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Turco-Albanian (, ''Tourk-alvanoi'') is an ethnographic, religious, and derogatory term used by Greeks for
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...
since 1715.Millas, Iraklis (2006). "Tourkokratia: History and the image of Turks in Greek literature." ''South European Society & Politics''. 11. (1): 50. “The ‘timeless’ existence of the Other (and the interrelation of the Self with this Other) is secured by the name used to define him or her. Greeks often name as ‘Turks’ various states and groups—such as the Seljuks, the Ottomans, even the Albanians (''Turkalvanoi'')”. In a broader sense, the term included both Muslim Albanian and Turkish political and military elites of the Ottoman administration in the Balkans. The term is derived from an identification of Muslims with Ottomans and/or Turks because of the Ottoman Empire's administrative
millet system In the Ottoman Empire, a ''millet'' (; ) was an independent court of law pertaining to "personal law" under which a confessional community (a group abiding by the laws of Muslim sharia, Christian canon law, or Jewish halakha) was allowed to rule ...
of classifying peoples according to religion in which the
Muslim millet Sunni Islam was the official religion of the Ottoman Empire. The highest position in Islam, ''caliphate'', was claimed by the sultan, after the defeat of the Mamluks which was established as Ottoman Caliphate. The sultan was to be a devout Musli ...
played the leading role.Nitsiakos, Vassilis (2010).
On the border: Transborder mobility, ethnic groups and boundaries along the Albanian-Greek frontier
'. LIT Verlag. p. 200. "Who and what was this man, beyond the myth of the “Turkish Albanian satrap” cultivated in Greece? I think of how astonished my students always look when I tell them that Ali Pasha was not Turkish but Albanian. I explain that this unclear, ideologically and sentimentally charged term, “Turkish-Albanian”, only refers to Muslim Albanians, through a general identification of Turks with Muslims, which is related to the millet system of administration used by the Ottomans to classify populations."
From the mid-19th century, the term ''Turk'' and from the late 19th century onwards, the derivative term ''Turco-Albanian'' has been used as a pejorative term, phrase and or expression for Muslim Albanian individuals and communities. The term has also been noted to be unclear, ideologically and sentimentally charged. Albanians have expressed derision and disassociation toward the terms ''Turk'' and its derivative form ''Turco-Albanian'' regarding the usage of those terms in reference to them.


