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Gjakmarrja
In the traditional Albanian culture, ( English: "blood-taking", i.e. "blood feud") or ("revenge") is the social obligation to kill an offender or a member of their family in order to salvage one's honor. This practice is generally seen as in line with the social code known as the Canon of Lekë Dukagjini () or simply the '' Kanun'' (consisting of 12 books and 1,262 articles). The code was originally a "a non-religious code that was used by Muslims and Christians alike." Protecting one's honor is an essential component to Albanian culture because it is the core of social respectability. Honor is held in very high regard because it translates over generations. Legacies and history are carried in the family names of Albanians and must be held in high priority, even at the cost of one's life. Therefore, when a personal attack of a formidable magnitude is unleashed on a member of any family, an equal punishment is to be expected by the laws of the Kanun. Some of the actions that init ...
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Feud
A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one party perceives itself to have been attacked, insulted, injured, or otherwise wronged by another. Intense feelings of resentment trigger an initial retribution, which causes the other party to feel greatly aggrieved and vengeful. The dispute is subsequently fuelled by a long-running cycle of retaliatory violence. This continual cycle of provocation and retaliation usually makes it extremely difficult to end the feud peacefully. Feuds can persist for generations and may result in extreme acts of violence. They can be interpreted as an extreme outgrowth of social relations based in family honor. Until the early modern period, feuds were considered legitimate legal instruments and were regulated to some degree. For example, Montenegrin cu ...
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Shala (tribe)
Shala is a historical tribe and region of northern Albania in the valley of the river Shalë, in the Dukagjin highlands. At the end of the 19th century the tribe was Catholic and had c. 3,000 members. Today, descendants are widespread in Kosovo and are concentrated in Shala e Bajgorës. Etymology The etymology of ''Shala'' is unclear. It has been connected to the Albanian term ''shalë(sinë)'' denoting an arid or infertile land, however, this etymology does not seem likely considering that the Shala Valley is among the only regions in the Albanian Alps suitable for agriculture. Folk tradition connects their tribal name to the word ''shalë'' ("saddle"), a reference to the legend in which the ancestor of the Shala was given a saddle by his brothers as they departed from one another. Geography The tribal region is situated in northern Albania, in the valley of the river Shalë, north of the Drin and south of Theth, in the Dukagjin highlands. Shala can be broken down into ...
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Theth - LockInTower
Theth ( sq, Thethi) is a small village within Shkodër County, Albania. Following the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Shkodër, and has been declared a Protected Historic Center by the Albanian Government. The community is at the centre of the Theth National Park, an area of outstanding natural beauty. A new official information center on Rruga Fushe near the Thethi bridge is set to open by the Albanian Protected Areas Agency (AKZM), and administered by the Shkoder County Protected Areas Administratio(ADZM Shkoder . History Local tradition asserts a single common ancestor for the community (one Ded Nika) and suggests that the population moved to Theth some 300 to 350 years ago in order to preserve their (Catholic) Christian traditions.Antonia Young''Ethnographic Report'' (Shala Valley Project, December 2005) Visiting Theth in the early 20th century, the traveller Edith Durham said:I think no place where human beings live has given me such an im ...
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Shoshi Tribe
Shoshi is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region of northern Albania in the lower Shala valley. Shoshi is first recorded as a small settlement in 1485. The fis itself traces its origin to the brothers Gjol and Pep Suma. The community of their descendants gradually grew to control part of the Dukagjin highlands. In the 19th century Shoshi also became a bajrak. Geography The Shoshi region stands in north-western Albania, in Shkodër County. It stands about 52 km away from the city of Shkodra. In terms of regional boundaries, Shoshi stands south of Shala, north of Shllaku, west of Toplana and Dushmani and east of Kiri. The historical settlements of Shoshi are: Ndreaj, Brashtë, Pepsumaj, Pepaj, Shosh-Nicaj, Gjolaj, Ndregjinaj, Cilkok, Gjoshaj, Palaj, Pepsumaj, Gjocaj, Pylaj, Gurri i Lekës, Pilotaj, Shosh-Gurrë, Dardhë, Balzë, Mollë. Gjocaj (Autumn of 2000), Mollë (December 2001), Pepsumaj (December 2004), Brashtë (December 2005), Pylotaj (October 200 ...
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Hoti (tribe)
Hoti is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and sub-region of Malësia, a divided area located in northern Albania and southern Montenegro. Its geography is mostly mountainous, but some of its villages are on flat terrain near the banks of Lake of Shkodër. Hoti was mentioned for the first time in 1330 and fully formed as a community in the mid-to-late 15th century. In its long history, Hoti played an important role in regional politics as a leading community in the northern Albanian tribal structure and as a semi-autonomous area in the borderlands between the Ottoman and Austrian empires and later Montenegro. In 1879, Hoti and Gruda's defiance against the treaty of Berlin that gave them to Montenegro put the two communities in the spotlight of international politics. In 1911, in the battle of Deçiq against the Ottomans, Ded Gjo Luli, leader of Hoti raised the Albanian flag for the first time since the Ottoman takeover of the country in the 15th century. At first, in the S ...
