Give that your turkish source here or name and surname of author? (of course you can't find but still i am waiting)
In 1455 the Turks conducted a cadastral census. And here is the sourcing information:
^ The original Turkish-language copy of the census is stored in Istanbul's archives. However, in 1972 the Sarajevo Institute of Middle Eastern Studies translated the census and published an analysis of it Kovaèeviæ Mr. Ešref, Handžiæ A., Hadžibegoviæ H. Oblast Brankoviæa - Opširni katastarski popis iz 1455., Orijentalni institut, Sarajevo 1972. Subsequently others have covered the subject as well such as Vukanoviæ Tatomir, Srbi na Kosovu, Vranje, 1986.
thank posting that 1455 cadastral census
, lets see what say:
With the cadastral registration of 1455, the Ottomans created a new unified administrative unit in Kosova that they called sanxhak. In this register are mentioned a considerable number of heads of families with distinctive and typical Albanian names such as Gjon, Gjin, Llesh as well as with Slav names but that are explicitly qualified as Albanian-Arbanas. Such names are mentioned in the commercial centers, in the towns, as well as in over 100 villages distributed in all the nahija of the sanxhak. They are found in Morava, Prishtinë, Lab, Topolnicë, Vuçitern, Dolc, Klopotnik, Tërgovishta.
the Northeastern region of the Sanxhak of Dukagjini, or to use the name given to it in the sixteenth century, the region of Hasi, were territories inhabited entirely by the Albanians. The region of Hasi was divided in the nahija of Rudina (Gjakova with its villages in its south), nahija of Domeshtiçi (villages that were located in the area between Gjakova and Prizren), and the nahija of Pashtrik (villages in the eastern and western sides of the mountain of Pashtrik). This is proven by the fact that, similarly to the inhabitants of the mountainous regions of the hinterland of the Northern Albania, the inhabitants of these areas had overwhelmingly distinct and typical Albanian names, such as Gjin, Gjon, Gac, Bac, Kol, Gjec, Doda, Prend, Biba, Nue, Dida, Shtepan, Vata, and other similar names. The influence of Slav anthroponymy in these areas was extremely weak. The differences between inhabitants with Albanian anthroponymy and those with Slav anthroponymy in these three nahija taken together are striking. Out of 2507 heads of households and bachelors that were Christians, 1768 had Albanian names, 643 had mixed Albanian-Slav names and 96 had only Slav names. On the other hand, out of the 492 Muslim heads of family, 205 had Albanian last names and only 37 had Slav last names. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the relationes that we have from Catholic clergymen confirm that there was an overwhelming Albanian majority in the region. The region of Hasi, writes in his report of the 1634 the Catholic Archbishop of Antivar, Pjetër Mazreku, is “inhabited by the Albanians.” Out of the fifty villages, there were only five Catholic villages while all other 45 villages were converted to Islam.
The nahija of Opoja (south of the city of Prizren) was inhabited entirely by Albanians. The Albanian population had converted to Islam and consequently, the anthroponymy of the inhabitants was Islamic. However, these registrations bring evidence which proves that the Islamicized inhabitants were Albanians. During the second half of the sixteenth century, these inhabitants continued to carry as their last names, the Christian names of their parents. These last names, by and large, were distinct Albanian names. The influence of the Slav anthroponymy is found only in very rare cases. According to the registration of the year 1591, in the nahija of Opoja there were 369 Muslim heads of households and bachelors and 78 Christian heads of households and bachelors, the overwhelming majority of whom had distinctive Albanian names.
The nahija of Hoça (north of the city of Prizren) was inhabited by the Albanian population divided in three different religions; Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Islam. According to the data from the registry of the year 1591, in this nahije were 409 heads of households and bachelors as well as 104 owners of land parcels who had typical and distinct Albanian names. In addition, there were 248 Muslim households and 172 owners of land parcels that were Muslims. However, among these, 81 heads of households carried as their last name, the Albanian names of their parents and 28 had as their last names, the Slav names of their parents. Besides the Catholics and that stratum of population which had just converted to Islam, a considerable part of the population in this area was Orthodox. As a consequence, its anthroponymy was drawn from the traditional religious Slav and Byzantine anthroponymy. It must be noted that in numerous cases, the Orthodox Christians carried, in a mixed manner, a distinctive Catholic Albanian anthroponymy. In the villages of the nahija of Hoça, there were approximately 883 heads of households and bachelors who carried Albanian Catholic and Orthodox mixed names. That the majority of the heads of households registered in the nahija of Hoça carried Albanian names and not Slav anthroponymy, should not induce us to think that only these people were Albanians. The reason is that since they were of the Orthodox rite, a large part of the Albanian population of these districts was using Slav and Byzantine anthroponymy. This phenomenon is seen clearly in the nahija of Peja and in the villages of the nahija of Prishtina, the nahija of Vuçitern, the nahija of Labi, and the nahija of Topolnica. During the fifteenth and the sixteenth century, in these districts, the heads of households, carried more Slav and Byzantine names than Albanian and Muslim ones. To a certain extent, this phenomenon is detectable even in the nahija of Prizren, although in this nahija the heads of households that had an Orthodox - that is, a Slav and Byzantine anthroponymy - were a minority compared to those heads of households who carried Albanian and Muslim names. The borrowing of Orthodox Slav names from the Albanians was a common phenomenon. This phenomenon was widespread during the period before the Ottoman occupation of Kosova, more intensively in Kosova and less in the Plain of Dukagjini and the bordering districts of the sanxhak of Shkodra. The evidence we have gotten from the cadastral registers allows us to explain why it did happen this way.
