Club News 1 History: The Illyrian Connection 2 Guest Speaker Bio: Professor Edi Shukriu 3 Illyria and Ulpiana: History and Background 2, 4-5 Food: Cevapi, a Bosnian National Dish 5 Culture: The Croatian Cravat 6 In this issue: Balkan Ways July 7, 2011 Balkan Ways Volume 1, Issue 4 Upcoming calendar : July 8: Professor Edi Shukriu, University of Pristina Presentation on Ulpiana (ancient Roman) archeology in Kosovo July 22: Dinner meet- ing in Ferizaj August: Dokufest in Prizren Notes of interest: Club Leadership selected President: SGT Greg Sell Vice-President / Newsletter Coordinator: SFC Don Eggert Secretary / Assistant Newsletter Coordinator: SSG Elizabeth Deihl Trip/Travel Coordinator: 2LT Abbas Farooqi Program Coordinator: Ms. Ganimete Pashoja Myftiu Club News I would like to invite you to the Balkan Club if you have not yet made an appearance at one of meetings, and thank you for participating if you have already attended. Our organization is becoming more enduring and stable, as we have selected a number of KFOR Soldiers to fill leadership positions: SFC Don Eggert as Vice President, SSG Elizabeth Deihl as Secretary, 2LT Abbas Farooqi as Transportation and LNAC Coordinator, and Gani- mete Pashoja-Myftiu as our Cultural and Language Coordi- nator. In recent meetings, we have progressed through episode two of the six-part BBC documen- tary “The Death of Yugosla- via”, which chronicles the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s as Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, and Bosnia- Herzegovina gained their inde- pendence. Be prepared to re- ceive information overload when viewing one of these epi- sodes! In the future, we plan to com- plete this series as well as invite more guest speakers, receive member presentations, and conduct cultural excursions. Please check with SSG Deihl for open dates to schedule your presentations. Many of our members partici- pated in the Danish Contin- gent march at Camp Novo Selo two weeks ago, and took advantage of the opportunity to take photographs of Kos- ovo‟s beautiful countryside Please consider presenting your photos at one of our meetings. SSG Gregory Sell, President
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Club News 1
History: The Illyrian Connection
2
Guest Speaker Bio: Professor Edi Shukriu
3
Illyria and Ulpiana: History and Background
2, 4-5
Food: Cevapi, a Bosnian National Dish
5
Culture: The Croatian Cravat
6
In this issue: Balkan Ways
July 7, 2011
Balkan Ways
Volume 1, Issue 4
Upcoming calendar:
July 8: Professor Edi
Shukriu, University of
Pristina
Presentation on Ulpiana
(ancient Roman)
archeology in Kosovo
July 22: Dinner meet-
ing in Ferizaj
August: Dokufest in
Prizren
Notes of interest:
Club Leadership selected
President: SGT Greg Sell
Vice-President /
Newsletter Coordinator:
SFC Don Eggert
Secretary / Assistant
Newsletter Coordinator:
SSG Elizabeth Deihl
Trip/Travel Coordinator:
2LT Abbas Farooqi
Program Coordinator:
Ms. Ganimete Pashoja
Myftiu
Club News
I would like to invite you to the
Balkan Club if you have not yet
made an appearance at one of
meetings, and thank you for
participating if you have already
attended.
Our organization is becoming
more enduring and stable, as we
have selected a number of
KFOR Soldiers to fill leadership
positions: SFC Don Eggert as
Vice President, SSG Elizabeth
Deihl as Secretary, 2LT Abbas
Farooqi as Transportation and
LNAC Coordinator, and Gani-
mete Pashoja-Myftiu as our
Cultural and Language Coordi-
nator.
In recent meetings, we have
progressed through episode two
of the six-part BBC documen-
tary “The Death of Yugosla-
via”, which chronicles the
breakup of Yugoslavia in the
1990s as Croatia, Slovenia,
Montenegro, and Bosnia-
Herzegovina gained their inde-
pendence. Be prepared to re-
ceive information overload
when viewing one of these epi-
sodes!
In the future, we plan to com-
plete this series as well as invite
more guest speakers, receive
member presentations, and
conduct cultural excursions.
Please check with SSG Deihl
for open dates to schedule your
presentations.
Many of our members partici-
pated in the Danish Contin-
gent march at Camp Novo
Selo two weeks ago, and took
advantage of the opportunity
to take photographs of Kos-
ovo‟s beautiful countryside
Please consider presenting your
photos at one of our meetings.
SSG Gregory Sell, President
Mystery shrouds the exact origin of
today's Albanians. Most historians of the
Balkans believe the Albanian people are in
large part descendants of the ancient Illyr-
ians, who, like other Balkan peoples, were
subdivided into tribes and clans.
The name Albania is derived from an
Illyrian tribe called the Arber, or Arbereshë,
and later Albanoi that lived near Durrës.
Illyrians were Indo-European tribesmen
who appeared in the western part of the
Balkan Peninsula about 1000 B.C., a period
coinciding with the end of the Bronze Age
and beginning of the Iron Age.
They inhabited much of the area
for at least the next millennium.
