150-447: Dagnum ( Albanian : Danjë or Dejë , Serbian : Danj , Italian : Dagno ) was a town, bishopric and important medieval fortress located on the territory of present-day Albania , which has been under Albanian , Serbian, Venetian and Ottoman control and remains a Latin Catholic titular see . It is close to the modern day town of Vau i Dejës . In period 1081—1116 Dagnum belonged to
300-561: A scorched earth strategy (thus denying the Ottomans the use of necessary local resources), Skanderbeg left a protective garrison of 1,500 men under one of his most trusted lieutenants, Vrana Konti , while, with the remainder of the army, which included many Slavs, Germans, Frenchmen and Italians, he harassed the Ottoman camps around Krujë by continuously attacking Sultan Murad II's supply caravans. The garrison repelled three major direct assaults on
450-669: A Latinis, Grecis et Sclauis ita quod in nullo se intelligunt cum aliis nationibus. (Namely, the above-mentioned Albanians have a language that is different from the languages of Latins, Greeks and Slavs, so that they do not understand each other at all.) The oldest attested document written in Albanian dates to 1462, while the first audio recording in the language was made by Norbert Jokl on 4 April 1914 in Vienna . However, as Fortson notes, Albanian written works existed before this point; they have simply been lost. The existence of written Albanian
600-519: A Venetian force of 15,000 men under the command of Daniele Iurichi, governor of Scutari . Skanderbeg instructed his troops on what to expect and opened battle by ordering a force of archers to open fire on the Venetian line. The battle continued for hours until large groups of Venetian troops began to flee. Skanderbeg, seeing his fleeing adversaries, ordered a full-scale offensive, routing the entire Venetian army. The Republic's soldiers were chased right to
750-558: A buffer zone between remaining part of his Zeta and Ottoman Empire), but Zaharia refused to allow Venetians to take control over the Sati. He proclaimed himself the Lord of Sati and Dagnum ("dominus Sabatensis et Dagnensis") after he captured Dagnum in 1396 which became the seat of his domain. In 1429 Stefan Maramonte , supported by Ottomans and forces of Gojčin Crnojević and Little Tanush , plundered
900-879: A common branch in the current phylogenetic classification of the Indo-European language family. The first written mention of Albanian was in 1284 in a witness testimony from the Republic of Ragusa , while a letter written by Dominican Friar Gulielmus Adea in 1332 mentions the Albanians using the Latin alphabet in their writings. The oldest surviving attestation of modern Albanian is from 1462. The two main Albanian dialect groups (or varieties ), Gheg and Tosk , are primarily distinguished by phonological differences and are mutually intelligible in their standard varieties, with Gheg spoken to
1050-561: A common period of prehistoric coexistence of several Indo-European dialects in the Balkans prior to 2000 BC. To this group would belong Albanian, Ancient Greek , Armenian , Phrygian , fragmentary attested languages such as Macedonian , Thracian , or Illyrian , and the relatively well-attested Messapic in Southern Italy. The common features of this group appear at the phonological, morphological, and lexical levels, presumably resulting from
1200-423: A drunken Zaharia saw this and assaulted Dukagjini. Some of the nobles attempted to end the fight, but this only led to more people being involved and resulted in many deaths until peace was established. Neither of the two antagonists had suffered any physical damage, but Dukagjini was morally humiliated. In an act of revenge, Dukagjini ambushed and killed Zaharia in 1447. This resulted in the town's hostility towards
1350-571: A gift to the King. More explicitly, Skanderbeg recognized Alfonso's sovereignty over his lands in exchange for help against the Ottomans. King Alfonso pledged to respect the old privileges of Krujë and Albanian territories and to pay Skanderbeg an annual 1,500 ducats, while Skanderbeg pledged to make his fealty to King Alfonso only after the expulsion of Ottomans from his lands, a condition never reached in Skanderbeg's lifetime. Skanderbeg married Donika ,
1500-525: A hostage for an unspecified time; this way, the Sultan was able to exercise control in the area ruled by the hostage's father. The treatment of the hostages was not bad. Far from being held in a prison, the hostages were usually sent to the best military schools and trained to become future military leaders. Skanderbeg was sent as a hostage to the Ottoman court in Adrianople ( Edirne ) in 1415, and again in 1423. It
1650-572: A huge blow to Ottoman efforts whose Albanian operations were thus inhibited. Right after the Treaty of Gaeta, Alfonso V signed other treaties with the rest of the most important Albanian noblemen, including Gjergj Arianiti , and with the Despot of the Morea , Demetrios Palaiologos . These efforts show that Alfonso thought about a crusade starting from Albania and Morea , which however never took place. Following
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#17329273063101800-472: A large amount (or the majority) of their sea environment lexicon. A similar phenomenon could be observed with agricultural terms. While the words for 'arable land', 'wheat', 'cereals', 'vineyard', 'yoke', 'harvesting', 'cattle breeding', etc. are native, the words for 'ploughing', 'farm' and 'farmer', agricultural practices, and some harvesting tools are foreign. This, again, points to intense contact with other languages and people, rather than providing evidence of
1950-452: A nearby forest under the command of Hamza Kastrioti . At a given signal, they descended, encircled the Ottomans, and gave Skanderbeg a much needed victory. About 8,000 Ottomans were killed and 2,000 were captured. Skanderbeg's first victory echoed across Europe because this was one of the few times that an Ottoman army was defeated in a pitched battle on European soil. On 10 October 1445, an Ottoman force of 9,000–15,000 men under Firuz Pasha
2100-475: A number of isoglosses with Albanian. Other linguists linked the Albanian language with Latin , Greek and Armenian , while placing Germanic and Balto-Slavic in another branch of Indo-European. In current scholarship there is evidence that Albanian is closely related to Greek and Armenian, while the fact that it is a satem language is less significant. Armenian Greek Phrygian (extinct) Messapic (extinct) Gheg Tosk Messapic
2250-535: A possible linguistic homeland (also known as a Urheimat ). The centre of Albanian settlement remained the Mat River. In 1079, the Albanians were recorded farther south in the valley of the Shkumbin River. The Shkumbin, a 181 km long river that lies near the old Via Egnatia , is approximately the boundary of the primary dialect division for Albanian, Tosk and Gheg . The characteristics of Tosk and Gheg in
2400-664: A possible member of the Serbian Branković family or a local Bulgarian noble family. Although there are no primary or archival sources linking Voisava to the Branković family. The other view is that she was a member of the Albanian Muzaka family , daughter of Domenico Moncino Musachi a relative of Muzaka house. Skanderbeg had three older brothers: Stanisha , Reposh and Constantine , and five sisters: Mara , Jelena , Angelina , Vlajka and Mamica . According to
2550-647: A reconciliatory intervention of the Pope, and in 1454, a peace treaty between them was finally reached. On 22 April 1453, Mehmed sent another expedition to Albania under Ibrahim Pasha. The same day, despite the storms, Skanderbeg launched a swift cavalry attack which broke into the enemy camp causing disorder and chaos. Ibrahim was killed in action along with 3,000 of his men. Skanderbeg's army continued looting before returning to Debar. He returned triumphantly with his army with whom he had split his booty. Five weeks later Mehmed II captured Constantinople , which deeply troubled
2700-508: A red standard with a black double-headed eagle on Krujë (Albania uses a similar flag as its national symbol to this day). Despite his military valor, he was only able to hold his own possessions within the very narrow area in today's northern Albania where almost all of his victories against the Ottomans took place. Skanderbeg abandoned Islam, reverted to Christianity, and ordered others who had embraced Islam or were Muslim settlers to convert to Christianity or face death. From that time on,
