Forging the enemy: the transformation of common Serbian-Albanian traits into enmity and political hostility

Abstract

This chapter argues that the proper origin of Serbian-Albanian hostility had been established in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. In the first part, the chapter offers examples of positive mutual perceptions between Serbs and Albanians in the oral tradition, early Balkan ethnography and historiography from mid-eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century. It is contended that the appreciation for Albanian heroes found in Serbian/Montenegrin folk oral songs and narratives stems from a similar social background and shared patriarchal values among the two ethnic groups. In the second part, the chapter follows the change in their perceptions from the later part of the nineteenth century onwards, influenced by the Eastern Crisis of 1875–1878, formation of the Albanian national movement, weakening of the Ottoman rule and territorial disputes over the present-day Kosovo and Northern Albania. It is argued that these tendencies gradually led to the establishment of Serbian-Albanian hostility, which became cemented on the eve of the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913. In the last instance, the chapter focuses on positive examples of Serbian intellectuals who contested such an approach and advocates for the re-affirmation of these narratives that emphasize similarities and promote friendship between Serbs and Albanians.