1 Albanian National Identity in the Twenty-First Century
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Albanian National Identity in the twenty-first century: Escaping from the Ottoman heritage? Perparim Xhaferi A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences The University of Sydney 2019 1 Authorship Statement This is to certify that to the best of my knowledge, the content of this thesis is my own work. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or other purposes. Chapters 5 of this thesis contains material published as "The Political Contribution of Albanian Writers in Defining Albanian Identity: the Debate between Ismail Kadare and Rexhep Qosja". European Journal of Language and Literature, vol. 7, no. 1, 2017, 121-8, and Chapter 6 of this thesis contains material published as "The Post-Ottoman Era: A Fresh Start for Bilateral Relations between Albania and Turkey? ". Australia and New Zealand Journal of European Studies, vol. 9, no. 1, 2017, 42-62. I designed the study, analysed the data and wrote all drafts of these papers. I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work and that all the assistance received in preparing this thesis and sources have been acknowledged. Signature Perparim Xhaferi 9/11/2018 2 Acknowledgements I wish to thank my Principal supervisor, Professor Peter Morgan for his constant support during my candidature. With his persistence and trust he guided me from day one until the completion of this thesis. Peter’s guidance was also crucial in opening my eyes to different ways of thinking and being. I wish to thank Ismail Kadare who, despite his busy agenda, in August 2013, allocated some time to meet with me and discuss his thesis regarding Albanian identity. I also want to thank both Ilir Yzeiri and Hajro Limaj for their electronic correspondence and their support; forwarding me some of their publications. I would like to thank my colleagues and friends Jacob, Elizabeth, Chiara, Marco, Biaggio and Maren for their support and suggestions. I have learned a lot from them and I feel extremely privileged to have had such a positive group of friends, whom I have shared the pain and the joy over the duration of this research. I would like to thank my wife, Anila, for being patient with my studies. I simply couldn’t have done it without her moral support, culinary and other housekeeping skills, but most importantly, being there for our kids, at times that I was challenged by this research. Last but not least, I would like to thank my daughters, Jona and Greta who have been fantastic teenagers, while I was wrestling with my thesis. They have been my inspiration to finalise this research. Their support through the entire journey is highly appreciated and there are no words to describe the gratitude and love. 3 Abstract Albanian identity is contested. Albanians have developed an idiosyncratic and syncretic ‘identity’ over the centuries, reflecting the layered elements of the nation’s past. Of the Byzantine, Roman, Ottoman and Communist periods, it is the long centuries of Ottoman rule that inevitably left the greatest impact on Albanian culture and society. Communist dictator, Enver Hoxha attempted to shift Albanian identity dramatically to another path, but the short- term impact of communism pale in comparison to the long-term, deep-seated effects of the Ottoman Empire. Debates about Albanian identity and its belonging to the Ottoman heritage are far from resolved and in the current Albanian environment, scholars and writers, politicians and media commentators, are divided in their perceptions of the national identity. Many support prominent Albanian writer, Ismail Kadare’s argument in favour of a still-extant European identity underpinning Albanian culture. For Kadare this “frozen” identity survived the Ottoman centuries and must be freed from the remnants of the Ottoman heritage still clinging to it. Others position themselves with Rexhep Qosja—the leader of the opposing camp who argues that Albanian identity is different from that of Europe, that Albanian civilisation draws on both East and West, in particular, that Albanians lost their Christian origins, becoming deeply influenced by Muslim culture during the past centuries, and hence belong to the East rather than the West. Thus, in the twenty-first century, Albanian society is divided, and perceptions of identity mirror these two dominant lines of thought. Tensions remain high in the Western Balkans, Turkey is now a powerful state, and Turkish influence has been strongly directed towards the Albanian, Kosovar and Bosnian governments, as well as to local Muslim populations, many of whom are Albanians. Turkish foreign policy has been aggressively promoted in Albania and Kosovo, on the basis that deep- seated cultural similarities, geo-political, economic, regional and energy security matters bind their futures together. This influence, and present-day Albania’s engagement with Turkey, will have important consequences for Albanians in the future. The aim of this thesis is to shed new light on the nuances of the expression of Albanian identity in relation to the Ottoman heritage, and to gauge the extent to which Ottoman heritage, Turkish influence and Albanian identity and self-understanding are linked at the beginning of the twenty-first century. It is hoped that scholars, policy makers, educators, and academics will use the findings detailed in this thesis to better inform themselves regarding the ways Albanians identify themselves in terms of both East and West. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 8 1.1 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................8 1.2 The research question ..............................................................................................................................9 1.3 Lack of existing scholarly literature in the field ..................................................................................... 11 1.4 Personal reasons for conducting this study .......................................................................................... 13 1.5 Methodological considerations ............................................................................................................. 15 1.6 Some limitations of this research .......................................................................................................... 17 1.7 Terminology ........................................................................................................................................... 18 1.8 The structure of the thesis .................................................................................................................... 22 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ..........................................................................24 2.1 Debates that surround Albanian and Turkish national-identities .................................... 24 2.1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 24 2.1.2 The gap in the literature ..................................................................................................................... 24 2.1.3 Complexities in contextualising Albanian identity: ignorance, speculation and stereotypes ........... 26 2.1.4 Albania: location, demography and population ................................................................................. 30 2.1.5 Albanian identity – a contested space ............................................................................................... 31 2.1.6 The origins of the concept of the Albanian unity under the Ottoman Empire .................................. 35 2.1.7 Stages the Albanian speaking lands were occupied by the Ottomans .............................................. 38 2.1.8 What do we know about the Ottoman occupation of the Albanian speaking lands? ....................... 40 2.1.9 Turkey and Albanian Islam ................................................................................................................. 42 2.2 Turkish national identity in the post Ottoman era........................................................... 45 2.2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 45 2.2.2 Contested post-Ottoman Turkish identity: Escaping the East, but not part of the West .................. 45 2.2.3 Islamism in modern Turkish politics and neo-Ottomanism of the twenty-first century ................... 48 2.2.4 Turkey and the EU .............................................................................................................................. 51 2.2.5 Contribution to literature ................................................................................................................... 52 CHAPTER 3. THEORETICAL TERRAIN .....................................................................54 The conceptualisation of the Albanian ‘nation’ through lenses of ‘nation building’ theories and civilization ...................................................................................................................... 54 3.1 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................