The cadastral registers show us that the Albanian population of the Orthodox faith was linked to the administration of the Patriarchat of Pejë. Thus, while they were the property of, and under the jurisdiction of, the religious administration of the Patriarchat of Pejë, the anthroponymy of the Albanians within this group of the population had lost its distinctive character, and as a consequence they had taken names from the Slav and Byzantine anthroponymy.
That the Orthodox population of these areas was Albanian is supported by another element of evidence. Alongside the Catholic clergy who carry distinctive Albanian names, we find Orthodox clergymen called with appellatives which are still in use among Albanians and whose phonetic characteristics are distinctively Albanian such as ‘papa, pop, kallogjer.’ Thus, in the nahija of Altun-Ili are mentioned Gjini, the son of Popa; Popi, the son of Pavli; Popi, the son of Martini; Popi, the brother of Progon Pavlos; Popi, the son of Nikolla. In the nahija of Peja, we find Jaku the son of Popi; kallogjer Pepa and kallogjer Gjonja; in the nahija of Suhagërla we find Gjoni, the son of Popi; we find a Pop Pjetri in the nahija of Vuçitern; Pop Jaku in the town of Trepçë; Pop Mati in the town of Janjevë and many more. These cases make unacceptable the viewpoint of Jirecek who had said that the Albanians in the North must be identified with the Catholicism and as a consequence, Catholicism must be identified as ‘the religion of the Albanians.’ This point of view is very narrow and exclusivist.
In the documentation of the time, we find numerous examples that support the existence of an Albanian Orthodox population, which used Slav or Byzantine names. A good example to illustrate this point is the case of the anthroponymy of the heads of households in the nine Albanian stock-breeding villages existing in the vicinity of Prizren since the fourteenth century. The majority of their inhabitants during the fifteenth and sixteenth century had Slav names. However, the names of their villages were Albanian and according to the Serb documentation, the inhabitants were defined as Albanian. This came as a result of their conversion to Orthodoxy, a conversion which becomes even more understandable when we are reminded that these villages were the property of an Orthodox religious institution. A similar case is the village of Bilush in the nahija of Opoja. This was the only village of the nahija of Opoja where more inhabitants had Slav names than Albanian ones. The same phenomenon happened even in the villages of Kelmend and Pipër. These villages, which were known by the names of Liçeni, Gjonovoq, Leshoviq, Muriq, Kolemadi, Bukmir, and Bushat, carry distinctive Albanian names. However, besides the inhabitants with distinctive Albanian names we find a number of inhabitants which carry Slav names or Albanian names adapted to Slav forms, such as Stepan, Radiç, Nikaç, Gjonoviq, and so on. Similarly, one could find inhabitants that carried Slav names or names adjusted to Slav forms even in the known Albanian fraternity of the village Arbanas of Tuz. During the fifteenth century this fraternity was spread in 11 different villages. This was a consequence of a conversion of a part of them from Catholicism to Orthodoxy. A better example, that shows that the Albanian Orthodox of the other areas had borrowed names which were characteristically Slav, is found in the registration of the town of Kërçova at the end of the fifteenth century. In this registration a majority of the orthodox inhabitants of the quartier of the Albanians (clearly defined as Arbanas), carried Slav names.
