This is a copy of the 20/20 presentation that I gave last week in the studio.
Photos are part of one of my collection which relates to me and represents my identity and I thought to present them as part of this task.
Here is a mixture of Albanian vintage photos, old memories, history, personalities and costumes which I have organized chronologically to present myself and my antecessors. There is also some history of Albanian photography which is a medium that interests me a lot and also relates with presentation.
- Photo description:
1 Dardania
The Dardanians are my Illyrian antecessors that lived in today Kosovo territory called then Dardania. The Dardanians are first mentioned in 4th century BC. This is their emblem according to a publication in Zagreb 1702.
2 PIRRO (297-272 p.e.s.)
He was one of the most
famous commanders of the time and The Molos King of Epirus, He in Albanian is
called “Burri- The man”, He gave to Albanians the etnonime Shqiptar “Sons of
Eagle”. Pirro vas called by his man “ the Eagle” and he has called them “The Eagle Sons”.
3 Albanian language - Indo-european
language tree
Albanian was
proven to be an Indo-European language in 1854 by the German philologist Franz
Bopp. The Albanian language has its own independent branch of the Indo-European
language family with no living close relatives (even though there are many
dialects of Albanian, many distant and remote).
Dialects
Albanian can be
divided into two main dialects, Gheg and Tosk.
4 Kulla
The kulla,
which means tower in English, is mainly seen in the western part of
Kosovo. It is a
distinctive traditional style of the Dukagjini plain that borders
Montenegro,
west of Kosovo. Kullas were mostly constructed between the end
of the 18th
century and the first decades of the 20th
century, and inhabited by
generations of families.
The kulla was a traditional house of the Kosovar Albanian family.
5 The Stone
bridge - Vushtrri-Kosovo
Through research it has
been found that this bridge is one of the oldest of its kind in Kosovo.Until
1902, the bridge was around 7.5 m high. However today you are only able to see
3.7 m.It has high historic values as well as artistic, technologic and simbolic
ones.
6 Albanian
hat – Plisi
The
white hat that Albanians call “Plis” is made from the sheep wool and is
considered like traditional Albanian hat. A lot of the stories confirms that
white hat or Plisi, traditional Albanian hat is inherited from Illyrians
7 Fustanella
Fustanella is a traditional skirt garment worn by men of many nations in the Balkans, similar to the kilt. In modern times, the fustanella is part of Balkan folk
dresses. In Albania it was worn and used by the Royal Guard and southern
part citizens. Photo: A tosk wearing the
traditional fustanella, Girokaster-Albania 1938
8 George Kastrioti Skanderbeg (1405 – 1468),
Widely known as Skanderbeg was a 15th-century Albanian lord who as leader of the League of Lezha defended
the region of Albania against the Ottoman
Empire for more than two decades. Skanderbeg
is Albania's most important national hero and a core figure of the Albanian National Awakening.
Skanderbeg was
born in 1405 to the
noble Kastrioti family .
9 Lekë
Dukagjini (1410–81)
Lekë Dukagjini was an Albanian prince who fought against the Ottoman Empire. A
contemporary of Skanderbeg, Dukagjini is known for a code of law instituted in
Albania. Although Lekë Dukagjini died in 1481 his legacy became everlasting
through the codification of the ancient Illyrian customs and honor codes into
his work titled The Kanun of Lekë
Dukagjini,
10 Meshari
First Albanian
printed book, 1555
The book is
meant to be printed in Venice, in the Latin alphabet, adding it some Cyrillic
symbols for notes in Albanian. It was a great discovery as it was the first
book printed in Albanian. As it stands today, it has 188 pages and the first 16
pages are missing as well as some
other pages in the middle.
11 Gjon Nikolle Kazazi
Albanian priest
1702-1752.He is the first known Albanian that researched the Secret Vatican
archive.From its publication to the 1740, almost 2 centuries, “Meshari” book
was an unknown and lost book. At 1740 it was found at the Propaganda Fida
Library, near Roma – Italy, from Gjon Nikolle Kazazi.
