The History of Kosovo in the history textbooks of Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia Publisher: Alter Habitus Author: Shkëlzen Gashi Proof reader: Gazmend Bërlajolli Consultants: Albana Rexhepaj Arbër Vokrri Armanda Hysa Translated by: Elizabeth Gowing Front cover design and typesetting: Rrota www.rrota.com Print: Night Design Prishtinë 2016 Number of copies printed: 400 Research and publication supported by: The Embassy of the Netherlands, the Embassy of Switzerland, Kosovo Foundation for Open Society (KFOS), and Institute “Georg Eckert” The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Institute “Alter Habitus”, the Embassy of the Netherlands, the Embassy of Switzerland, or the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society (KFOS), or the consultants. CONTENTS Introduction .....................................................................................................................................................................................................5 1. The origins of the Albanians ..............................................................................................................................................................9 Summary ...................................................................................................................................................................................................17 2. Kosovo from the Medieval period to Serbian rule .................................................................................................................21 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................26 3. Medieval Kosovo during Serb rule ................................................................................................................................................31 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................39 4. Kosovo under Ottoman rule .............................................................................................................................................................45 4.1 From Gjergj Kastriot-Skanderbeg to the Albanian National Awakening ..............................................................46 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................56 4.2. The Albanian national awakening .........................................................................................................................................60 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................67 5. Kosovo under Serbian rule 1912-2000 ......................................................................................................................................73 5.1. Kosovo 1912-1913 .......................................................................................................................................................................74 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................77 5.2 Kosovo between the two World Wars 1918-1939 .........................................................................................................81 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................85 5.3. Kosovo in Yugoslavia 1945 – 1990 .......................................................................................................................................90 Summary ....................................................................................................................................................................................................98 5.4 Kosovo during the 1990s ........................................................................................................................................................ 103 Summary ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 108 BIBLIOGRAFIJA ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 117 INTRODUCTION This analysis considers the representation of the history of Kosovo - from ancient times to today - in the textbooks of the primary schools and high schools of Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia. The textbooks used to compile this report are those of the publishing houses Libri Shkollor (Prishtina), Albas (Tirana), Zavod za Udžbenike (Belgrade), the Unit for textbooks and learning materials (Podgorica) and Prosvetno Dello and Tabernakul (Skopje). The history textbooks of these five countries, approved by their respective ministries of education, served as the main sources for the report. The descriptions in these historiographical texts are compared, and their similarities and differences identified. International authors such as Noel Malcolm, Oliver Schmitt, Peter Bartl, and Stephen Schwartz, who have covered the developments and events in Kosovo in a range of periods, are juxtaposed with relevant information. The report deals with the most important periods of Kosovo’s history, drawing attention to the discrepancies between the historical accounts in question, as well as to the respective falsifications of each party. In an indirect way the report also reveals what kind of relations with their neighbours the governments of each of the countries is suggesting to the younger generation who are being educated with these textbooks. The report aims to reveal, in a way that is as clear and evidence-based as possible, the basis for the often competing claims between the peoples who come up against one another in Kosovo, and for this reason it is being published in Albanian, Serbian and English. 6 This report is aimed at the authors of school history textbooks from Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia and then to the representatives of the respective ministries of education who give permission for the textbooks’ publication, but also to policymakers and to primary and high school history teachers themselves. It will also be useful for anyone who is interested in the issues dealt with here. Finally I want to thank all those who have contributed to this report in different ways and at different times. Most importantly, the donors: the Embassy of the Netherlands and particularly Ambassador Robert Bosch, the Embassy of Switzerland and the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society (KFOS) and particularly Luan Shllaku. Heartfelt thanks also to the Georg Eckert Institute in Germany and particularly to Claudia Lichnofsky for their support during my two four-week stays with them. Likewise a wholehearted thankyou to the publisher of this report, the Alter Habitus Institute and especially Eli Gashi. For their comments, advice, suggestions and very useful recommendations I also offer thanks to Albana Rexhepaj, Arbër Vokrri and Armanda Hysa, who bear no responsibility for my mistakes; and also to Gazmend Bërlajolli for the linguistic edit; I thank Elizabeth Gowing for the fluent translation into English and Anton Berishaj for doing the same in Serbian; for design and typesetting I thank Rrota, and in particular the designers Arbër Matoshi and Ardian Veliu. 7 1. THE ORIGINS OF THE ALBANIANS The History of Kosovo – in the history textbooks of Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia n the textbooks of Kosovo and Albania, Albanians are acknowledged almost indisputably as having Illyrian heritage, and this chapter thus investigates the following specific questions: how are the Illyrians described? What Ispace is dedicated to them? And what to their wars? What are the reasons given for these wars and their consequences? How is their assimilation or Romanisation presented? And lastly, what was the co-operation of the Illyrians with their neighbours? History textbooks in Kosovo say that the Pelasgians were the oldest people in the Balkans, while the Illyrians were their descendants and the ‘Pelasgian language was very similar to the Illyrian tongue and Illyrian derived from it, while the traditions and customs of the Pelasgians were very similar to those of the Illyrians’. However, no supporting arguments are given. According to these textbooks, the Illyrians are called the ancestors of the Albanians, and assertions such as the following are made for this: ‘the Illyrians had special customs, similar to those of the Albanians of today’, ‘Illyrian hospitality can be compared to the hospitality offered to guests by the Albanians of today’, ‘the Illyrian form of dress is similar to Albanian dress today’ because ‘Illyrians wore on their head a woollen cap just as Albanians of the mountains wear