2850-511: A single galley and a modest sum of money, promising more ships and larger amounts of money in the future. On 23 December 1457, Calixtus III declared Skanderbeg a Captain-General of the Curia ( Holy See ) in the war against the Ottomans. The Pope gave him the title Athleta Christi , or Champion of Christ . Meanwhile, Ragusa bluntly refused to release the funds which had been collected in Dalmatia for
3000-910: A strong sense of identity and are unique in that they speak an archaic dialect of Tosk Albanian called Arbëresh . In the United States and Canada, there are approximately 250,000 Albanian speakers. It is primarily spoken on the East Coast of the United States, in cities like New York City, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Detroit, as well as in parts of the states of New Jersey, Ohio, and Connecticut. In Argentina, there are nearly 40,000 Albanian speakers , mostly in Buenos Aires. Approximately 1.3 million people of Albanian ancestry live in Turkey , with more than 500,000 recognizing their ancestry, language and culture . There are other estimates, however, that place
3150-498: A trip to Split; Ruscus from Cattaro; and others. The Ragusan Gondola/Gundulić merchant family had a role similar to Gazulli. Correspondence was written in Slavic, Greek, Latin, and Italian. Documents in Latin were written by notaries from Italy or Venetian territories in Albania. In Albania, the rebellion against the Ottomans had already been smouldering for years before Skanderbeg deserted
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#17329273063103300-659: Is also spoken by 450,000 Albanian immigrants in Greece, making it one of the commonly spoken languages in the country after Greek. Albanian is the third most common mother tongue among foreign residents in Italy . This is due to a substantial Albanian immigration to Italy. Italy has a historical Albanian minority of about 500,000, scattered across southern Italy, known as Arbëreshë . Approximately 1 million Albanians from Kosovo are dispersed throughout Germany , Switzerland and Austria . These are mainly immigrants from Kosovo who migrated during
3450-693: Is also spoken in Greece and by the Albanian diaspora , which is generally concentrated in the Americas , Europe and Oceania . Albanian is estimated to have as many as 7.5 million native speakers. Albanian and other Paleo-Balkan languages had their formative core in the Balkans after the Indo-European migrations in the region. Albanian in antiquity is often thought to have been an Illyrian language for obvious geographic and historical reasons, or otherwise an unmentioned Balkan Indo-European language that
3600-583: Is an Indo-European language and the only surviving representative of the Albanoid branch , which belongs to the Paleo-Balkan group . It is the native language of the Albanian people . Standard Albanian is the official language of Albania and Kosovo , and a co-official language in North Macedonia and Montenegro , as well as a recognized minority language of Italy , Croatia , Romania and Serbia . It
3750-535: Is assumed that he remained at Murad II 's court as iç oğlan for a maximum of three years, where he received military training at Enderun School . The earliest existing record of George's name is the First Act of Hilandar from 1426, when Gjon (John) Kastrioti and his four sons donated the right to the proceeds from taxes collected from two villages in Macedonia (in modern Mavrovo and Rostuša , North Macedonia ) to
3900-672: Is assumed to have been a comparison of Skanderbeg's military skill to that of Alexander the Great . This name was itself used by Skanderbeg even after his re-conversion to Christianity and was later held by his descendants in Italy who became known as the Castriota-Scanderbeg . Skanderbeg always signed himself in Latin : Dominus Albaniae ("Lord of Albania"), and claimed no other titles but that in surviving documents. There have been many theories on
4050-567: Is believed that he was delayed by Đurađ Branković , then allied with Sultan Murad II , although Brankovic's exact role is disputed. Skanderbeg was outraged at the fact that he had been prevented in participating in a battle which could have changed the fate of his homeland if not the entirety of the Balkan Peninsula. As a result of this he let his armies raid into Kosovo, he then set fire to Serbian villages and slaughtered their inhabitants to punish Brankovic. He then returned to Krujë towards
4200-592: Is considered the closest language to Albanian, grouped in a common branch titled Illyric in Hyllested & Joseph (2022). Hyllested & Joseph (2022) in agreement with recent bibliography identify Greco-Phrygian as the IE branch closest to the Albanian-Messapic one. These two branches form an areal grouping – which is often called "Balkan IE" – with Armenian. The hypothesis of the " Balkan Indo-European " continuum posits
4350-662: Is explicitly mentioned in a letter attested from 1332, and the first preserved books, including both those in Gheg and in Tosk, share orthographic features that indicate that some form of common literary language had developed. By the Late Middle Ages , during the period of Humanism and the European Renaissance , the term lingua epirotica ' Epirotan language ' was preferred in the intellectual, literary, and clerical circles of
4500-579: Is spoken in North-western Greece, while Arvanitika is spoken by the Arvanites in southern Greece. In addition, Arbëresh is spoken by the Arbëreshë people, descendants of 15th and 16th century migrants who settled in southeastern Italy, in small communities in the regions of Sicily and Calabria . These settlements originated from the (Arvanites) communities probably of Peloponnese known as Morea in
4650-482: Is spoken in the south, and Gheg spoken in the north. Standard Albanian is based on the Tosk dialect. The Shkumbin River is the rough dividing line between the two dialects. Gheg is divided into four sub-dialects: Northwest Gheg, Northeast Gheg, Central Gheg and Southern Gheg. It is primarily spoken in northern Albania, Kosovo , and throughout Montenegro and northwestern North Macedonia . One fairly divergent dialect
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4800-560: Is the Upper Reka dialect , which is however classified as Central Gheg. There is also a diaspora dialect in Croatia , the Arbanasi dialect . Tosk is divided into five sub-dialects, including Northern Tosk (the most numerous in speakers), Labërisht , Cham , Arvanitika , and Arbëresh . Tosk is spoken in southern Albania, southwestern North Macedonia and northern and southern Greece. Cham Albanian
4950-399: Is the most probable. Although Albanian shares lexical isoglosses with Greek , Germanic , and to a lesser extent Balto-Slavic , the vocabulary of Albanian is quite distinct. In 1995, Taylor, Ringe , and Warnow used quantitative linguistic techniques that appeared to obtain an Albanian subgrouping with Germanic, a result which the authors had already reasonably downplayed. Indeed,
5100-554: Is the official language of Albania and Kosovo and a co-official language in North Macedonia and Montenegro . Albanian is a recognised minority language in Croatia , Italy , Romania and in Serbia . Albanian is also spoken by a minority in Greece , specifically in the Thesprotia and Preveza regional units and in a few villages in Ioannina and Florina regional units in Greece. It
5250-578: The Adriatic , where his dreams for an empire were always opposed by the Venetians. One of the reasons Skanderbeg agreed to sign the peace treaty with Venice was the advance of John Hunyadi 's army in Kosovo and his invitation for Skanderbeg to join the expedition against the sultan. However, the Albanian army under Skanderbeg did not participate in this battle as he was prevented from joining with Hunyadi's army. It
5400-458: The Congress of Dibra decided that Albanian schools would finally be allowed. Albanian is an isolate within the Indo-European language family; no other language has been conclusively linked to its branch . The only other languages that are the sole surviving members of a branch of Indo-European are Armenian and Greek. The Albanian language is part of the Indo-European language family and
5550-597: The Despotate of Serbia (under Đurađ Branković ) to aid the League against their Venetian enemies. Branković expressed his willingness to help against Venice, however, made it clear he would not aid against their common Ottoman enemies. Skanderbeg ordered the invasion of Dagnum in 1447. The Venetians, however, saw this city as important, more important in fact than their anti-Ottoman war. Venice offered an award to anyone who could assassinate Skanderbeg. Venice even sent out envoys to