Numerous other evidence has been provided for the region of Kosova. These documents are a further proof that the Orthodox anthroponymy was a common and widespread phenomenon among the Albanians who lived there. The Albanians in Kosova had carried Slav anthroponymy - names such as Radosav, Brajko, Petko, Bogdan, Radoslav, Branislav, Bozhidar, Millosh, Miloslav and other names - not only during the period before the Turkish occupation of Kosova, but also after the Turks occupied Kosova in 1455. For example, in the book of debtors of the Ragusan merchant Mihail Lukarevic in the third decade of the fifteenth century, together with the names of the inhabitants with names and last names which are distinctively Albanian, we find mentioned there even Albanians with mixed names, Albanian-Slav or with the Albanian names but with the Serb characteristic suffix -ic ,-ovic. For example, there we find names such as Radosav Gjonovic, Ivan Gjonovic, Dimiter Bushatovic, Tanush Bodganovic, Petko Progonovic, Radosav e Jakob Leshovic and others. In the cadastral registration of the year 1455 in the villages of the nahijas of Vuçiternë and Prishtinë, we find Albanians who carry Slav names. However, they are identified as Albanians from the qualification arbanas, or from the Albanian names of their parents. Among such cases are Todori, the son of Arbanas; Bogdani and Radoslavi the sons of Todor; Branislav, the son of Arbanas (the village of Kuçica); Radoslavi, the son of Gjon (the village Çikatovo); Bogdani, the son of Gjon and Bogdani, his son (the village Sivojevo); Gjoka, the son of Miloslav (the village of Gornja Trepz). Even more explicit evidence has been offered by the register of the sanxhak of Vuçitern of the years 1566-1567. According to the register of the sanxhak, over half of the inhabitants of the Albanian quartier in Janjeva had Albanian names. However, although they were clearly defined as Albanians by nationality (Arbanas) they either carried Orthodox Slav names - such as Pejo, Stepan, Jovan, Mlladen, Bozha, Raja, Stoja and others - or had a mixed Albanian-Slav anthroponymy such as Jova Jaku, Mati Stepa, Gjura Kola, Koka Dobroshi, Dida Stojini. Similarly, in Prizren we find entire Albanian quartiers which have Albanian names as Madhiq, which have Catholic churches such as that of Dimitri Pulitit (Pulti), but whose inhabitants carry distinct Orthodox Slav and Byzantine anthroponymy.
Moreover, the Orthodox Christian inhabitants of these areas do not carry an anthroponymy which is completely distinct for the Orthodox Slavs. In fact, their anthroponymy is of a mixed character. The names used by the Orthodox Christian inhabitants are heterogeneous. We can distinguish names that are distinctively Albanian or names which are used exclusively by the Albanian Roman Catholics, or that are Orthodox but non-Slavic; that is, names which belonged to the sphere of the Greek Byzantine anthroponymy widely carried by the Albanians at the time. For example, among these Orthodox Christians we find names that are more characteristic for the Catholics than for the Orthodoxs and that are used predominantly by Catholics, among the Albanians and others, such as Lukë, Nikolla, Pjetri, David, Jaku, Marin, Filip, Mati. Among the Orthodox inhabitants of Kosova we usually find names that are more characteristic to be used by the Byzantine Orthodoxs than by the Slav Orthodoxs. These names are found here in the forms commonly used by the Albanians such as Ilia, Dimitri, Damjan, Mihal, Komnen, and so on. There is other evidence of a linguistic character which shows us that this population was Albanian and that it did speak in the Albanian language. Quite often, in the original copies of the cadastral registers we find names which are used in the definitive form. Only in the Albanian language, this form ends with an -i. For example names such as Pjetër and Dimitër are found in the form Pjetri, Dimitri and not in the Slav forms Petar, Dimitar-Dimitrije. The name Mati is not found in the traditional and distinctive Slav forms, Matija, Matko, Mate, or Matic. From a comparison between the forms of the name Pjetri, Dimitri and Mati that are commonly found among the heads of the households in the sanxhak of Vuçitern with the same names used from the Slav population of the sanxhaks of Belgrade, Montenegro, Kystendil, and Vidin it has been concluded that these definitive forms which are unique for the Albanian language are used only in the region of Kosova. The number of surnames that end with the characteristic suffixes for the Serb language, such as -ic, -evic, -in, is very limited among the head of the households in this area.
