-World War I Period Amongst Albanian Elite in Yugoslavia .................................................... 114 3.5 National borders as perceived by the masses in both sides of border from the period 1878 to beginning of WWI ............................................................................................ 116 Chapter 4 ........................................................................................................................................ 130 4.1 External Constraints in Interwar Years for Albanians and the Effects it Produced in Map Weaving ................................................................................................................. 131 4.2 Elite Struggles and the Outcome of Albanian Map from Independence to WWI ... 136 4.3 Imagined National Borders: Bottom-up Changes of (Map) Perception and Mental Shifts in Interwar Period in Albania............................................................................... 146 4.4 The Imagined Nation amongst the Ethnic Kin and the Contractionary Map in Kosovo in Interwar Period ............................................................................................. 156 4.5 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 163 Chapter 5 ........................................................................................................................................ 166 5.1 Direct International Intervention during WWII and Redrawing of Map to Create the ―Greater Albania‖........................................................................................................... 167 5.2 Elite Struggles and the Irredentist Outcome ............................................................ 174 5.3 Main Map Shifts During the Early Communist Period in Albania and its Impact on Visualizing the Nation`s Borders ................................................................................... 177 5.4 Consolidation of National-Communism in Albania and its Effects on the Changing Map and Inter-Ethnic Relations in Both Sides of State Border ..................................... 182 5.5 Perception of Borders of the Ethnic Albanians in Yugoslavia during Communist
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Kosovo Commercial Guide
    Kosovo Table of Contents Doing Business in Kosovo ____________________________ 6 Market Overview ___________________________________ 6 Market Challenges __________________________________ 7 Market Opportunities ________________________________ 8 Market Entry Strategy ________________________________ 9 Political and Economic Environment ____________________ 11 Selling US Products & Services ________________________ 11 Using an Agent to Sell US Products and Services _________________ 11 Establishing an Office ________________________________ 11 Franchising ______________________________________ 11 Direct Marketing ___________________________________ 12 Joint Ventures/Licensing ______________________________ 12 Selling to the Government ______________________________ 12 Distribution & Sales Channels____________________________ 13 Express Delivery ___________________________________ 13 Selling Factors & Techniques ____________________________ 13 eCommerce ______________________________________ 14 Overview ____________________________________________ 14 Current Market Trends ___________________________________ 14 Domestic eCommerce (B2C) ________________________________ 14 Cross-Border eCommerce __________________________________ 14 Online Payment________________________________________ 15 Major Buying Holidays ___________________________________ 15 Social Media __________________________________________ 15 Trade Promotion & Advertising ___________________________ 15 Pricing _________________________________________ 19 Sales Service/Customer
    [Show full text]
  • Indigenous Peoples' Rights in International
    INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ RIGHTS IN INTERNATIONAL LAW: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ RIGHTS EMERGENCE AND APPLICATION This diverse collection of essays and articles emerged from a workshop IN INTERNATIONAL LAW held in Oslo in March 2012, hosted by the Norwegian Center for Human Rights and the University of Oslo. The purpose of the workshop was to gather memories of how the international community had decided to exa- mine the situation of Indigenous peoples, to explore, explain and celebrate their pioneering work within the United Nations and the International La- bour Organization. The participants also examined the impact of that work and were further asked to identify desirable future developments. EMERGENCE AND APPLICATION The workshop and now this volume have brought together unique hi- storical and political perspectives of the same events from a variety of dif- ferent viewpoints. Participants were drawn from Indigenous communities, from the United Nations and the ILO, from national governments and from NGOs, all of whom had been involved in these discussions over the years – some since the very beginning. Among the participants in the workshop was Asbjørn Eide, the fou- nding Chairperson of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations (WGIP), and this book is dedicated to him on the occasion of his 80th birthday. Cover design by Holly Nordlum, Iñupiaq Artist RESOURCE CENTRE FOR THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES EMERGENCE AND APPLICATION A book in honor of Asbjørn Eide at eighty INTERNATIONAL LAW: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ RIGHTS IN INTERNATIONAL WORK
    [Show full text]
  • Failures and Achievements of Albanian Nationalism in the Era of Nationalism
    FAILURES AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF ALBANIAN NATIONALISM IN THE ERA OF NATIONALISM Nuray BOZBORA ABSTRACT The development of Albanian nationalism was not uniform from the beginning and it followed distinct patterns. First there were local protest movements, some were culturally based while others were created by the local elite to protest against local and specific problems. Later these different patterns in Albanian nationalism turned into mass uprising during the 1910 and 1911s. The aim of this paper is to understand the crucial period of mass uprising of Albanians and to analyse how these different patterns in the movement had participated and expressed themselves, what the basic motivation of uniting around a common purpose was, and ease and difficulties in this regard. Keywords: Nationalism, Nation, National Identity, Albanian Nationalism, Balkan Nationalism MİLLİYETÇİLİK DÖNEMİNDE ARNAVUT MİLLİYETÇİLİĞİNİN YETERSİZLİĞİ VE BAŞARILARI ÖZET Arnavut milliyetçiliği başlangıcından itibaren tek tip bir hareket olarak gelişmemiş kendi içinde farklılıklar göstermiştir. Hareket içindeki bu farklı gelişme biçimleri önce yerel protestolar, kültürel temelli hareketler ve belirli sorunlara karşı yerel seçkinlerin protesto harekeleri olarak ortaya çıkmıştır. Daha sonra Arnavut milliyetçiliği içindeki bu farklı gelişme biçimleri, 1910 ve 1911 yıllarında kitlesel bir ayaklanmaya dönüşmüştür. Çalışmanın amacı, kitlesel Arnavut ayaklanmasının ortaya çıktığı bu önemli dönemi, hareket içindeki farklılıkların kendilerini nasıl konumlandırdığı, nasıl ifade ettiği
    [Show full text]
  • "Greater Albania: Kosovo and Surrounds" ("Adventures in Slobostan," Part Two) by Chandler Rosenberger OT for PUBLICATION WITHOUT WRITER's CONSENT Mr
    (6) INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS "Greater Albania: Kosovo and surrounds" ("Adventures in Slobostan," Part Two) by Chandler Rosenberger OT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT WRITER'S CONSENT Mr. Peter Bird Martin c/o ICWA 4 W. Wheelock Street Hanover, N.H. 03755 U.S.A. Dear Peter, Will the Yugoslav war migrate again? First the Yugoslav federation fought to keep Croatia and Slovenia from leaving. Now the war is on keep Bosnia. But these three aren't the only regions to try to get out. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Kosovo, now a region of Serbia itself, have also both voted in referenda to break from Belgrade. Macedonia has even suc- Cluj ceeded. But will these two suffer the fate of the other Sibiu three? Will the Yugoslav Na- tional Army fight for the federation's last scraps? Perhaps, but not because Kosovo and Macedonia are like B O S N A BELGRADE Croatia and SIovenia. If the YU OSLAVlA war moves to these regions, it AN D Kragujevac Sarajevo will be because they are unlike SERBIA HERZEGOVIN the republics to the west. A Nis BULGARIA battle for Kosovo wouid war on and for Serbian soil. To the -. Leskovac Niksic 'qtova:.." Mitrovica Serb mind, the residents of SOFIA Pristina Kosovo who voted last year for Gnjilane [" independence have committed a much more serious sin than *Skopje leaving their federation. They, MACEDONIA TIRANA mostly ethnic Albanians, have (R). Serrai Bitola threatened to seize part of ALBANIA Serbia itself. Any of the large Thessalonika number of Albanians living in ITALY Korce Taranto Macedonia who supported GREECE them in a conflict would be accessories to the crime.