Etymology and usage of the term

The term ''Turco-Albanian'' is a
compound Compound may refer to: Architecture and built environments * Compound (enclosure), a cluster of buildings having a shared purpose, usually inside a fence or wall ** Compound (fortification), a version of the above fortified with defensive struc ...
made up of the words ''Turk'' and ''Albanian''. The word ''Albanian'' is a term that has been used as an
ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...
. '
Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
' ('' Arnavud'') was one of the few ethnic markers normally used, besides the regular religious labels, for the identification of people in official record of the
Ottoman state The Ottoman Empire developed over the years as a despotism with the Sultan as the supreme ruler of a centralized government that had an effective control of its provinces, officials and inhabitants. Wealth and rank could be inherited but were ...
. Whereas the word ''Turk'' was viewed by non Muslim Balkan peoples as being synonymous with ''Muslim'', despite the fact that Muslim Albanians did not speak
Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...
or were not ethnic
Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Turkey * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic lang ...
.Karpat, Kemal H. (2001). ''The politicization of Islam: reconstructing identity, state, faith, and community in the late Ottoman state''. Oxford University Press. p. 342. “After 1856, and especially after 1878, the terms ''Turk'' and ''Muslim'' became practically synonymous in the Balkans. An Albanian who did not know one word of Turkish thus was given the ethnic name of ''Turk'' and accepted it, no matter how much he might have preferred to distance himself from the ethnic Turks.” Apart from being associated with
Muslim Albanians Islam arrived in Albania mainly during the Ottoman period when the majority of Albanians over time converted to Islam under Ottoman rule. Following the Albanian National Awakening (Rilindja) tenets and the de-emphasis of religious traditi ...
, in some specific works the term ''Turco-Albanian'' was used to mention the Labs (), a socio-cultural and dialectal Albanian subdivision, some of whom had converted to Islam during the Ottoman Empire era. In a broader sense the term ''Turco-Albanian'' was used to denote Ottoman military units and elites of both Turkish and Albanian ethnicity that represented the Ottoman administration of the Balkans.Umut Özkırımlı & Spyros A. Sofos (2008)
''Tormented by history: nationalism in Greece and Turkey''
Columbia University Press. , p. 50: "...the so-called Tourkalvanoi, a composite term literally translated as 'Turkalbanians' and used to denote the Turkish and Albanian Muslim elites and military units that represented Ottoman domination in the Balkans)
Within the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
, Muslim Albanians were closely part of the administrative structures of the state and considered one of its important peoples. Reference to Muslim Albanian communities as ''Turco-Albanian'' is made for those that settled the
Peloponnese The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridg ...
in order to spread Islam from c. 1715 until after 1770, as part of official Ottoman policy.Nikolaou, 1997, p. 313: "Il est à signaler que dans ces contrées s'étaient installés, probablement vers 1715 et après 1770, des Albanais musulmans (Turcalbanais), qui furent l'un des facteurs de diffusion de l'islam." Later in 1770, Muslim Albanian mercenaries referred to as ''Turco-Albanian'' were employed by the Ottoman Sultan to suppress the Greek uprising. Those Muslim Albanian forces had also destroyed many cities and towns in
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
during 1769–70. It has been noted that during and in the aftermath of the suppressed 1770 Orlov revolt "when the Greeks got the upper hand they settled old scores; when the Turks and Albanians reasserted themselves they were merciless: recapturing Patras, they left scarcely anyone alive." The city of
Mystras Mystras or Mistras (), also known in the '' Chronicle of the Morea'' as Myzethras or Myzithras (Μυζηθρᾶς), is a fortified town and a former municipality in Laconia, Peloponnese, Greece. Situated on Mount Taygetus, above ancient Sparta, ...
was left in ruins and the metropolitan bishop Ananias was executed despite having saved the life of several Turks during the uprising. A great number of local Greeks were killed by the Albanian groups, while several children were sold to slavery. Their activity included massacres, looting and destruction in the regions of
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
,
Western Macedonia Western Macedonia (, ) is one of the thirteen Regions of Greece, administrative regions of Greece, consisting of the western part of Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia. Located in north-western Greece, it is divided into the regional units of Greece ...
, Central Greece,
Thessaly Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Aeolic Greek#Thessalian, Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic regions of Greece, geographic and modern administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient Thessaly, a ...