Archaeologists associate the
Illyrians with the Iron Age
Hallstatt culture, a people noted
for domestication of horses and
production of iron and bronze
swords with winged-shaped handles. The
Illyrians occupied lands extending from
the Danube, Sava, and Morava rivers to the
Adriatic Sea and Sar Mountains. At various
times, groups of Illyrians migrated by land
and sea into Italy.
Illyrians engaged in commerce and war-
fare with their neighbors. Ancient Macedo-
nians probably had some Illyrian roots, but
their ruling class adopted Greek cultural
characteristics. The Illyrians also mingled
with the Thracians, another ancient people
with adjoining lands on the east. In the
south and along the Adriatic Sea coast, the
Illyrians were influenced by Greeks who
founded trading colonies there. Present-day
Durrës evolved from a Greek colony
known as Epidamnos, founded at the end
of the seventh century BC. Another fa-
mous Greek colony, Apollonia, rose be-
tween Durrës and the port of Vlorë.
Illyrians produced and traded cattle,
horses, agricultural goods, and wares fash-
ioned from locally mined copper and iron.
Feuds and warfare were constant facts of
life for Illyrian tribes, and Illyrian pirates
plagued shipping on the Adriatic Sea.
Councils of elders chose chieftains who
headed each of the numerous Illyrian
tribes. From time to time, local chieftains
extended their rule over other tribes and
formed short-lived kingdoms. During the
fifth century B.C., a well-developed
Illyrian center existed north to the upper
Sava River valley in Slovenia. Illyrian
friezes discovered near present-day Ljubl-
jana depict ritual sacrifices, feasts, battles,
sporting events, and other activities.
The Illyrian kingdom of Bardhyllus
became a formidable power in the fourth
century BC. In 358 BC, however, Mace-
donia's Philip II, father of Alexander the
Great, defeated the Illyrians and assumed
control of their territory as far as Lake
Ohrid. Alexander himself defeated Illyrian
chieftain Clitus in 335 BC, and Illyrian
tribal leaders and soldiers accompanied
Alexander on his conquest of Persia. After
Alexander's death in 323 BC, independent
Illyrian kingdoms again arose. In 312 BC,
King Glaucius expelled the Greeks from
Durrës. By the end of the third century, an
Illyrian kingdom based near today‟s Alba-
nian city of Shkodër controlled parts of
northern Albania, Montenegro, and Her-
zegovina. Under Queen Teuta, Illyrians
attacked Roman merchant vessels plying
the Adriatic Sea, gaving Rome an excuse
to invade the Balkans.
In the Illyrian Wars of 229 and 219
BC, Rome overran Illyrian settlements on
the Neretva River. Romans made new
gains in 168 BC, and captured Illyria's
King Gentius at Shkodër, which they
called Scodra, and brought him to Rome
in 165 BC. A century later, Julius Caesar
fought his decisive battle with rival
Pompey near Durrës (Dyrrachium).
Rome finally subjugated recalcitrant
Illyrian tribes in the western Balkans dur-
ing the reign of Emperor Tiberius in AD
9. The Romans divided the lands that
make up present-day Albania among the
provinces of Macedonia, Dalmatia, and
Epirus.
For about four centuries, Roman rule
brought Illyrian-populated lands economic
and cultural advancement and ended most
of the clashes among local tribes. Illyrian
mountain clansmen retained local authority
but pledged allegiance to the emperor and
acknowledged the authority of his envoys.
During a yearly holiday honoring the Cae-
sars, Illyrian mountaineers swore loyalty to
the emperor and reaffirmed their political
rights. A form of this tradition, known as
the kuvend, has survived to the
present day in northern Alba-
nia.
Romans established
numerous military camps and
colonies, completely Latinizing
coastal cities, and oversaw the
construction of aqueducts and
roads, including the Via Egnatia, a famous
military highway and trade route that led
from Durrës through the Shkumbin River
valley to Macedonia and Byzantium.
Their main exports were wine, cheese,
oil, and fish from Lake Scutari and Lake
Ohrid. Imports included tools, metal ware,
luxury goods, and other manufactured arti-
cles. Apollonia became a cultural center,
and Julius Caesar sent his nephew, later the
Emperor Augustus, to study there.
Illyrians distinguished themselves as
warriors in the Roman legions and made up
a significant portion of the Praetorian
Guard. Several Roman emperors were of
Illyrian origin, including Diocletian (284-
305 AD), who saved the empire from disin-
tegration by introducing institutional re-
forms, and Constantine the Great (324-37
AD), who accepted Christianity and trans-
ferred the empire's capital from Rome to
Byzantium, which he called Constantinople.
Emperor Justinian (527-65 AD), who codi-
fied Roman law; built the most famous
Byzantine church, the Hagia Sofia; and
extended the empire's control over lost
territories, was probably also an Illyrian.
From http://ancienthistory.about.com
Provided by SSG Greg Sell
History: The Illyrian Connection to Albania
Page 2 Balkan Ways Balkan Ways
An example of Illyrian bronze work.