5700-619: The Janissary of Muhammad Ali Pasha , an Albanian who became Wāli , and self-declared Khedive of Egypt and Sudan . In addition to the dynasty that he established, a large part of the former Egyptian and Sudanese aristocracy was of Albanian origin. In addition to the recent emigrants, there are older diasporic communities around the world. Albanian is also spoken by Albanian diaspora communities residing in Australia and New Zealand . The Albanian language has two distinct dialects, Tosk which
5850-773: The Korçë District , Kamnik in Kolonja , Kolsh in the Kukës District , Rashtan in Librazhd , and Nezir in the Mat District . As in other parts of Europe, these PreIE people joined the migratory Indo-European tribes that entered the Balkans and contributed to the formation of the historical Paleo-Balkan tribes. In terms of linguistics, the pre-Indo-European substrate language spoken in the southern Balkans probably influenced pre-Proto-Albanian ,
6000-803: The League of Prizren and culminated with the Congress of Manastir held by Albanian intellectuals from 14 to 22 November 1908, in Manastir (present day Bitola ), which decided on which alphabet to use, and what the standardised spelling would be for standard Albanian. This is how the literary language remains. The alphabet is the Latin alphabet with the addition of the letters ⟨ ë ⟩ , ⟨ ç ⟩ , and ten digraphs : dh , th , xh , gj , nj , ng , ll , rr , zh and sh . According to Robert Elsie : The hundred years between 1750 and 1850 were an age of astounding orthographic diversity in Albania. In this period,
6150-512: The Treaty of Gaeta , Skanderbeg recognized de jure the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Naples over Albania, ensuring a protective alliance, although he remained a de facto independent ruler. In 1460–61, he supported Ferdinand I of Naples ( r. 1458–1494 ) in his wars and led an Italian expedition against John II of Anjou ( r. 1453–1470 ). In 1463, he was earmarked to be
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6300-480: The battle of Oranik . Mustafa Pasha lost 3,000 men and was captured, along with twelve high officers. Skanderbeg learned from these officers that it was the Venetians who pushed the Ottomans to invade Albania. The Venetians, upon hearing of the defeat, urged to establish peace. Mustafa Pasha was soon ransomed for 25,000 ducats to the Ottomans. On 23 July 1448, Skanderbeg crossed the Drin River with 10,000 men, meeting
6450-443: The hit-and-run tactics of the Albanians. Skanderbeg fought a guerrilla war against the opposing armies by using the mountainous terrain to his advantage. During the first 8–10 years, Skanderbeg commanded an army of generally 10,000–15,000 soldiers, but only had absolute control over the men from his own dominions, and had to convince the other princes to follow his policies and tactics. Skanderbeg occasionally had to pay tribute to
6600-454: The 1450s. The Ottoman Turks gave him the name اسکندر بگ ( İskender bey or İskender beğ ), meaning "Lord Alexander", or "Leader Alexander". Skënderbeu and Skënderbej are the Albanian versions, with Skander being the Albanian form of "Alexander". Latinized in Barleti 's version as Scanderbegi and translated into English as Skanderbeg or Scanderbeg , the combined appellative
6750-679: The 14th century, but they failed to cite specific words. The oldest surviving documents written in Albanian are the " formula e pagëzimit " (Baptismal formula), Un'te paghesont' pr'emenit t'Atit e t'Birit e t'Spertit Senit . ("I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit ") recorded by Pal Engjelli, Bishop of Durrës in 1462 in the Gheg dialect, and some New Testament verses from that period. The linguists Stefan Schumacher and Joachim Matzinger (University of Vienna) assert that
6900-519: The 1990s. In Switzerland , the Albanian language is the sixth most spoken language with 176,293 native speakers. Albanian became an official language in North Macedonia on 15 January 2019. There are large numbers of Albanian speakers in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Canada . Some of the first ethnic Albanians to arrive in the United States were the Arbëreshë. The Arbëreshë have
7050-462: The Albanian League of Lezhë , Nikollë Dukagjini and Lekë Zaharia , lord of Dagnum, were in dispute over who should marry Irene Dushmani, the only child of Lekë Dushmani, prince of Zadrima. The Albanian princes were invited to the wedding of Skanderbeg 's younger sister, Mamica, who was to wed Muzaka Thopia in 1445. Irene entered and hostilities soon began. Dukagjini asked Irene to marry him, but
7200-560: The Albanian League. Venice quickly sent a force into Dagnum and the local population gave their support to Venice, including Zaharia's mother. Venice then set out to capture the rest of Zaharia's holdings, including Sati, Gladri and Dushmani, with Zaharia's mother's agreement. Skanderbeg had ordered the return of these towns, and Drivast , to Albanian hands, however, Venice refused. The Albanian League sent envoys to their northern neighbors, Principality of Zeta (under Stefan Crnojević ) and
7350-501: The Albanian and Germanic branches share a relatively moderate number of lexical cognates. Many shared grammatical elements or features of these two branches do not corroborate the lexical isoglosses. Albanian also shares lexical linguistic affinity with Latin and Romance languages. Sharing linguistic features unique to the languages of the Balkans , Albanian also forms a part of the Balkan linguistic area or sprachbund . The place and
7500-544: The Albanian language was on 14 July 1284 in Ragusa in modern Croatia ( Dubrovnik ) when a crime witness named Matthew testified: "I heard a voice crying on the mountain in the Albanian language" ( Latin : Audivi unam vocem, clamantem in monte in lingua albanesca ). The Albanian language is also mentioned in the Descriptio Europae Orientalis dated in 1308: Habent enim Albani prefati linguam distinctam
7650-435: The Albanian language was put to writing in at least ten different alphabets – most certainly a record for European languages. ... the diverse forms in which this old Balkan language was recorded, from the earliest documents to the beginning of the twentieth century ... consist of adaptations of the Latin, Greek, Arabic, and Cyrillic alphabets and (what is even more interesting) a number of locally invented writing systems. Most of
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#17329273063107800-450: The Albanians in Alessio and peace was signed between the various representatives of both parties on 4 October 1448. The signatories agreed that Venice would pay 1,400 ducats a year to Skanderbeg and his male heirs and that Dagnum and all lands surrounding it would be relinquished to Venice. Lekë Dukagjini fought the Venetians over the control of Dagnum since 1456. In 1456, Dukagjini captured
7950-407: The Christian states of Europe. Mehmed, by then called "the Conqueror", turned his attention to finally defeating the Kingdom of Hungary and crossing into Italy. Skanderbeg informed King Alfonso that he had conquered some territories and a castle, and Alfonso replied some days later that soon Ramon d'Ortafà would return to continue the war against the Ottomans and promised more troops and supplies. In
8100-404: The Middle Ages. Among them the Arvanites call themselves Arbëror and sometime Arbëresh. The Arbëresh dialect is closely related to the Arvanites dialect with more Italian vocabulary absorbed during different periods of time. The Albanian language has been written using many alphabets since the earliest records from the 15th century. The history of Albanian language orthography is closely related to
8250-559: The Ottoman Empire during its heyday. He became a central figure in the Albanian National Awakening of the 19th century. He is honored in modern Albania and is commemorated with many monuments and cultural works. Skanderbeg's military skills presented a major obstacle to Ottoman expansion, and many in Western Europe considered him to be a model of Christian resistance against the Ottomans. The Kastrioti, in comparison to other Albanian noble families, so far remain absent from historical or archival records until their first historical appearance at