    [Show full text]
  • “These Were Hard Times for Skanderbeg, but He Had an Ally, the Hungarian Hunyadi” Episodes in Albanian–Hungarian Historical Contacts
    CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by Repository of the Academy'sACTA Library BALCANO-HUNGARICA 1. 1 “These were hard times for Skanderbeg, but he had an ally, the Hungarian Hunyadi” Episodes in Albanian–Hungarian Historical Contacts It is of inestimable significance for Albanian studies in Hungary that the Hungarian Academy of Sciences has had the opportunity to produce and publish Edited by the present book which constitutes a Krisztián Csaplár-Degovics major contribution towards enabling this book to serve as a kind of third volume of Illyrisch-Albanische Forschungen (1916). Although there has been no organized Albanian research in Hungary, the chapters in this book clearly demonstrate that researchers well versed in the various historical periods have engaged in a joint investigation of the Albanian–Hungarian past. The studies reveal new research findings, many of which will cause a sensation in the world of Albanian studies. The book is a distillation of con tem- porary Hungarian work on Albanian Episodes in Albanian–Hungarian Historical Contacts studies and also a salute by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Hungarian ISBN 978-963-416-184-4 Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to the joint Albanian–Hungarian and Austro–Hungarian past. 9 789634 161844 albán1.indd 1 7/30/2019 2:05:25 PM “These were hard times for Skanderbeg, but he had an ally, the Hungarian Hunyadi” Episodes in Albanian–Hungarian Historical Contacts Acta Balcano-Hungarica 1. ※ Series managing editors: Pál Fodor and Antal Molnár
    [Show full text]
  • Development of Environmental Code of Conduct in Dajti National Park
    DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CODE OF CONDUCT IN DAJTI NATIONAL PARK Sindi Lilo1, Raimonda Totoni2 1Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Polytechnic University of Tirana, ALBANIA, e-mail: [email protected] 2Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematical Engineering and Physical Engineering, Polytechnic University of Tirana, ALBANIA, e-mail: [email protected] Abstract Dajti National Park is one of the main Natural National Parks in Albania. This Protected Area is situated in the East of Tirana and covers an area of 29217 ha. Dajti National Park is very important on local, national and regional level, for its biodiversity, landscape, recreational and cultural values. Among others it is considered as a live museum of the natural vertical structure of vegetation. The heritage, traditions on ethnography, music, cooking, hospitality etc, unique on Central Albania region, are some other local cultural values that from centuries runs in compliance with natural richness. Unfortunately, for more than 20 years, because of the demographic changes and human stresses caused by it, the National Park values are threatened and reduced by uncontrolled human activity. Forest fires, erosion, inappropriate solid waste disposal, etc. can be counted between main negative impacts caused by human intervention in the area. Unplanned tourism and missing of an appropriate and integrated management is threatening the remained values of this important site. In this condition developing and adopting of Environmental Code of Conduct in Dajti Park is necessary and would contribute in development of ecotourism as an important tool for conservation of natural and cultural resource and for sustainable development. This Code consists on definition of the framework for protection of natural and human values instead of their overexploitation for short term purposes.
    [Show full text]
  • Il Dibattito Intellettuale E Politico in Albania Tra Le Due Guerre Mondiali
    Università Ca' Foscari Venezia Dottorato di ricerca in Storia sociale europea dal Medioevo all'età contemporanea Ciclo: XXIV Anno di discussione: 2013 Il dibattito intellettuale e politico in Albania tra le due guerre mondiali Mehdi Frashëri tra "i vecchi" e "i giovani" Settore scientifico disciplinare di afferenza: M-STO/04 Tesi di Dottorato di Redi Halimi, matricola 955643 Coordinatore del Dottorato Tutore del Dottorando Prof. Mario Infelise Prof. Alberto Masoero 1 2 Indice Introduzione p. 5 Tavola delle abbreviazioni 21 Capitolo 1 Mehdi Frashëri e l'Albania 1870-1939 23 1.1 La fine dell'impero 23 1.2 Riforme, conflitti, rivoluzioni 30 1.3 Evoluzione economica e trasformazioni sociali 32 1.4 Dall'indipendenza alla fine della Grande Guerra 38 1.5 La lotta per il potere e la dittatura di Zog 44 Capitolo 2 Stampa, società e correnti culturali 51 2.1 La stampa albanese tra le due guerre mondiali 54 2.2 Un quotidiano filo-italiano a Tirana? 