12 League
of Prizren
(1878 - 1881)
It officially began with the gathering of 300 representatives of all
Albanian provinces in the assembly held in Prizren on June 10, 1878. The purpose of the meeting was the creation of an autonomous
Albanian state that would cover the Ottomanvilayets of Prizren, Shkoder,
Monastir and Janina. League was
the first major movement organized politically and
militarily to create a united Albanian region
since the failure of Skanderbeg forces in
the Middle Ages. It is the
preliminary stage before Albanin independence
13 The Albanian Declaration of Independence
Flag`s day Is the declaration of independence of the Albanian Vilayet from
the Ottoman Empire. Albania was proclaimed independent in Vlora on November 28, 1912. The same day, Ismail Qemali
waved the national flag of Albania, from the balcony of the Assembly of Vlorë, in the presence of hundreds of Albanians. This
flag was sewn after Skanderbeg's principality flag, which had been used more than 400 years
earlier.
14 Zog I, King of the Albanians(1895 –1961),
He was King of the Albanians from 1928 to 1939. He was previously Prime Minister of Albania (1922–1924) and President of AlbaniaOn 1
September 1928 General Zogu was crowned King
of the Albanians and declared Field
Marshal of the Royal
Albanian Army on the same day. Zog's regime
brought stability to Albania. The King organised an educational system and attempted to modernize the Albanian military,
though the costs involved in this project were high. (1925–1928).
15 Mother
Teresa (1910 – 1997),
Born as Agnes
Gonxha Bojaxhiu, was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian
citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in
1950. For over 45 years, she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying,
while guiding the Missionaries of Charity's expansion, first throughout India
and then in other countries. Following her death, she was beatified by Pope
John Paul II and given the title Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.
16 The real
art
Albanian
photography has been acknowledged and leader of Balkan’s until 1945 when the communists have killed the
Albanian spirit. The traces of photographic heritage have been wiped of by the
dictatorship of Enver Hoxha, the paranoid communist politician between
1944-1985.
However, Albania has been
the most fruitful area photographically speaking of the Balkans. First Albanian
photograph is taken at 1858
17 Gjakova
The
city of Gjakova was located at the junction of important
road of Via de Zenta.There are
indications and material culture
that certify that in the territory of Gjakova is lived during ancient
periods. However the exiting city belongs to the Ottoman periodCancel
Albanian to English translation
Based on historical
data, Gjakova is known
since the fifth decade
of the fourteenth century.
18 Old Bazaar in Gjakova – Kosovo
The Gjakova Old Bazaar
is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Kosovo. It is a shopping
center that goes back to the 17th century.
This ancient
shopping center has many stores and stalls where you can buy all sort of
handicrafts. There are souvenirs and other items for sale. Some of the most
popular items are its high quality handicrafts. You can also have coffee there.
The center was reconstructed after suffering damage from Serbian during the
1999 war. Aside from shopping, the Gjakova Old Bazaar also has a 15th century
mosque. This in the middle of the complex and one of the major attractions at
the site.
19 The
Sword Dance
Pyrrike
is called the martial type of dance, generally known by the name “the sword
dance”.It is performed in Northern Albania and western Kosovo and “the sword in
the hand” is more like visual or figurative element.Its genesis comes from
ancient Illyrians.
20
Marubi Photos:
Studio was created around 1850s.The studio started to be well-known all over the country and
then outside the country when his photos were published by prestigious
magazines of Italy, France and England.Photo
Studio in Shkodra-Albania is one of the most well known and the richest studio
both in Albania and Balkan Peninsula for more than eighty years (1858-1938).The
Studio was very rich in photography of all sorts; there were pictures of
popular costumes for men, women, children, city people and highlanders being
photographed outside in nature or inside the studio. In 1946 Marubi Studio was
closed down.
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