The usage of Slav names by the Albanians could be observed in many villages of Kosova. These villages have plural names of the heads of the fraternities, a common feature of the villages inhabited by the Albanians, such as Gjinovc (Gjinajt), Leshofc (Leshajt) Tanushofc (Tanushajt). Although this is an indicator that testifies to their Albanian origin (supported by their definition exclusively as Arbanas-Albanian in the Serb medieval documents), there were inhabitants of the Orthodox religion that carried a Slav anthroponymy. Let me give here the names of the inhabitants of the village of the Gjinajt of the nahija of Treboshnica from the cadastral registration of the year 1566-1567. These names are: Pjetri Jovani, Toma Pjetri, Kostandin Nikolla, Toma Kostandini, Dimitri Pjetri, Mati Pjetri Novak Dimitri, Boja Stepani, Novak Boja, Nikolla Novaku, Stepan Novaku, Nikolla Gjuriq, Nisha Nikolla, Luka pop Jovani, Bozha Luka, Simon Luka, Danko Mihajlo, and other names similar to these.
Similarly, the Albanian villages located in the areas of Kosova bordering with territories inhabited by Slavs, such as the regions of Kurshumlia and Nish, had toponyms with the surname arbanas, arbanashka... which implies that they were in close contact with the Slav populations. In villages such as Arbanas, Arbanashka Petrila, and Arbanashka Brenica, the Albanian Orthodox inhabitants of these areas in most cases had names that were characteristic of the Slav Orthodoxs. For example, the inhabitants of the village Arbanas carried names such as, Stojan, Dajin, Dane Stojani, Mati Marko, Andrija Marko, Dimsa Marko, Luka Gjurko, Nikolla Luka, Pjetri Dimja, Stojan Pjetri, Gjura Marko, Lazar Stepa, Gjura Pejash and other names similar to these.
The Slav influence on names used by the Albanians is evident in a number of the Albanian names which have been adapted to the Slav forms. Such names are for example the names Lekaç, and Lekashin, for Leka; Nikaç for Nika; Gjonaç, Gjonko, Gjonçiq, Gjonoviq for Gjon and Gjonajt; Ukça for Uk; Dukaç, Dukoi for Duka; Lleshoviq for Leshajt; Gjokaç, Gjokoviq for Gjoka and Gjokajt; Prekça, Prekoviq for Prek and Prekajt; Uklash for Ulk; Ugjlesha for Uk Lesha and similar names to these. That Albanians used the Slav names is witnessed also from other evidence. Such are the cases when the members of a family or fraternity that from other names are identified as Albanians held also Slav names. Let me give some examples: Radosavi, the son of Gjon; Vladi, the son of Gjon; Bozhidari, the son of Gjon; Leka, the son of Mirosav, Doda Pali and his son Stepan Pali. There are many such cases. Among other things, we find registered Slav names in the forms that are unique for the Albanian language. Such cases are the names Vuka, Nisha, Deja which stand for the Slav names, Vuk, Stanisha, and Dejan. This supports the argument that the population of that area was speaking in the Albanian language. The examples that we have just mentioned allow us to do a better and a scientific interpretation of the onomastics, above all, of the anthroponymy of the inhabitants of the region. This allows us to place the anthroponymy of the inhabitants of this region in the proper historical context and to offer an objective evaluation of the ethnicity of the people who carry these names.
First of all, the evidence I have presented, yields the conclusion that simply because Slav names are held by a part of the inhabitants of these areas, this cannot serve as a criterion to determine in a conclusive and definitive manner the ethnic character of the population. The population of Kosova cannot be defined as Slavic. It is quite obvious that the Slav anthroponymy did not coincide with the ethnicity of the name-bearers. Above all, the anthroponymy of the inhabitants indicates that they were not Slavs. For this reason, we cannot put the equalizing sign between the onomastic character of these areas and the ethnicity of the inhabitants. This has been done in the past by some authors, especially by Serb historiographers. However, such an attempt would purposefully ignore the historical context in which the Albanian population was forced to live. In 1332, the Catholic Archbishop of Antivar, Guglielmo Adam Brocardus described the difficult situation of the Albanian population under Serb domination in the following way:
The reason is that the so-called nations, the Latins and the Albanians, are oppressed from the unbearable yoke and from the harsh rule of the leader of the Slavs. That loathsome rule is hated because their people are heavily taxed, their clergy is hunted and despised, their bishops and their priests quite often are bound in chains and their nobles are forced in exile...”
The Slav anthroponymy used by the Albanian Orthodox population of these areas was not simply a result of the coexistence between the two distinct communities. The presence of Slav anthroponymy among the Albanians was a direct consequence of the religious, social and political factors. The two powerful vehicles that enforced this acculturation process were the Serb state administration and the Serb Orthodox Church. What explains the Serb dominance and Slav political and religious influence over the Albanian population of these areas is that the ruling class had been predominantly Slav. Moreover this had happened at a time when the Albanian feudal class had not been able to create a unified feudal state and an autonomous and separated Albanian Church. It is here that we must find the explanation for the Slav influence in the anthroponymy of the Albanians population. The Slavization of the names of the Albanian population, that came as a consequence of the social, religious and political factors, cannot be equalized with the Slavization of the Albanian population. To put it simply, this does not mean that those who had Slav names were ethnic Slavs.