8400-415: The Ottoman army and those of Durazzo supplied Skanderbeg's army. An angry attack by Skanderbeg on the Venetian caravans raised tension between him and the Republic, but the case was resolved with the help of the bailo of Durazzo who stopped the Venetian merchants from furnishing the Ottomans any longer. Venetian help to the Ottomans notwithstanding, by September 1450, the Ottoman camp was in disarray, as
8550-514: The Ottoman army. He immediately led his men to Krujë , where he arrived on 28 November, and by the use of a forged letter from Sultan Murad to the Governor of Krujë he became lord of the city that very day. To reinforce his intention of gaining control of the former domains of Zeta, Skanderbeg proclaimed himself the heir of the Balšić family . After capturing some less important surrounding castles ( Petrela , Prezë , Guri i Bardhë, Sfetigrad , Modrič , and others) he raised, according to Frashëri,
8700-531: The Ottoman army. In August 1443, Gjergj Arianiti again revolted against the Ottomans in the region of central Albania. Under Venetian patronage, on 2 March 1444, Skanderbeg summoned Albanian noblemen in the Venetian-controlled town of Lezhë and they established a military alliance known in historiography as the League of Lezhë . Among those who joined the military alliance were the powerful Albanian noble families of Arianiti , Dukagjini , Muzaka , Zaharia , Thopia , Zenevisi , Dushmani and Spani , and also
8850-449: The Ottoman force, resulting in them fleeing. The same day Skanderbeg attacked Tahip's army and defeated them, with Tahip killed and the Ottomans were thus left without their commander as they fled. Skanderbeg's victory over a ruler even more powerful than Murad came as a great surprise to the Albanians. During this period, skirmishes between Skanderbeg and the Dukagjini family , which had been dragging on for years, were put to an end by
9000-483: The Ottoman forces found and cut the water sources of the castle. Recent historians mostly concur with the Ottoman chronicler's version. Although his loss of men was minimal, Skanderbeg lost the castle of Sfetigrad, which was an important stronghold that controlled the fields of Macedonia to the east. At the same time, he besieged the towns of Durazzo (modern Durrës ) and Lezhë which were then under Venetian rule. In August 1448, Skanderbeg defeated Mustafa Pasha in Dibër at
9150-401: The Ottomans in 1432. Nicholas Dukagjini , however, took advantage of this rebellion and conquered his family's former lands, accepting Venetian suzerainty. He yielded Dagnum to Venice. Venice soon learned that Sultan Murad was actually alive. Fearing that Venice would be provoking the Ottomans, they broke all relations with Dukagjini, and transferred Dagnum to Turkish hands by 1435. Members of
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#17329273063109300-409: The Ottomans referred to Skanderbeg as "hain (treacherous) İskender" . The small court of Skanderbeg consisted of persons of various ethnicities. He was supposedly also the manager of Skanderbeg's bank account in Ragusa. Members of the Gazulli family had important roles in diplomacy, finance, and purchase of arms. John Gazulli, a doctor, was sent to the court of king Matthias Corvinus to coordinate
9450-529: The Ottomans to attack Albania once more. Skanderbeg, however, heard that Venice sent out a force to protect Dagnum. He then left a small force to continue the siege on the city. In the meantime, Skanderbeg marched from the town to meet the Venetian army at the Drin River . What would be known as the Battle of the Drin in 1448, the League of Lezhë defeated the Venetians. Venetian presence was reduced to small garrisons within several walled cities, including Dagnum. The Venetians opened up negotiations for peace with
9600-521: The Ottomans, but only in exceptional circumstances, such as during the war with the Venetians or his travel to Italy and perhaps when he was under pressure of Ottoman forces that were too strong. In the summer of 1444, in the Plain of Torvioll, the united Albanian armies under Skanderbeg faced the Ottomans who were under direct command of the Ottoman general Ali Pasha, with an army of 25,000 men. Skanderbeg had under his command 7,000 infantry and 8,000 cavalry. 3,000 cavalry were hidden behind enemy lines in
9750-426: The Ragusans informed Pope Nicholas V. Through financial assistance, Skanderbeg managed to hold Krujë and regain much of his territory. Skanderbeg's success brought praise from all over Europe and ambassadors were sent to him from Rome, Naples , Hungary , and Burgundy . Although Skanderbeg had achieved success in resisting Murad II himself, harvests were unproductive and famine was widespread. After being rejected by
9900-410: The Serbian monastery of Hilandar . Afterwards, between 1426 and 1431, Gjon Kastrioti and his sons, with the exception of Stanisha, purchased four adelphates (rights to reside on monastic territory and receive subsidies from monastic resources) to the Saint George tower and to some property within the monastery as stated in the Second Act of Hilandar . The area which the Katrioti family had donated to
10050-421: The Serbian nobleman Stefan Crnojević of Zeta. This was the first time that much of Albania was united under a single leader. For 25 years, from 1443 to 1468, Skanderbeg's 10,000-man army marched through Ottoman territory, winning against consistently larger and better-supplied Ottoman forces. Skanderbeg organized a mobile defense army that forced the Ottomans to disperse their troops, leaving them vulnerable to
10200-443: The Shkumbin river since the Post-Roman and Pre-Slavic period, straddling the Jireček Line . Centuries-old communities speaking Albanian dialects can be found scattered in Greece (the Arvanites and some communities in Epirus , Western Macedonia and Western Thrace ), Croatia (the Arbanasi ), Italy (the Arbëreshë ) as well as in Romania , Turkey and Ukraine . The Malsia e Madhe Gheg Albanian and two varieties of
10350-537: The Sultan's hostage. According to Marin Barleti , a primary source, Skanderbeg and his three older brothers, Reposh, Kostandin, and Stanisha, were taken by the Sultan to his court as hostages; however, according to documents, besides Skanderbeg, only one of the brothers of Skanderbeg, probably Stanisha, was taken hostage and had been conscripted into the Devşirme system, a military institute that enrolled Christian boys, converted them to Islam , and trained them to become military officers. 21st-century historians are of
10500-412: The Tosk dialect, Arvanitika in Greece and Arbëresh in southern Italy, have preserved archaic elements of the language. Ethnic Albanians constitute a large diaspora , with many having long assimilated in different cultures and communities. Consequently, Albanian-speakers do not correspond to the total ethnic Albanian population, as many ethnic Albanians may identify as Albanian but are unable to speak
10650-615: The Venetians, Skanderbeg established closer connections with King Alfonso V who, in January 1451, appointed him as "captain general of the king of Aragon" . Following Skanderbeg's requests, King Alfonso V helped him in this situation and the two parties signed the Treaty of Gaeta on 26 March 1451, according to which Skanderbeg was formally a vassal in exchange for military aid. Authors have disagreed on whether Krujë belonged to Skanderbeg or to Alfonso V; while C. Marinesco claimed that Krujë no longer belonged to Skanderbeg, but to Alfonso, who exercised his power through his viceroy, this thesis
10800-471: The act; however, his treason was discovered and he was sent to prison in Naples. In 1456, Skanderbeg's son, Gjon Kastrioti II , was born. Hamza Kastrioti , Skanderbeg's own nephew and his closest collaborator, lost his hope of succession after the birth of Skanderbeg's son and defected to the Ottomans in the same year. In the summer of 1457, an Ottoman army numbering approximately 70,000 men invaded Albania with
10950-508: The ancestor idiom of Albanian. The extent of this linguistic impact cannot be determined with precision due to the uncertain position of Albanian among Paleo-Balkan languages and their scarce attestation. Some loanwords, however, have been proposed, such as shegë ' pomegranate ' or lëpjetë ' orach '; compare Pre-Greek λάπαθον , lápathon ' monk's rhubarb '. Skanderbeg Gjergj Kastrioti ( c. 1405 – 17 January 1468), commonly known as Skanderbeg ,