Page 3 Balkan Ways Balkan Ways
Guest Speaker Bio: Professor Edi Shukriu, University of Pristina Ms. Edi Shukriu is a professor,
archaeologist, poet, playwright,
and politician who was born in
Prizren, Kosovo in 1950.
Professor Shukriu earned her
master‟s in archaeology at the
University of Belgrade and her
doctorate in archaeology at the
University of Pristina. She
worked initially for the Kosovo
Museum and now teaches archae-
ology and ancient history at the
University of Pristina. She heads
archeological excavations at sev-
eral sites in Kosovo: Ulpiana,
Tumuleses in Porodime, Tumulus
in Ulpiana, Vermica, Gjonaj, and
the foothills of Vlashnja.
Dr. Shukriu‟s academic background includes
appointment as Visiting Scholar at Vienna
University in 2001, and Visiting Scholar at
Harvard University in 2002. She participated
in the International Writing Program of the
University of Iowa in 2005.
Active in the political arena, Dr. Shukriu was a
member of Parliament from 1992 to 1998 and
again from 2000 to 2004. She
chaired the parliamentary commis-
sion for culture, youth and sports
from 2002 to 2004, and served as
Co-Head of the United Nations
Interim Administration in Kosovo
(UNMIK) Department of Culture
from 2000 to 2001.
She joined the Democratic League
of Kosova (LDK) in 1989, and
founded the region's first women's
democratic organization, the
Women's Forum, in 1990. She
was President of the LDK
Women's Forum from 1995-2000,
and a member of the Presidency of
the LDK Party from 1995-2001.
In 2004, she co-founded a new
political party, the Democratic
Alternative of Kosova, and cur-
rently serves as its Vice-President.
Dr. Shukriu‟s literary work in-
cludes six books of poetry and
three plays as well as several scien-
tific publications: Ancient Kosovo
(2004), Distinguished Albanian
Women (2003), and Pre-Urban Dar-
dania: Archeological Studies in Kosovo (1996).
Dr. Shukriu speaks five languages: Albanian,
English, Serbian, Croatian, and Turkish.
From Robert Elsie, Historical Dictionary of Kosovo
and Curriculum Vitae, Ms. Edi Shukriu
Photo from http://othervoicespoetry.org/
Provided by Ganimete Pashoja-Myftiu
Archaeology in Kosovo: In Brief There have been traces of organized settle-
Food: Ćevapi, a Bosnian National Dish Ćevapi or Ćevapčići is a
Balkan dish of grilled minced
meat, a legacy of the Otto-
man Empire found in the
countries of South Eastern
Europe. They are considered
a national dish in Bosnia-
Herzegovina and Serbia.
They are also common in
Croatia, Montenegro, and
Slovenia, as well as in Mace-
donia, Bulgaria, Romania,
the Czech Republic, Slovakia and on the
border between Italy and Slovenia in
the provinces of Trieste, Udine and
Gorizia.
They are typically served on a plate
or in a flatbread (lepinja or somun). A
serving usually consists of 5-10 pieces
with minced red pepper, salt and
chopped onions. They are often
served with kajmak, ajvar, sour cream,
cottage cheese, and so on.
Ćevapčići arrived in the Balkans
during the Ottoman Turk expansion
into southeastern Europe and developed
through the middle ages into a regional spe-
cialty similar to the kebab. They became
especially popular among Muslims due to
their exclusion of pork.
In Bosnia, it is customary to consider
ćevapi as a traditionally Bosnian dish that
spread to other parts of former Yugoslavia
from Bosnia. To support this theory there
are a variety of Bosnian versions of the same
dish. For example, Travnički ćevapi from
the traditional cattle herding area of Travnik,
and Sarajevski ćevap from the Sarajevo area
look similar but taste slightly different due to
variations in seasoning and meat
content. Some varieties contain
lamb or other non-pork meats.
Banjalučki ćevap differs not only
in taste, but also by being grilled
and served in connected tuples
(usually of four).
The dish is kept simple, and tra-
ditionally served in somun with
onions and/or kajmak and yo-
ghurt or kefir as appetizer,
whereas outside Bosnia, it's com-
mon for ćevapi to be served with variety of
vegetables and seasonings. In Austria, the
Czech Republic and Slovakia, čevapčiči is
generally served with mustard mixed with
finely chopped raw onions and potatoes or
French fries.
We are into the grilling season,
folks. Why not put the burgers and dogs
aside for a minute and try something
different, something delicious and Balkan?
Something like Ćevapi!
From www.kosovoguide.com
by 2LT Abbas Farooqi
Above: An Illyrian helmet
Below: Illyrian bronze work
Ancient Illyria in perspective.
For more information and discussion, see the European Heritage Library
online: euroheritage.net/illyrianalbanians.shtml
WHAT? The Balkan Club is a voluntary learning community which meets once a week (Friday evenings, 1830 hours) to explore the history, geography, culture, politics and economy of the Balkan region. Activities include but are not limited to lectures, presentations, film viewing, and cultural excursions.
WHO? Membership is open to all KFOR soldiers and civilian employees of Camp Bondsteel.
WHY? The Balkan Club is a place to cultivate an understanding of and appreciation for the Balkan region and to stimulate further, self-directed study.