60 2.3 La stampa e le appartenenze sociali 71 2.4 Correnti culturali e politiche 75 2.5 Circolazioni di uomini e di idee 85 Capitolo 3 La questione economica: Banca d'Albania e riforma agraria 91 3.1 Il rapporto Calmés 94 3.2 La Banca Nazionale 100 3.2 La riforma agraria 104 3.3 Il ruolo di Mehdi Frashëri 114 3.4 Il dibattito sulla riforma agraria 119 3.5 Il pensiero di Frashëri sulle cause dell'arretratezza 125 3 Capitolo 4 Religione e Istruzione: riforme, resistenze e discussioni 131 4.1 Le comunità religiose tra le due guerre mondiali 134 4.1.1 I musulmani 135 4.1.2 Gli ortodossi 137 4.1.3 I cattolici 140
    [Show full text]
  • Chameria History - Geographical Space and Albanian Time’
    Conference Chameria Issue: International Perspectives and Insights for a Peaceful Resolution Kean University New Jersey USA Saturday, November 12th, 2011 Paper by Professor James Pettifer (Oxford, UK) ‘CHAMERIA HISTORY - GEOGRAPHICAL SPACE AND ALBANIAN TIME’ ‘For more than two centuries, the Ottoman Empire, once so formidable was gradually sinking into a state of decrepitude. Unsuccessful wars, and, in a still greater degree, misgovernment and internal commotions were the causes of its decline.’ - Richard Alfred Davenport,’ The Life of Ali Pasha Tepelena, Vizier of Epirus’i. On the wall in front of us is a map of north-west Greece that was made by a French military geographer, Lapie, and published in Paris in 1821, although it was probably in use in the French navy for some years before that. Lapie was at the forefront of technical innovation in cartography in his time, and had studied in Switzerland, the most advanced country for cartographic science in the late eighteenth century. It is likely that it was made for military use in the Napoleonic period wars against the British. Its very existence is a product of British- French national rivalry in the Adriatic in that period. Modern cartography had many of its roots in the Napoleonic Wars period and immediately before in the Eastern Mediterranean, when intense naval competition between the British and French for control of these waters led to major scientific advances. In turn, in the eighteenth century, similar progress had been made in both countries as a result of earlier wars in the Atlantic. This map is titled ‘Chameria/Thesprotia’, and so at that time it is clear that the two traditional names for the region, Albanian and Greek, were both in common use then, not only locally but by the often classically-educated officers of a European Great Power.
    [Show full text]
  • Albanian Families' History and Heritage Making at the Crossroads of New
    Voicing the stories of the excluded: Albanian families’ history and heritage making at the crossroads of new and old homes Eleni Vomvyla UCL Institute of Archaeology Thesis submitted for the award of Doctor in Philosophy in Cultural Heritage 2013 Declaration of originality I, Eleni Vomvyla confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. Signature 2 To the five Albanian families for opening their homes and sharing their stories with me. 3 Abstract My research explores the dialectical relationship between identity and the conceptualisation/creation of history and heritage in migration by studying a socially excluded group in Greece, that of Albanian families. Even though the Albanian community has more than twenty years of presence in the country, its stories, often invested with otherness, remain hidden in the Greek ‘mono-cultural’ landscape. In opposition to these stigmatising discourses, my study draws on movements democratising the past and calling for engagements from below by endorsing the socially constructed nature of identity and the denationalisation of memory. A nine-month fieldwork with five Albanian families took place in their domestic and neighbourhood settings in the areas of Athens and Piraeus. Based on critical ethnography, data collection was derived from participant observation, conversational interviews and participatory techniques. From an individual and family group point of view the notion of habitus led to diverse conceptions of ethnic identity, taking transnational dimensions in families’ literal and metaphorical back- and-forth movements between Greece and Albania.