, Peloponnese suffered most destruction and massacre due to the activity of 15,000 Muslim Albanian mercenaries. In 1779 the Ottoman army finally managed to drive those groups out of Peloponnese, while the remaining ones were either killed by local villagers or found refuge in Muslim Albanian communities in Lala and Vardounia. The period of 1770–1779 is generally termed as ''Alvanokratia'' (Albanian rule) in Greek historiography. As a result, local Greek traditions in Epirus since the late 18th century mention frequent raids and looting by "Turko-Albanians" or "Albanian" bands. This kind of activity was connected with the depopulation of settlements. Later, during the
Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...
(1821–1830) reference to ''Turco-Albanians'' is made for those Muslim Albanians that fought in the Ottoman side against the Greek revolutionaries. Most scholars of the Greek Revolution tend to grossly neglect the role played by Albanians in this historical period, in particular treating on the one hand Muslim Albanians as "Turks" either by calling them "Turco-Albanians" (Greek: ) or entirely ignoring their Albanian identity, and on the other hand Christian Albanians as "Greeks", hence oversimplifying the events to a "tug-of-war between two ostensible sides". But the reality was much more complex, involving power struggles of numerous players with continual power redistributions and interests realignments. Muslims Albanians are thus often pejoratively named and or called by Greeks as "Turks", represented in the expression ''"Turkalvanoi"''.Megalommatis, M. Cosmas (1994). ''Turkish-Greek Relations and the Balkans: A Historian's Evaluation of Today's Problems''. Cyprus Foundation. p. 28. “Muslim Albanians have been called “''Turkalvanoi''” in Greek, and this is pejorative.”Tzanelli, Rodanthi (2008). ''Nation-building and identity in Europe: The dialogics of reciprocity''. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 62. “Consequently, at the beginning of the 1880s the Greek press openly incited anti-Albanian hatred, associating the Albanian irredentists with Turkish anti-Greek propaganda, and baptizing them Vlachs and ‘Turkalbanian brigands’ (''Aión''. 10 and 14 July 1880; ''Palingenesía'', 3 April 1881).”Nikolopoulou, Kalliopi (2013). ''Tragically Speaking: On the Use and Abuse of Theory for Life''. University of Nebraska Press. p. 299. “Instead of the term “Muslim Albanians”, nationalist Greek histories use the more known, but pejorative, term “Turkalbanians”. As such, the word ''Turk'' within its usage also attained derogatory and derisive meanings that when applied to other words created pejorative meanings of ''cruel'' and ''inhumane behavior'' and or of being ''backward'' and ''savage''.McCarthy, Kevin M. (1970). “The Derisive Use of Turk and Turkey”. ''American Speech''. 45. (1/2): 157. "Among the nationalities that seem to have been disparaged throughout history, the Turks hold a prominent place. The name ''Turk'' or ''Turkey'' has long been associated with cruel, inhuman behavior and has often been used as a descriptive part of our speech in derogatory phrases."; p. 158. "As a noun in the English language ''Turk'' has meant, according to the ''OED'', ‘a cruel, rigorous, or tyrannical man; any one behaving as a barbarian or savage; one who treats his wife hardly; a bad-tempered or unmanageable man.’"; p. 159. "Since it has such a tradition of derisive meanings, I was not surprised when I came across a recent application of ''turk'', this time in the field of sports: ''turk'' is a nickname that professional football players have given to the bad news that they have been cut from the squad. Such an example points out the fact that, while many ethnic groups have served as the butt of jokes and the object of derision in particular periods of our history (for example, the Poles, Italians, Jews, and Irish), the Turks alone have generally been a constant target for derision and have unwillingly lent their name to many unfavorable situations." Within a Balkans context during the twentieth century, the usage of the word "Turk" (and "Turkey") has also been politically employed to differentiate the "indigenous" from the "alien" that interpreted Balkan Muslims as "foreigners".Blumi, Isa (2013). ''Ottoman refugees, 1878-1939: migration in a post-imperial world''. A&C Black. pp. 149–150. “It all started with war. War was the means by which new political elites in neighboring, former Ottoman territories like Bulgaria, Greece, and Serbia identified an opportunity to rewrite the demographic landscape and in turn, claim a historical association with newly “ethnically cleansed” territories. As a consequence of the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, in particular, entire city neighborhoods were razed, names of villages changed, their inhabitants expelled, or more dramatically still, collectively “converted.” To many, the problem was that the beginning of World War I left these states not enough time to complete the ugly task of erasing the Ottoman Empire from “Christendom.” As in the Americas, an Ottoman human “refuse” lingered in independent Balkan countries where some of these “left-over” communities survive until today. Despite a long period of imposed socialism and declarations of brotherhood, Balkan Muslims lived in constant fear that