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Besa (Albanian Culture)
Besa (pledge of honor) is an Albanian cultural precept, usually translated as "faith" or "oath", that means "to keep the promise" and "word of honor". The concept is synonymous, and, according to Hofmann, Treimer and Schmidt, etymologically related, to the Classical Latin word ''fides'', which in Late Ancient and Medieval Latin took on the Christian meaning of "faith, (religious) belief" today extant in Romance languages (and then also loaned into Albanian, as '' feja''), but which originally had an ethical/juridical scope. The Albanian adjective ''besnik'', derived from besa, means "faithful", "trustworthy", i.e. one who keeps his ''word''. Besnik for men and Besa for women continue to be very popular names among Albanians. ''Besa'' is of prime importance in the Albanian traditional customary law ('' Kanun'') as a cornerstone of personal and social conduct. Cultural concept and institution ''Besa'' is a word in the Albanian language meaning ''pledge of honor''. The concep ...
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Zog I
Zog I ( sq, Naltmadhnija e tij Zogu I, Mbreti i Shqiptarëve, ; 8 October 18959 April 1961), born Ahmed Muhtar bey Zogolli, taking the name Ahmet Zogu in 1922, was the leader of Albania from 1922 to 1939. At age 27, he first served as Albania's youngest ever prime minister (1922–1924), then as president (1925–1928), and finally as king (1928–1939). Born to a beylik family in Ottoman Albania, Zog was active in Albanian politics from a young age and fought on the side of Austria-Hungary during the First World War. He held various ministerial posts in the Albanian government before being driven into exile in June 1924, but returned later in the year with Yugoslav and White Russian military support and was subsequently elected prime minister. Zog was elected president in January 1925 and vested with dictatorial powers, with which he enacted major domestic reforms, suppressed civil liberties, and struck an alliance with Benito Mussolini's Italy. In September 1928, Al ...
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Kastrati (tribe)
Kastrati is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region in northwestern Albania. It is part of the Malësia region. Administratively, the region is located in the Malësi e Madhe District, part of the Kastrati municipal unit. The centre of Kastrati is the village of Bajzë. The Kastrati tribe is known to follow the ''Kanuni i Malësisë së Madhë'', a variant of the Kanun. They are proverbally known for their pride - ''Kastrati Krenar''. Etymology The term 'Kastrati' is said to be related to the Latin word castrum', which is a Roman camp fortification. The tribe's name contains the Albanian suffix -at, widely used to form toponyms and tribal names from personal names and surnames. The clan's centre was once at the ruins of a Roman '' castra'' on the Scutari-Orosh road. Geography Kastrati tribal territory is located in northwestern Albania, near the border between Albania and Montenegro and on the eastern bank of Lake Shkodra, stretching from Bajzë in the west ...
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Lekë Dukagjini
Lekë III Dukagjini (1410–1481), mostly known as Lekë Dukagjini, was a 15th-century member of the Albanian nobility, from the Dukagjini family. A contemporary of Skanderbeg, Dukagjini is known for the '' Kanuni i Lekë Dukagjinit'', a code of law instituted among the tribes of northern Albania. Biography The Dukagjini Principality stretched from Northern Albania and into modern Kosovo. The western part of Kosovo, sometimes referred to as ''Rrafshi i Dukagjinit or Dukagjin'', takes its name after the Dukagjini family. Until 1444 he was pronoier of Koja Zaharia. He took over the county from his father Prince Pal II Dukagjini in 1446, who appears to have died of apoplexy. Dukagjini fought under the command of Skanderbeg against the Ottomans during the last two years of the legendary war of Skanderbeg. During times of peace they also fought against one another, as Albanian loyalties came and went during that period of their history. Lekë Dukagjini ambushed and killed ...
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Kanun (Albania)
The Kanun (also aln, Kanû/-ja, other names include sq, doke, zakon, venom, usull, itifatk, adet, sharte, udhë, rrugë) is a set of Albanian traditional customary laws, which has directed all the aspects of the Albanian tribal society.. For at least the last five centuries and until today, Albanian customary laws have been kept alive only orally by the tribal elders. The success in preserving them exclusively through oral systems highlights their universal resilience and provides evidence of their likely ancient origins. Strong pre-Christian motifs mixed with motifs from the Christian era reflect the stratification of the Albanian customary law across various historical ages. Over time, Albanian customary laws have undergone their historical development, they have been changed and supplemented with new norms, in accordance with certain requirements of socio-economic development. '' Besa'' and ''nderi'' (honour) are of major importance in Albanian customary law as the corner ...
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Reconciliation Movement In 1990
Reconciliation Movement in 1990 a.k.a. '' (Verrat e Lukes, allegiance, To you I forgave thee blood, Kosovo)'', was an Albanian all-national movement for blood pardon in Albania and Kosovo. It was organized in 1990 by students, professors and workers' unions in Kosovo. It is part of similar movements throughout Albanian regions since the 1960s. History Gjakmarrja (literally "blood-taking" meaning "blood feud") or Hakmarrja ("revenge") refers to the social obligation to commit murder in order to salvage honour questioned by an earlier murder or moral humiliation. This practice is generally seen as in line with the social code in Albania known as Kanuni i Lekë Dukagjinit, or simply the Kanun (English: The Code of Lekë Dukagjini). In 1980, many Albanians were locked in their homes because of the feud, though the murders continued. In Kosovo, many organizations were established for reconciliation campaigning that they "should stop the killings, because Serbia is killing us". Such ...
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