11100-476: The area, the Venetians offered rewards for his assassination. The Venetians sought to overthrow or assassinate Skanderbeg by any means, even offering a life pension of 100 golden ducats annually for the person who would kill him. During the conflict, Venice invited the Ottomans to attack Skanderbeg simultaneously from the east, facing the Albanians with a two-front conflict. On 14 May 1448, an Ottoman army led by Sultan Murad II and his son Mehmed laid siege to
11250-473: The beginning of 1454, Skanderbeg and the Venetians informed King Alfonso and the Pope about a possible Ottoman invasion and asked for help. The Pope sent 3,000 ducats while Alfonso sent 500 infantry and a certain amount of money to Skanderbeg. Meanwhile, the Venetian Senate was resenting Skanderbeg's alliance with Naples, an old enemy of Venice. Frequently they delayed their tributes to Skanderbeg and this
11400-423: The castle of Sfetigrad . The Albanian garrison in the castle resisted the frontal assaults of the Ottoman army, while Skanderbeg harassed the besieging forces with the remaining Albanian army under his personal command. On 23 July 1448, Skanderbeg won a battle near Shkodër against a Venetian army led by Andrea Venier . In late summer 1448, due to a lack of potable water, the Albanian garrison eventually surrendered
11550-532: The castle was still not taken, the morale had sunk, and disease was running rampant. Murad II acknowledged that he could not capture the castle of Krujë by force of arms before the winter, and in October 1450, he lifted the siege and made his way to Edirne . The Ottomans suffered 20,000 casualties during the siege, and many more died as Murad escaped Albania. A few months later, on 3 February 1451, Murad died in Edirne and
11700-476: The castle with the condition of safe passage through the Ottoman besieging forces, a condition which was accepted and respected by Sultan Murad II. Primary sources disagree about the reason why the besieged had problems with the water in the castle: While Barleti and Biemmi maintained that a dead dog was found in the castle well, and the garrison refused to drink the water since it might corrupt their soul, another primary source, an Ottoman chronicler, conjectured that
11850-478: The chief commander of the crusading forces of Pope Pius II , but the Pope died while the armies were still gathering and the greater European crusade never took place. Together with Venetians, he fought against the Ottomans during the First Ottoman–Venetian War (1463–1479) until his death. Skanderbeg ranks high in the military history of that time as the most persistent—and ever-victorious—opponent of
12000-481: The chroniclers of the early period ( Aşıkpaşazade and the " Tarih-i Al-ı Osman "), and the latter historians ( Müneccim Başı ) are not at all explicit, and regarding the dates, do not agree with the Western sources. The Turkish chronicles of Neshri , Idris Bitlisi , Ibn Kemal and Sadeddin only mention the first revolt of the "treacherous Iskander" in 846 H. (1442–43), the campaign of Sultan Murad in 851 H. (1447–48) and
12150-499: The city walls by the Ottomans, causing great losses to the besieging forces. Ottoman attempts at finding and cutting the water sources failed, as did a sapped tunnel, which collapsed suddenly. An offer of 300,000 aspra (Ottoman silver coins) and a promise of a high rank as an officer in the Ottoman army made to Vrana Konti, were both rejected by him. During the First Siege of Krujë, the Venetian merchants from Scutari sold food to
12300-460: The city, but Venice retook the city by August 1457. Venetian forces led by Andrea Venier were supported by Skanderbeg. Dukagjini finally made peace with Venice in 1459. In 1474, the Ottoman Turks directed an attack against Crnojević Zeta and Venetian Zeta (around Lake Scutari ). This war directly led to Ottoman conquest of the city from Venetian hands. The Ottomans had no intentions of retaining
12450-590: The city, but were content to demolish its fortifications. Established circa 1000? as Diocese of Dagno / Dagne / Danj, without direct precursor, although the territory in the former Roman province of Dalmatia Superior was under the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Doclea . Suppressed circa 1550. (very incomplete; all Roman Rite ) In 1933 the diocese was nominally restored as Titular bishopric of Dagnum (Latin; Dagno in Curiate Italian). It has had
12600-558: The clerics Fra Lorenzo da Palerino and Fra Giovanni dell'Aquila to Albania with a flag embroidered with a white cross as a symbol of the Crusade which was about to begin. Even though this crusade never materialized, the Neapolitan troops were used in the Siege of Berat , where they were almost entirely annihilated and were never replaced. The Siege of Berat, the first real test between the armies of
12750-451: The contact between the various languages. The concept of this linguistic group is explained as a kind of language league of the Bronze Age (a specific areal-linguistics phenomenon), although it also consisted of languages that were related to each other. A common prestage posterior to PIE comprising Albanian, Greek, and Armenian, is considered as a possible scenario. In this light, due to
12900-515: The crusade and which, according to the Pope, were to have been distributed in equal parts to Hungary, Bosnia, and Albania. The Ragusans even entered into negotiations with Mehmed. At the end of December 1457, Calixtus threatened Venice with an interdict and repeated the threat in February 1458. As the captain of the Curia, Skanderbeg appointed the duke of Leukas (Santa Maura), Leonardo III Tocco , formerly
13050-730: The cultural orientation and knowledge of certain foreign languages among Albanian writers. The earliest written Albanian records come from the Gheg area in makeshift spellings based on Italian or Greek. Originally, the Tosk dialect was written in the Greek alphabet and the Gheg dialect was written in the Latin script . Both dialects had also been written in the Ottoman Turkish version of the Arabic script , Cyrillic , and some local alphabets ( Elbasan , Vithkuqi , Todhri , Veso Bey, Jan Vellara and others, see original Albanian alphabets ). More specifically,
13200-584: The daughter of Gjergj Arianiti , one of the most influential Albanian noblemen, strengthening the ties between them, a month after the treaty on 21 April 1451 in the Orthodox Ardenica Monastery , Their only child was Gjon Kastrioti II , however an elder daughter named Voisava is mentioned in some sources as well. In 1451, Mehmed was focused on defeating the Karamanids and Menteşe in the East, but it
13350-484: The end of March 1456. On 5 April 1456, Skanderbeg entered Kruja and Moisi fled to him professing his willingness to take up arms against the Ottomans, and Skanderbeg pardoned him, remaining loyal until his death in 1464. From time to time, Venice succeeded in stirring up Skanderbeg's relatives and weaker neighbors, who set up in opposition to him the elderly Gjergj Arianiti as "captain of all Albania" from Scutari to Durazzo in 1456, but in clan warfare Skanderbeg usually had
13500-721: The end of November. Antonio Bonfini an Italian courtier of the Hungarian king believed the battle could have been won if Skanderbeg had participated. He appears to have marched to join Hunyadi immediately after making peace with the Venetians, and to have been only 20 miles from Kosovo Polje when the Hungarian army finally broke. In June 1450, two years after the Ottomans had captured Sfetigrad, they laid siege to Krujë with an army numbering approximately 100,000 men and led again by Sultan Murad II himself and his son, Mehmed II . Following
13650-708: The end of the 14th century. The historical figure of Konstantin Kastrioti Mazreku is attested in Giovanni Andrea Angelo Flavio Comneno's Genealogia diversarum principum familiarum . Angelo mentions Kastrioti as Constantinus Castriotus, cognomento Meserechus, Aemathiae & Castoriae Princeps (Constantinus Castriotus, surnamed Meserechus, Prince of Aemathia and Castoria). The toponym Castoria has been interpreted as Kastriot , Kastrat in Has, Kastrat in Dibra or
13800-631: The eponymous league was established, was Venetian territory , and the assembly met with the approval of Venice. The later affirmation of Skanderbeg and his rise as a strong force on their borders, however, was seen as a menace to the interests of the Republic, leading to a worsening of relations and the dispute over the fortress of Dagnum which triggered the Albanian-Venetian War of 1447–48 . After various attacks against Bar and Ulcinj, along with Đurađ Branković and Stefan Crnojević , and Albanians of
