Fermor, David Sebastian (2018) Heritage and national identity in post- socialist Albania. Doctoral thesis (PhD), Manchester Metropolitan University. Downloaded from: https://e-space.mmu.ac.uk/622634/ Usage rights: Creative Commons: Attribution-Noncommercial-No Deriva- tive Works 4.0 Please cite the published version https://e-space.mmu.ac.uk Heritage and National Identity in Post-Socialist Albania By David Sebastian Fermor A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Manchester Metropolitan University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Science and the Environment November 2018 0 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my mother, Wendy Fermor and my wonderful partner, Jenny Warburton for their unfailing support and encouragement and for bringing me cups of tea when I needed them most. I would also like to thank my supervisors Professor Craig Young and Doctor Tim Edensor for their encouragement, guidance and sage advice. And I would like to thank all those many people who were welcoming, helpful and generous with their time when I was carrying out fieldwork in Albania, especially Elton Caushi, Edi Lamce, Sadi Petrela, Fioralba Duma, Kosta Nace, Kristaq Kullufe and the staff at CESVI in Permet. i Abstract In this thesis I critically evaluate the concept of the “democratisation of memory” (Atkinson 2008) and to analyse the relationship between the “democratisation of memory” and the (re)construction of national identity through an analysis of changing practices of the (re)construction and consumption of three selected “myths” of Albanian national identity at heritage sites and museums. The three selected myths are; the myth of Illyrian-Albanian continuity, which is the origin myth of the Albanian nation; the myth of the Albanian national hero Skanderbeg; and myth and memory of the Stalinist dictator Enver Hoxha and of state- socialism. I will argue throughout this thesis that the particular “democratisation of memory” described by Atkinson (2008) is just one type or pattern of that phenomenon, and that different types or patterns of the “democratisation of memory” can occur in different contexts and in relation to different narratives, myths and memories. I will also argue that the relationship between the “democratisation of memory” and the (re)construction of national identity observed and analysed in Albania is quite different to that which Atkinson’s (2008) writings suggest. While Atkinson (2008) dwells on the way in which the “democratisation of memory” can allow “traditional” and “official” narratives to be challenged and undermined my research reveals that, in the context of post-socialist Albania, some “traditional” and “official” narratives of Albanian national identity – the myth of Illyrian-Albanian continuity and the myth of Skanderbeg - have actually been bolstered by the “democratisation of memory” as they are represented and consumed in more ways and by more individuals than before and are thereby more deeply embedded in everyday life. At the same time, though, my research shows that negative “official” post-socialist era representations of state- socialism have been challenged and undermined through the “democratisation of memory”. I therefor offer an expanded notion of the “democratisation of memory” based upon the post- socialist and Albanian contexts. ii Table of Contents 1.0. Introduction 1. 2.0. Literature Review 6. 2.1. The “Democratisation of Memory” 8. 2.2. The “Democratisation of Memory” and National Identity 13. 2.3. Multiple “Elites” and Multiple “Official” Discourses 20. 2.4. The “Democratisation of Memory” in Post-Socialist era Central and Eastern Europe 25. 2.5. Globalisation, Geopolitics, Power, Heritage and Identity 36. 2.6. Conclusions 50. 2.7. Aims and Objectives 52. 3.0. Methodology 53. 3.1. Research Philosophy 54. 3.2. Choice of Approach/Methods 57. 3.3. Data Collection 60. 3.4. Data Analysis 67. 3.5. Issues Encountered During Data Collection and Evaluation 68. 3.6. Conclusion 72. 4.0. The Myth of Illyrian-Albanian Continuity: Introduction 73. 4.1. A Historiography of the Myth of Illyrian-Albanian Continuity 75. 4.2. Representations of Illyrian-Albanian continuity in Post-Socialist Albania 86. 4.3. Conclusions 112. 5.0. The Myth of Skanderbeg: Introduction 114. 5.1. The Popular Myth of Skanderbeg 116. 5.2. A Historiography of the Skanderbeg Myth: 1508 – 1991 119. iii 5.3. Representations of Skanderbeg in Post-Socialist Albania 128. 5.4. Conclusions 141. 6.0. Myths and Memories of Enver Hoxha and Albania’s State-Socialist Past 144. 6.1. A Brief History of Enver Hoxha’s Political Life and Personality Cult 146. 6.2. Representations of Enver Hoxha and State-Socialism in Post-Socialist Albania 152. 6.3. Conclusions 188. 7.0. Conclusions 190. 