    [Show full text]
  • The Historic Mission of the Constituent Assembly to Determine the Form of Government
    ISSN 2039-2117 (online) Mediterranean Journal of Vol 10 No 5 ISSN 2039-9340 (print) Social Sciences September 2019 . Research Article © 2019 Eldi Sherifi. This is an open access article licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). The Historic Mission of the Constituent Assembly to Determine the Form of Government Eldi Sherifi PhD. Candidate, Faculty of Law, University of Tirana Doi: 10.36941/mjss-2019-0201 Abstract The Lushnja Congress had decided that the form of government of Albania would be decided by a Constituent Assembly, which should be formed by free elections, after the borders of Albania were determined by the International Border Commissions. This thesis was one of the issues discussed in the National Council during the discussion of the Extended Statute of Lushnja. On that occasion, MP Hilë Mosi said that Albania could not stay in that form of government, republic or monarchy for a long time. Therefore, the elections for the Constituent Assembly had to be organized. Prime Minister Sulejman Delvina resigned because the High Council and the National Council did not accept that the elections be held for the Constituent Assembly, but for the parliamentary elections. Prime Ministers Iliaz Vrioni and Xhafer Ypi also made commitments to organize the elections, but they remained only promises. The election was organized by Prime Minister Ahmet Zogu in December 1923. The Constituent Assembly began work in January 1924, but the assembly failed to approve Albania's constitution and the country was engulfed in a political movement called the June Democratic Revolution in political history.
    [Show full text]
  • Media Integrity Matters
    a lbania M edia integrity Matters reClaiMing publiC serviCe values in Media and journalisM This book is an Media attempt to address obstacles to a democratic development of media systems in the countries of South East Europe by mapping patterns of corrupt relations and prac­ bosnia and Herzegovina tices in media policy development, media ownership and financing, public service broadcasting, and journalism as a profession. It introduces the concept of media in­ tegrity to denote public service values in media and journalism. Five countries were integrity covered by the research presented in this book: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia / MaCedonia / serbia Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia. The research – conducted between July 2013 and February 2014 – was part of the regional project South East European Media Obser­ vatory – Building Capacities and Coalitions for Monitoring Media Integrity and Ad­ vancing Media Reforms, coordinated by the Peace Institute in Ljubljana. Matters reClaiMing publiC serviCe values in Media and journalisM Media integrity M a tters ISBN 978-961-6455-70-0 9 7 8 9 6 1 6 4 5 5 7 0 0 ovitek.indd 1 3.6.2014 8:50:48 ALBANIA MEDIA INTEGRITY MATTERS RECLAIMING PUBLIC SERVICE VALUES IN MEDIA AND JOURNALISM Th is book is an attempt to address obstacles to a democratic development of media systems in the MEDIA countries of South East Europe by mapping patterns of corrupt relations and prac- BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA tices in media policy development, media ownership and fi nancing, public service broadcasting, and journalism as a profession. It introduces the concept of media in- tegrity to denote public service values in media and journalism.
    [Show full text]
  • The Albanian National Question - the Final Piece of the Unsolved Balkan Puzzle?
    Albulena Halili THE ALBANIAN NATIONAL QUESTION - THE FINAL PIECE OF THE UNSOLVED BALKAN PUZZLE? DOI: 10.2478/seeur-2014-0015 “If the Big Powers condemn this brave and freedom loving people to remain under occupation, or still worse, if they split it up among the neighboring countries, the Balkan Peninsula will never find peace, because the Albanians will never give up fighting for their national independence. On the contrary, if they recognize Albanian national rights, Albania will become a contributing factor to peace in the Balkan Peninsula” - Abdyl Frashëri (1839-1892), Albanian political ideologue of the Albanian National Awakening and Leader of Albanian League of Prizren 1. The History of the Albanian national question The shaping of the Albanian idea and national consciousness began in the second half of the nineteenth century as an intellectual movement known as the Albanian National Renaissance. This movement was a key catalyst of many important processes for the organization of Albanians. The Albanian National Renaissance stimulated the Albanian pan-national intellectual, political and military arrangements aiming at the liberation, unification and creation of the Albanian national state. ‘Political Albanianism’ (Shqiptarizma politike) as it was propagated in particular by Branko Merxhani, the Albanian 167 Unauthenticated Download Date | 3/27/15 2:42 PM SEEU Review | Special Edition | Volume 10 | Issue 1 | 2014 publicist, idealist, and founder of the school of Neo-Albanianism, was created in 1912, at the same time as the Albanian
    [Show full text]