13950-455: The first literary records of Albanian date from the 16th century. The oldest known Albanian printed book, Meshari , or "missal", was written in 1555 by Gjon Buzuku , a Roman Catholic cleric. In 1635, Frang Bardhi wrote the first Latin–Albanian dictionary. The first Albanian school is believed to have been opened by Franciscans in 1638 in Pdhanë . One of the earliest Albanian dictionaries
14100-454: The following incumbents, so far of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank : који су Млечани успели да заузму TOKOM августа; јер, већ првих дана септембра стигла je у Млетке вест да je град враћен уз велике напоре, жртве и страдања млетачких поданика у Албанији. Albanian language Albanian ( endonym : shqip [ʃcip] , gjuha shqipe [ˈɟuha ˈʃcipɛ] , or arbërisht [aɾbəˈɾiʃt] )
14250-449: The gates of Scutari, and Venetian prisoners were thereafter paraded outside the fortress. The Albanians managed to inflict 2,500 casualties on the Venetian force, capturing 1,000. Skanderbeg's army suffered 400 casualties, most on the right-wing. The peace treaty, negotiated by Georgius Pelino and signed between Skanderbeg and Venice on 4 October 1448, envisioned that Venice would keep Dagnum and its environs, but would cede to Skanderbeg
14400-474: The geopolitical contexts of the time, Gjon Kastrioti changed allegiances and religions when allied to Venice as a Catholic and Serbia as an Orthodox Christian. Gjon Kastrioti later became a vassal of the Sultan since the end of the 14th century, and, as a consequence, paid tribute and provided military services to the Ottomans (such as in the Battle of Ankara in 1402). In 1409, he sent his eldest son, Stanisha, to be
14550-410: The hope of destroying Albanian resistance once and for all. This army was led by Isak-Beg and Hamza Kastrioti, the commander who knew all about Albanian tactics and strategy. After wreaking much damage to the countryside, the Ottoman army set up camp at Ujebardha field, halfway between Lezhë and Krujë. After having avoided the enemy for months, calmly giving to the Ottomans and his European neighbours
14700-471: The impression that he was defeated, on 2 September Skanderbeg attacked the Ottoman forces in their encampments and defeated them killing 15,000 Ottomans, capturing 15,000 and 24 standards, and all the riches in the camp. This was one of the most famous victories of Skanderbeg over the Ottomans, which led to a five-year peace treaty with Sultan Mehmed II. Hamza was captured and sent to detention in Naples . After
14850-615: The kingdom of Duklja . The Ragusan -Serbian peace treaty was signed in Danj on 25 March 1326, attended by vojvoda (Slavic count) Mladen and čelnik Đuraš Ilijić . Until 1395 Sati (whose castellan was Koja Zaharia ) and Dagnum belonged to a fief of Kostadin Balšić and was part of the Lordship of Zeta under Đurađ II Balšić . In 1395 Balšić ceded Sati (with Dagnum) together with Scutari and Drivast to Venetian Republic (in order to create
15000-534: The language. Standard Albanian is a standardised form of spoken Albanian based on Tosk . The language is spoken by approximately 6 million people in the Balkans, primarily in Albania, Kosovo , North Macedonia , Serbia , Montenegro and Greece . However, due to old communities in Italy and the large Albanian diaspora , the worldwide total of speakers is much higher than in Southern Europe and numbers approximately 7.5 million. The Albanian language
15150-593: The larger number of possible shared innovations between Greek and Armenian, it appears reasonable to assume, at least tentatively, that Albanian was the first Balkan IE language to branch off. This split and the following ones were perhaps very close in time, allowing only a narrow time frame for shared innovations. Albanian represents one of the core languages of the Balkan Sprachbund . Glottolog and Ethnologue recognize four Albanian languages. They are classified as follows: The first attested written mention of
15300-408: The last campaign of Mehmed II in 871 H. (1466–67). In early November 1443, Skanderbeg deserted the forces of Sultan Murad II during the Battle of Niš , while fighting against the crusaders of John Hunyadi . According to some earlier sources, Skanderbeg deserted the Ottoman army during the Battle of Kunovica on 2 January 1444. Skanderbeg quit the field along with 300 other Albanians serving in
15450-465: The latter alphabets have now been forgotten and are unknown, even to the Albanians themselves. Albanian constitutes one of the eleven major branches of the Indo-European language family , within which it occupies an independent position. In 1854, Albanian was demonstrated to be an Indo-European language by the philologist Franz Bopp . Albanian was formerly compared by a few Indo-European linguists with Germanic and Balto-Slavic , all of which share
15600-563: The microtoponym "Kostur" near the village of Mazrek in the Has region . In connection to the Kastrioti family name, it is very likely that the name of one the different Kastriot or Kastrat which were fortified settlements as their etymology shows ( castrum ) was as their family name. The Kastrioti may have originated from this village or probably had acquired it as pronoia . Angelo used the cognomen Meserechus in reference to Skanderbeg and this link to
15750-429: The names for fish and for agricultural activities (such as ploughing ) are borrowed from other languages. A deeper analysis of the vocabulary, however, shows that could be a consequence of a prolonged Latin domination of the coastal and plain areas of the country, rather than evidence of the original environment in which the Albanian language was formed. For example, the word for 'fish' is borrowed from Latin, but not
15900-472: The new sultan and Skanderbeg, ended up in an Ottoman victory. Skanderbeg besieged the town's castle for months, causing the demoralized Ottoman officer in charge of the castle to promise his surrender. At that point, Skanderbeg relaxed his grip, split his forces, and departed the siege, leaving behind one of his generals, Muzakë Topia , and half of his cavalry on the banks of the Osum River in order to finalize
16050-481: The next twenty years. His rise through the ranks culminated in his appointment as sanjakbey of the Sanjak of Dibra in 1440. During the Battle of Nish in 1443, he deserted the Ottomans and became the ruler of Krujë and nearby areas extending from Petrelë to Modrič . In March 1444, he established the League of Lezhë , with support from local noblemen , and unified the Albanian principalities . In 1451, through
16200-451: The north and Tosk spoken to the south of the Shkumbin river . Their characteristics in the treatment of both native words and loanwords provide evidence that the split into the northern and the southern dialects occurred after Christianisation of the region (4th century AD), and most likely not later than the 6th century AD, hence possibly occupying roughly their present area divided by
16350-509: The number of people in Turkey with Albanian ancestry and or background upward to 5 million. However, the vast majority of this population is assimilated and no longer possesses fluency in the Albanian language, though a vibrant Albanian community maintains its distinct identity in Istanbul to this day. Egypt also lays claim to about 18,000 Albanians, mostly Tosk speakers. Many are descendants of
16500-475: The offensive against Mehmed II. The knight Pal Gazulli was travelling frequently to Italy, and another Gazulli, Andrea, was ambassador of the despot of Morea in Ragusa before becoming a member of Skanderbeg's court in 1462. Some adventurers also followed Skanderbeg, such as a man named John Newport; Stefan Maramonte , who acted as Skanderbeg's ambassador to Milan in 1456; Stjepan Radojevic, who in 1466 provided ships for
16650-412: The only surviving representative of its own branch , which belongs to the Paleo-Balkan group . Although it is still uncertain which ancient mentioned language of the Balkans it continues, or where in the region its speakers lived. In general, there is insufficient evidence to connect Albanian with one of those languages, whether Illyrian , Thracian , or Dacian . Among these possibilities, Illyrian
16800-463: The opinion that while Stanisha might have been conscripted at a young age, and had to go through the Devşirme, this was not the case with Skanderbeg, who is assumed to have been sent hostage to the Sultan by his father only at the age of 18. It was customary at the time that a local chieftain, who had been defeated by the Sultan, would send one of his children to the Sultan's court, where the child would be