one more round of “ethnic cleansing” will come sweeping through their communities. This is especially the case in Bulgaria and the former Yugoslavia, where a century now of living as “minorities” often led to opportunistic, “functional” blood-letting campaigns in the larger contexts of “national” politics. In Yugoslavia, the non-Slav Albanian Muslim (and Catholic) evolved into a bureaucratic category especially susceptible to periodic state-led expulsion campaigns—throughout the 1920s, 1935–8, 1953–67, and then again in the 1990s—that passed through the region. Invariably castigated as “outsiders” and “fifth-column” threats to national security, the labeling of entire regions of Kosovo, Novipazaar, Montenegro, and Macedonia as inhabited by generic “Muslim Albanians” often meant the organized expulsion of those communities. In order to justify such measures to an occasional outside traveler bearing witness to the violent process, or delegations sent by the newly created League of Nations at the request of Albania (a member state), the Serbian/ Yugoslav state often rolled out historians, demographers, and anthropologists. In an often repeated exercise throughout the post-Ottoman Balkans, operatives of “ethnic cleansing” campaigns resurrected the “professional knowledge” of race sciences first developed in the United States at the turn-of-the-century. In the 1920s, for instance, state authorities eager to continue a process of expulsion started in 1912—briefly disrupted by World War I—sent an army of European-trained ethnographers to “Southern Serbia” to identify those communities least likely to ever accept Serbian rule. These ethnographers and human geographers adopted many of the same racist epistemologies identified in other Euro-American contexts to identify and catalogue the “sub-human” characteristics of hybrid “Turks” whose very “nature” made efforts to assimilate them into a modernizing Serbian/South Slav society “scientifically” impossible. While these stories now make up a core aspect of Albanian (and Turkish, Greek, Bulgarian) historical memory vis-à-vis Serbia’s torment, it has usefully been forgotten that the dynamics around such systemic violence was informed by a set of ideological and disciplinary frameworks that, once instrumentalized, as by the CUP after 1910, transformed the way once heterogeneous societies interacted with each other. These same ideological principles based on racial segregation and biological hierarchies influenced the intellectual elite of the early twentieth-century world. They ultimately mobilized a so-called fertility politics to justify why violent state-led colonialization/expulsion in Yugoslavia (and earlier in Greece and Bulgaria) was necessary in order to maintain the long-term demographic balance of society. Forced expulsion, the signing of “population exchange” agreements—popularized as a diplomatic “solution” already in the immediate aftermath of the first Balkan War of 1912—and ultimately colonization were all tactics used in the Balkans, as well as throughout the Euro-American dominated world.”Blumi, Isa (2011). ''Reinstating the Ottomans, Alternative Balkan Modernities: 1800-1912''. Palgrave MacMillan. New York. p. 32. "As state policy, post- Ottoman “nations” continue to sever most of their cultural, socioeconomic, and institutional links to the Ottoman period. At times, this requires denying a multicultural history, inevitably leading to orgies of cultural destruction (Kiel 1990; Riedlmayer 2002). As a result of this strategic removal of the Ottoman past—the expulsion of the “Turks” (i.e., Muslims); the destruction of buildings; the changing of names of towns, families, and monuments; and the “purification” of languages—many in the region have accepted the conclusion that the Ottoman cultural, political, and economic infrastructure was indeed an “occupying,” and thus foreign, entity (Jazexhi 2009). Such logic has powerful intuitive consequences on the way we write about the region’s history: If Ottoman Muslims were “Turks” and thus “foreigners” by default, it becomes necessary to differentiate the indigenous from the alien, a deadly calculation made in the twentieth century with terrifying consequences for millions." With the case of the Albanians, this at times has resulted in Albanophobia, negative stereotyping, socio-political discrimination and even mass violence.Austin, Robert Clegg (2012). ''Founding a Balkan State: Albania's Experiment with Democracy, 1920-1925''. University of Toronto Press. p. 95. “A cornerstone of Greek policy, an approach also employed by the Yugoslavs, was to encourage religious differences in Albania and stress that Albania was a little ‘Turkey’ hostile to Orthodox Greeks. To popularize the idea of two Albanian states, one Moslem, the other Christian, throughout the early 1920s Greece continually complained that Albania’s majority Moslem population was actively persecuting the Orthodox minority. Albania denied this, stressed its well— documented legacy of religious tolerance, and added that while there was tension in the southern perimeter of the country, it was not between Muslims and Christians, but rather a rift had emerged because of the movement to create an autocephalous Albanian Orthodox Church and some citizens wished to remain under the Patriarchate”.