8.0. Reference list 201. iv List of Tables. Page. Table 3.1. Sites visited during pilot phase of research. Indications of pilot Interviews and selection of site for further study 61. Table 3.2. Key codes used during analysis 63. Table 3.3. Key Research Sites and Reasons for their Selection 64. Table 3.4. Key interviewees/interviews 65. v List of illustrations. Page. Figure 4.1. Wedding boutique in Prizren, Kosovo, named after Illyrian Queen Teuta 87. Figure 4.2. The state-socialist era mural “The Albanians” depicts a linear Illyrian-Albanian history 91. Figure 4.3. Map in the Rozafa Castle museum showing the distribution of Illyrian tribes. Represents Epirote tribes in what is today northern Greece as being Illyrian 97. Figure 5.1. Skanderbeg’s helmet depicted at a Kastrati brand petrol Station 130. Figure 5.2. Skanderbeg figurines on sale in the market at Kruja 132. Figure 6.1. Kristaq in his museum 171. Figure 6.2. Kristaq shows an “Iliyria” brand radio, produced in Durrës, Albania, during the state-socialist era 172. Figure 6.3. A display of cutlery produced in Gjirokastër during the state-socialist era 173. Figure 6.4. Kristaq shows a photograph of the state-socialist era May 24th celebrations in Permet 176. Figure 6.5. The front cover of Eltons Horizonte magazine shows children making a mosaic featuring the slogan “Party of Enver” 178. Figure 6.6. Young people spending time on the Tirana Pyramid 183. vi 1.0. Introduction. In this thesis I aim to critically evaluate the concept of the “democratisation of memory” as proposed by Atkinson (2008) and to analyse the relationship between the “democratisation of memory” and the (re)construction of national identity. This is done through an analysis of changing practices of the (re)construction and consumption of three selected “myths” of Albanian national identity at heritage sites and museums in the state- socialist and post-socialist periods. The term “democratisation of memory” was first coined by Atkinson (2008). It attempts to develop a concept which accounts for recent trends and changes in the nature of the production and reproduction of memory and how this relates to the socio-cultural construction of identities in the twenty-first century. It posits a key change in the form of a shift from the production of “a singular uncontested history” by “experts who knew what was notable and important about our past” (Atkinson, 2008: 382) to the “emergence of plural voices that complicate, expand upon, dispute or undermine traditional “official” narratives of history”. This thesis aims to shed light upon the process of the democratisation of memory as it has occurred in the context of post-socialist era Albania. Atkinson’s (2008) concept, the “democratisation of memory” (which is expanded upon and critically reviewed in Chapter 2: Literature Review), was selected as the core theoretical focus of this thesis due to the nature of post-socialist era change in Albania and in the post-socialist states of CEE more broadly. Under Albania’s state-socialist regime the (re)production of memory and myth was under the control of a small elite group at the apex of a highly centralised state. This was an extreme example of the (re)production of – to paraphrase Atkinson (2008: 382) - a “singular uncontested history” by a ruling elite. The transition from, or transformation of, this highly centralised “top-down” production of memory and myth is an important facet of post- socialist change and an area requiring academic scrutiny. At the same time Albania provides an interesting context in which to explore, challenge and develop further Atkinson’s (2008) ideas. Atkinson’s (2008) description of the “democratisation of memory” is based upon observations of trends and processes which have occurred in the UK. Little research on the “democratisation of memory” in other contexts has been carried out. There is a dearth of research into the democratisation of memory in the context of the post-socialist countries of 1 Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), despite the fact that these countries would appear to present particularly appropriate context for the study of the process. The processes of democratisation, marketization and liberalisation, and the opening up to global flows of ideas – or in short the transition to “Western” norms which was once expected to occur in the post- socialist countries of CEE – might be expected to bring forth the same kind of “democratisation of memory” as has occurred in “the West”. But, as Verdery (1996) observes, a straightforward “transition” to “Western” norms has not occurred in any of the post- socialist countries of CEE. Albania provides an arena in which to observe and study the democratisation of memory in a post-socialist context. It was selected for three reasons. Firstly, because the transition from state-socialism was a particularly dramatic and sudden one. Secondly, because the relatively small size of the country makes a comprehensive survey of heritage tourism sites and other important “places of memory” an achievable goal. And thirdly because it is a country about which I have long had a deep curiosity and in which I enjoy travelling and carrying out research.