16950-415: The place where Skanderbeg was born. One of the main Skanderbeg biographers, Frashëri, has, among others, interpreted Gjon Muzaka 's book of genealogies, sources of Raffaele Maffei ("il Volterrano"; 1451–1522), and the Ottoman defter (census) of 1467, and placed the birth of Skanderbeg in the small village of Sinë , one of the two villages owned by his grandfather Pal Kastrioti . Fan Noli 's placement of
17100-465: The planning of a new crusade which Alfonso would have presented to Pope Nicholas V in a meeting in 1453–54. During the five years which followed the first siege of Krujë, Albania was allowed some respite as the new sultan set out to conquer the last vestiges of the Byzantine Empire , but in 1452 the newly acceded Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II ordered his first campaign against Skanderbeg. An expedition
17250-467: The point where Pope Pius II suggested entrusting Skanderbeg's dominions to Venice during his Italian expedition. After Serbian Despot Stefan Branković was dethroned in April 1459, he travelled to Albania and stayed with Skanderbeg and supported his anti-Ottoman activities, forging plans to recapture Serbia from Ottomans and return to Smederevo . In November 1460 Despot Stefan married Angelina Arianiti ,
17400-606: The population in his father's former properties and also with other Albanian noble families . Skanderbeg's Rebellion (1443–1468) Contemporaneous Campaigns (1447–1462) Resistance until the Fall of Shkodra (1468–1479) Beside Barleti , other sources on this period are the Byzantine historians Chalcocondylas , Sphrantzes and Critoboulos , and the Venetian documents, published by Ljubić in "Monumenta spectantia historiam Slavorum Meridionalium". The Turkish sources –
17550-592: The prince of Arta and "despot of the Rhomaeans ", a figure known in Southern Epirus, as a lieutenant in his native land. On 27 June 1458, King Alfonso V died at Naples and Skanderbeg sent emissaries to his son and successor, King Ferdinand . According to historian C. Marinesco, the death of King Alfonso marked the end of the Aragonese dream of a Mediterranean Empire and also the hope for a new crusade in which Skanderbeg
17700-481: The region around Scutari and Ulcinj and attacked Drivast in 1429, but failed to capture it. While Venetian forces were busy fighting to repel this attack, the Ottoman forces captured Dagnum and territory of Dukagjini and entrusted it to be governed by Ottoman voivode Ismail. After receiving incorrect information about the death of the Ottoman Sultan, Murad II , Gjergj Arianiti raised a large rebellion against
17850-546: The relations that their father had with the Republic of Ragusa and the Republic of Venice ; in 1438 and 1439, they sustained their father's privileges with those states. During the 1438–43 period, he is thought to have been fighting alongside the Ottomans in their European campaigns, mostly against the Christian forces led by Janos Hunyadi . In 1440 Skanderbeg was appointed sanjakbey of Dibra . During his stay in Albania as Ottoman governor, he maintained close relations with
18000-809: The same name is produced in other sources and reproduced in later ones like Du Cange 's Historia Byzantina (1680). These links highlight that the Kastrioti used Mazreku as a name that highlighted their tribal affiliation ( farefisni ). The name Mazrek(u), which means horse breeder in Albanian, is found throughout all Albanian regions. Skanderbeg's first name was Gjergj (George) in Albanian. Frang Bardhi in Dictionarium latino-epiroticum (1635) provides two first names in Albanian: Gjeç ( Giec ) and Gjergj ( Gierg ). In his personal correspondence in Italian and in most biographies produced after his death in Italy, his name
18150-400: The same year Gjon had to seek forgiveness from the Venetian Senate because Skanderbeg participated in Ottoman military campaigns against Christians. In 1430, Gjon was defeated in battle by the Ottoman governor of Skopje , Ishak Bey , and as a result, his territorial possessions were extremely reduced. Later that year, Skanderbeg continued fighting for Murad II in his expeditions, and gained
18300-542: The sister of Skanderbeg's wife Donika . Skanderbeg gave the dethroned Despot Stefan an unknown estate as appanage. With Skanderbeg's recommendations, Despot Stefan moved to Italy in 1461 or 1466. In 1460, King Ferdinand had serious problems with another uprising of the Angevins and asked for help from Skanderbeg. This invitation worried King Ferdinand's opponents, and Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta declared that if Ferdinand of Naples received Skanderbeg, Malatesta would go to
18450-538: The sultan. In 1437–38, he became a subaşı (governor) of the Krujë subaşılık before Hizir Bey was again appointed to that position in November 1438. Until May 1438, Skanderbeg controlled a relatively large timar (of the vilayet of Dhimitër Jonima ) composed of nine villages which previously belonged to his father (registered as "Giovanni's land", Turkish : Yuvan-ili ). According to İnalcık , at that time Skanderbeg
18600-409: The surrender. It was a costly error—the Ottomans saw this moment as an opportunity for attack and sent a large cavalry force, led by Isak-Beg , to reinforce the garrison. The Albanian forces lulled into a false sense of security. The Ottomans caught the Albanian cavalry by surprise while they were resting on the banks of the Osum River , and almost all the 5,000 Albanian cavalry laying siege to Berat
18750-401: The territory of Buzëgjarpri at the mouth of the river Drin , and also that Skanderbeg would enjoy the privilege of buying, tax-free, 200 horse-loads of salt annually from Durazzo. In addition, Venice would pay Skanderbeg 1,400 ducats. During the period of clashes with Venice, Skanderbeg intensified relations with Alfonso V of Aragon ( r. 1416–1458 ), who was the main rival of Venice in
18900-478: The time that the Albanian language was formed are uncertain. The American linguist Eric Hamp has said that during an unknown chronological period a pre-Albanian population (termed as "Albanoid" by Hamp) inhabited areas stretching from Poland to the southwestern Balkans. Further analysis has suggested that it was in a mountainous region rather than on a plain or seacoast. The words for plants and animals characteristic of mountainous regions are entirely original, but
19050-550: The time, and used as a synonym for the Albanian language. Published in Rome in 1635, by the Albanian bishop and writer Frang Bardhi, the first dictionary of the Albanian language was titled Latin : Dictionarium latino-epiroticum ' Latin-Epirotan dictionary ' . During the five-century period of the Ottoman presence in Albania , the language was not officially recognised until 1909, when
19200-512: The title of sipahi . Several scholars have assumed that Skanderbeg was given a fiefdom in Nikopol in northern Bulgaria , because a certain "Iskander bey" is mentioned in a 1430 document holding fiefs there. Although Skanderbeg was summoned home by his relatives when Gjergj Arianiti and Andrew Thopia along with other chiefs from the region between Vlorë and Shkodër organized the Albanian revolt of 1432–1436 , he did nothing, remaining loyal to
19350-563: The treatment of the native words and loanwords from other languages are evidence that the dialectal split preceded the Slavic migrations to the Balkans , which means that in that period (the 5th to 6th centuries AD), Albanians were occupying nearly the same area around the Shkumbin river, which straddled the Jireček Line . References to the existence of Albanian as a distinct language survive from
19500-503: The treaty, in the end of May 1451, a small detachment of 100 Catalan soldiers, headed by Bernard Vaquer, was established at the castle of Krujë. One year later, in May 1452, another Catalan nobleman, Ramon d'Ortafà , came to Krujë with the title of viceroy . In 1453, Skanderbeg paid a secret visit to Naples and the Vatican , probably to discuss the new conditions after the fall of Constantinople and
19650-560: The upper hand. Skanderbeg took over possessions of the Zenevisi and the Balšić as well. Skanderbeg's followers that ruled over northern Albania and all of the chieftains on both sides of the Tomor mountains remained loyal to him. In 1456, one of Skanderbeg's nephews, George Strez Balšić , sold the Modrič fortress (now in North Macedonia ) to the Ottomans for 30,000 silver ducats. He tried to cover up