Usage in Greek media and literature

At the beginning of the 1880s the Greek press openly used the term "Turco-Albanian brigands" to incite hate speech and to associate Albanian irredentists with "Turkish anti-Greek propaganda". During the years 1882–1897 some Greek media and publications initiated a campaign to promote friendship and a potential future alliance between Greeks and Albanians. As such they avoided the use of the term ''Turco-Albanian'' and pointed to the common features shared by both populations. New mixed terms ''Greek-Albanians'' is used instead. The term ''Turco-Albanian'' after the Greek War of Independence was also sometimes used in 19th century Greek school text books for Muslim Albanians.Spahiu, Nexhmedin (2008).
The National Awakening process and the Orthodox Albanians.
Forum Bosnae. 44: 307-308. After the independence of Greece, Greek schools in Albania were organized and furnished with new personnel, programs, and school books by the new Hellenic state. The history and literature taught in these schools indoctrinated pupils with Hellenic chauvinism towards the Muslims - a term that was used by them as a synonym for Turks. They considered Albanian Muslims not to be Albanians or Albanian Muslims, but just Muslims, i.e. Turks or sometimes Turcoalvanoi (Turco-albanians). The fact that there were Catholic Albanians in northern Albania was irrelevant to the Greeks, because that part was too far from the imagined future borders of the Hellenic state.
Greek nationalist histories still uses the more widely known, but pejorative, term ''Turco-Albanian'' instead of Muslim Albanians.


Relative terms

Various Muslim Albanian communities by Greeks were similarly also labelled such as the Turco-Bardouniots (or Τουρκοβαρδουνιώτες, ''Tourko-Vardouniotes''). and Turco-
Chams The Chams ( Cham: , چام, ''cam''), or Champa people ( Cham: , اوراڠ چمڤا, ''Urang Campa''; or ; , ), are an Austronesian ethnic group in Southeast Asia and are the original inhabitants of central Vietnam and coastal Cambodia be ...
(or Τουρκοτσάμηδες, ''Tourko-tsamides'') In Thesprotia older designations based on religion were used for Albanian Muslim Chams by the local Orthodox population who referred to them as "Turks" (i.e.: Muslims), a term still used in the region by some elderly people. The term ''Turco-Albanian'' was also used by both
British intelligence The Government of the United Kingdom maintains several intelligence agencies that deal with secret intelligence. These agencies are responsible for collecting, analysing and exploiting foreign and domestic intelligence, providing military intell ...
and the
German army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
for Muslim Albanian Chams during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and it was borrowed from Greek usage.Tönnes, Bernhard (1980).
Sonderfall Albanien: Enver Hoxhas "eigener Weg" u.d. historischen Ursprünge seiner Ideologie [Special Case Albania: Enver Hoxha's "own way" and the historical origins of its ideology
'. Oldenbourg Verlag. p. 15. "Der deutschen Wehrmacht wie in denen des britischen Intelligence Service während des Zweiten Weltkriegs unter der absurden Bezeichnung „Turko-Albaner" auf. Diese Bezeichnung haben beide Seiten von den Griechen ubernommen, deren Propaganda zufolge die Çamë ,,blutsmäßig’’ Griechen seien, die währen der türkischen Fremdherrschaft islamisiert.... [The German Wehrmacht as in those of the British Intelligence Service during the Second World War used under the absurd name "Turko-Albanians". This designation, both sides have taken over from the Greeks, whose according to propaganda the Çamë by blood ,,are’’ Greeks who Islamized under Turkish rule....]"
Moreover, in Greek, similar composite ethnographic terms that also reveal the ethnic or religious background of the specific communities have also been used, such as ''Cretan Turks, Turco-Cretans'' (or Τουρκοκρήτες, ''Tourkokrites''), and '' Turkish Cypriots, Turco-Cypriots'' (or Τουρκοκύπριοι, ''Tourkokiprioi''). Amongst the wider Greek-speaking population, until the
interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...
of the twentieth century, the term ''Arvanitis'' (plural: ''
Arvanites Arvanites (; Arvanitika: , or , ; Greek: , ) are a population group in Greece of Albanian origin. They are bilingual, traditionally speaking Arvanitika, an Albanian language variety, along with Greek. Their ancestors were first recorded ...
'') was used to describe an Albanian speaker, regardless of their religious affiliations, including Islam. On the other hand, within Greek
Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...
, the term ''Arvanitis'' is still used by some for an Albanian speaker, regardless of their citizenship and religion. "Until the Interwar period ''Arvanitis'' (plural ''Arvanitēs'') was the term used by Greek speakers to describe an Albanian speaker regardless of his/hers religious background. In official language of that time the term ''Alvanos'' was used instead. The term ''Arvanitis'' coined for an Albanian speaker independently of religion and citizenship survives until today in Epirus (see Lambros Baltsiotis and Léonidas Embirikos, “De la formation d’un ethnonyme. Le terme Arvanitis et son evolution dans l’État hellénique”, in G. Grivaud-S. Petmezas (eds.), ''Byzantina et Moderna'', Alexandreia, Athens, 2006, pp. 417–448."