19800-494: The victorious Battle of Ujëbardha , Skanderbeg's relations with the Papacy under Pope Calixtus III were intensified. The reason was that during this time, Skanderbeg's military undertakings involved considerable expense in which the contribution of Alfonso V of Aragon was not sufficient to defray. In 1457, Skanderbeg requested help from Calixtus III. Being himself in financial difficulties, the pope could do no more than send Skanderbeg
19950-421: The word for 'gills' which is native. Indigenous are also the words for 'ship', 'raft', 'navigation', 'sea shelves' and a few names of fish kinds, but not the words for 'sail', 'row' and 'harbor'; objects pertaining to navigation itself and a large part of sea fauna. This rather shows that Proto-Albanians were pushed away from coastal areas in early times (probably after the Latin conquest of the region) and thus lost
20100-530: The writers from northern Albania and under the influence of the Catholic Church used Latin letters, those in southern Albania and under the influence of the Greek Orthodox church used Greek letters, while others throughout Albania and under the influence of Islam used Arabic letters. There were initial attempts to create an original Albanian alphabet during the 1750–1850 period. These attempts intensified after
20250-493: The year of his birth in 1405 is now largely agreed upon, after earlier disagreements, and lack of birth documents for him and his siblings. His father Gjon Kastrioti held territory between Lezhë and Prizren that included Mat , Mirditë and Dibër in north-central Albania. His mother was Voisava , whose origin is disputed. One view holds that she was a Slavic princess from the Polog region, which has been interpreted as her being
20400-541: Was an Albanian feudal lord and military commander who led a rebellion against the Ottoman Empire in what is today Albania , North Macedonia , Greece , Kosovo , Montenegro , and Serbia . A member of the noble Kastrioti family , Skanderbeg was sent as a hostage to the Ottoman court . He graduated from the Enderun School and entered the service of the Ottoman sultan Murad II ( r. 1421–1444 ) for
20550-518: Was assigned a leading role. The relationship of Skanderbeg with the Kingdom of Naples continued after Alfonso V's death, but the situation had changed. Ferdinand I was not as able as his father and now it was Skanderbeg's turn to help King Ferdinand to regain and maintain his kingdom. In 1459 Skanderbeg captured the fortress of Sati from the Ottoman Empire and ceded it to Venice in order to secure cordial relationship with Signoria. The reconciliation reached
20700-409: Was closely related to Illyrian and Messapic . The Indo-European subfamily that gave rise to Albanian is called Albanoid in reference to a specific ethnolinguistically pertinent and historically compact language group. Whether descendants or sisters of what was called ' Illyrian ' by classical sources, Albanian and Messapic , on the basis of shared features and innovations, are grouped together in
20850-521: Was in his intentions to return to Albania. During this brief period of rest, Skanderbeg took up the rebuilding of Krujë and erected a new fortress in Modrica in the Drin Valley near Sfetigrad (which had been lost in a 1448 siege) where Ottoman forces had previously slipped through unhindered. The fortress was constructed in the heat of summer within a few months when few Ottoman posts were present. This came as
21000-424: Was killed along with 1,500 of his men. Skanderbeg defeated the Ottomans two more times the following year, once when Ottoman forces from Ohrid suffered severe losses, and again in the Battle of Otonetë on 27 September 1446. At the beginning of the Albanian insurrection, the Republic of Venice was supportive of Skanderbeg, considering his forces to be a buffer between them and the Ottoman Empire. Lezhë, where
21150-441: Was killed. Most of the forces belonged to Gjergj Arianiti, whose role as Skanderbeg's greatest support diminished after the defeat. The attitude of other Albanian nobility was also somewhat affected. Moisi Golemi defected to the Ottomans and returned to Albania in 1456 as the commander of an Ottoman army of 15,000 men, but he was defeated by Skanderbeg in the Battle of Oranik and lost his territory of Debar to Skanderbeg toward
21300-757: Was long a matter of dispute between the parties, with Skanderbeg threatening war on Venice at least three times between 1448 and 1458, and Venice conceding in a conciliatory tone. In June 1454, Ramon d'Ortafà returned to Krujë, this time with the title of viceroy of Albania, Greece, and Slavonia, with a personal letter to Skanderbeg as the Captain-General of the Neapolitan-aligned armed forces in parts of Albania ( Magnifico et strenuo viro Georgio Castrioti, dicto Scandarbech, gentium armorum nostrarum in partibus Albanie generali capitaneo, consiliario fideli nobis dilecto ). Along with d'Ortafà, King Alfonso V also sent
21450-575: Was referred to by the monks in Hilandar as the Arbanashki pirg or Albanian tower . Reposh Kastrioti is listed as dux illyricus or Duke of Illyria in Hilandar. After Skanderbeg graduated from Enderun , the sultan granted him control over one timar (land grant) which was near the territories controlled by his father. His father was concerned that the sultan might order Skanderbeg to occupy his territory and informed Venice about this in April 1428. In
21600-472: Was referred to in Ottoman documents as Juvan oglu Iskender bey . It was because of Skanderbeg's display of military merit in several Ottoman campaigns, that Murad II (r. 1421–51) had given him the title of vali . At that time, Skanderbeg was leading a cavalry unit of 5,000 men. After his brother Reposh's death on 25 July 1431 and the later deaths of Kostandin and Skanderbeg's father (who died in 1437), Skanderbeg and his surviving brother Stanisha maintained
21750-553: Was rejected by A. Gegaj , who claimed that the disproportion in numbers between the Spanish forces (100) and Skanderbeg's (around 10–15 thousand) clearly showed that the city belonged to Skanderbeg. It is presumed that Skanderbeg de facto had full control over his territories: while Naples' archives registered payments and supplies sent to Skanderbeg, they do not mention any kind of payment or tribute by Skanderbeg to Alfonso, except for various Ottoman war prisoners and banners sent by him as
21900-519: Was sent to prevent Skanderbeg from moving into Macedonia. Firuz had heard that the Albanian army had disbanded for the time being, so he planned to move quickly around the Black Drin valley and through Prizren. These movements were picked up by Skanderbeg's scouts, who moved to meet Firuz. The Ottomans were lured into the Mokra valley, and Skanderbeg with a force of 3,500 attacked and defeated the Ottomans. Firuz
22050-449: Was sent under the dual-command of Tahip Pasha, the main commander, and Hamza Pasha, his subordinate, with an army of c. 25,000 men split between the two. Skanderbeg gathered 14,000 men and marched against the Ottoman army. Skanderbeg planned to first defeat Hamza and then to move around Tahip and encircle him. Skanderbeg did not give Hamza much time to prepare and, on 21 July, he assaulted immediately. The fierce attack made short work of
22200-457: Was succeeded by his son Mehmed II (r. 1451–1481). After the siege, Skanderbeg was at the end of his resources. He lost all of his possessions except Krujë . The other nobles from the region of Albania allied with Murad II as he came to save them from the oppression. Even after the sultan's withdrawal, they rejected Skanderbeg's efforts to enforce his authority over their domains. Skanderbeg then traveled to Ragusa , urging for assistance, and
22350-497: Was written as Giorgio . His name on his official seal and signature was Georgius Castriotus Scanderbego (Latin). His correspondence with Slavic states ( Republic of Ragusa ), was written by scribes like Ninac Vukosalić . Skanderbeg's name in Slavic is recorded the first time in the 1426 act of sale of St. George's tower to his father Gjon Kastrioti in Hilandar as Геѡрг and appears as Гюрьгь Кастриѡть in his later correspondence in
22500-658: Was written in 1693; it was the Italian manuscript Pratichae Schrivaneschae authored by the Montenegrin sea captain Julije Balović and includes a multilingual dictionary of hundreds of the most frequently used words in everyday life in Italian, Slavic, Greek, Albanian, and Turkish . Pre-Indo-European (PreIE) sites are found throughout the territory of Albania. Such PreIE sites existed in Maliq , Vashtëmi , Burimas , Barç , Dërsnik in
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