See also

* Albanophobia * Turcophobia *
Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...
*
Albanians in Turkey Albanians in Turkey (; ) are ethnic Albanian citizens and denizens of Turkey. They consist of Albanians who arrived during the Ottoman period, Kosovar/ Macedonian and Tosk Cham Albanians fleeing from Serbian and Greek persecution after the begi ...
*
List of ethnic slurs The following is a list of ethnic slurs, ethnophaulisms, or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given Ethnic group, ethnic, Nationality, national, or racial group or to refer to them ...
*
Ottoman Albania Ottoman Albania was a period in History of Albania, Albanian history within the Ottoman Empire, from the Ottoman conquest in the late 15th century to the Albanian Declaration of Independence, Albanian declaration of Independence and official s ...
*
Ottoman Kosovo Kosovo was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1455 to 1913, originally as part of the eyalet of Rumelia, and from 1864 as a separate Kosovo vilayet. During this period several administrative districts (known as ''sanjaks'' ("banners" or districts ...
*
Ottoman Vardar Macedonia North Macedonia was part of the Ottoman Empire for over 500 years, from the late 14th century until the Treaty of Bucharest in 1913. Before its conquest, this area was divided between various Serbian feudal principalities. Later, it became part ...
*
Islam in Albania Islam arrived in Albania mainly during the Ottoman period in the history of Albania, Ottoman period when the majority of Albanians over time converted to Islam under Ottoman Empire, Ottoman rule. Following the Albanian National Awakening , ...
*
Islam in Kosovo Islam in Kosovo has a long-standing tradition dating back to the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. Before the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, the entire Balkan region had been Christianized by both the Western and Eastern Roman Empire. From 1389 u ...
*
Islam in North Macedonia Muslims in North Macedonia represent just under one-third of the nation's total population according to the 2021 census, making Islam the second most widely professed religion in the country. Muslims in North Macedonia follow Sunni Islam of t ...
*
Islam in Montenegro Islam in Montenegro refers to adherents, communities and religious institutions of Islam in Montenegro. It is the second largest religion in the country, after Christianity in Montenegro, Christianity. According to the 2011 census, Montenegro's 1 ...
*
Islam in Serbia Serbia is a Christianity, Christian majority country, with Islam being a minority faith representing around 4.2% of the total population (excluding the International recognition of Kosovo, disputed region of Kosovo, in which Islam is the pr ...
*
Islam in Greece Islam in Greece is represented by two distinct communities; Muslims that have lived in Greece since the times of the Ottoman Empire (primarily in East Macedonia and Thrace) and Muslim immigrants that began arriving in the last quarter of the ...


Notes


References


Sources

* * {{Ethnic slurs Anti-Albanian sentiment Islam in Albania Islam in Kosovo Islam in North Macedonia Islam in Montenegro Islam in Serbia Islam in Greece Ottoman Albania Ottoman Greece Ottoman period in the history of Kosovo Ottoman period in the history of North Macedonia Ethnic and religious slurs Islamophobic epithets Anti-Turkish sentiment