Secondly, the other conclusion we draw from this, regards the toponomastic criterion; that is, the analysis of the cadastral registers demonstrates that the principle that every village which had a Slav name was also inhabited by Slavs - followed by numerous authors-cannot serve to determine the ethnic composition of the population. This principle can be proven wrong by the argument that the inhabitants of a large number of villages that had Slav names, as it was explained before here, had an Albanian population and that an overwhelming majority of them carried Albanian names. Such villages are, among others, the sixteen villages in the nahija of Altun-Ili and the fourteen villages in the nahija of Peja. As explained before, the primary reason why in these territories inhabited by the Albanians we find the Slav toponymy must be sought in the political and the administrative factors. It must be remembered that this phenomenon is common for other areas of the Balkans which are inhabited by a non-Slav population. For these reasons, we believe that any kind of evaluation of the Slav onomastics must be conducted keeping in mind the specific historical circumstances. Considering this we can say that the early Slav toponyms of this area, which were spread during a number of the different stages of the early medieval period, reflect the historical contacts between the Albanians and Slavs, contacts which did happen a long time before the fifteenth century. Consequently, we must say that the equalization of the toponyms with ethnicity does not help us at the least to understand what kind of population lived there during the fifteenth century. It is a different matter when we deal with the Albanian toponymy. That the Albanian dwellings continued to hold Albanian names during the whole period of the Serb domination of these areas, shows that there existed an auctochthonous and ancient population which was subjugated but not assimilated by the Slavs in the period before the fifteenth century. Moreover, the Slav toponymy is not entirely the result of the migration of the Slav population in the early Middle Ages. In this case, we would fail to recognize that in many cases these toponyms are Slavicized Albanian names, that took either Slav suffixes or were adjusted to the Slav phonetics and spelling. Another reason is that the influence of the political, religious and administrative apparatus of the Serb state was felt even in the area of toponymy. A considerable number of names are linked to the activity of this apparatus and the toponyms do not reflect what was the ethnic reality of the region. That during the fifteenth and the sixteenth century we find either two different toponyms for the same village, or the literal translation of the Albanian name into a Slav name, shows that the principle should not be applied in a conclusive and absolute way to the earlier periods either.
In the sixteenth century, the new state administration of the Ottomans in Kosova and Plain of Dukagjini was established and strengthened. A major effect of the establishment of the Ottoman administration was the final destruction of the state and administrative apparatus of the Serb feudals. In the fifteenth century, with the dismantling of the Serb state apparatus, which also had defended the privileges of the Serb Church in these areas, we observe a decrease in Slav names borrowed by the Albanian population and an augmenting of the distinctive Albanian names. When the Ottoman rulers sought through the economic and political measures to impose Islam on the Albanian population in these areas, we observe that together with the augmenting of the Islamic names it happens an increase in the Albanian names too. According to the registers of this period, a large part of the Albanian population of the Plain of Dukagjini and Kosova was forced to abandon the Orthodoxy and to convert to Islam. A direct consequence of this process was that the Albanian population dropped Slav names and began to take Muslim names. In this regard, a typical example is represented by the town of Peja. In 1485, the majority of the inhabitants of Peja, carried Slav names. However, in 1582, the majority of the inhabitants of Peja carried Muslim names. An exception to that were fifteen Orthodox households, a part of which still continued to retain Albanian names such as Pop Nika, Pal Koka and other Albanian names. The process of Islamization occurred outside towns and slowly spread to the villages as well. In the sixteenth century we find that the largest part of the nahija of Altun-ili (Gjakova), nahija of Hoça, nahija of Hasi, nahija of Prizren and almost all the villages of the nahija of Opoja were converted to Islam. On the other hand, in the villages of the nahija of Peja and the sanxhak of Vuçitern, the Islamization was proceeding at a slower pace; however, we observe an acceleration of the conversions by the seventeenth century in this area.
Even in the second half of the sixteenth century, in spite of the growing number of the conversions to Islam, a large part of the Albanian population, especially that of the villages of the nahija of Prishtinë, the nahija of Vuçitern, the nahija of Labi, and the nahija of Peja, continued to retain their Orthodox beliefs. Also, they continued to carry religious Slav or Byzantine anthroponymy. The presence of the Albanian Orthodox population in this area is proved by evidence which does not come solely from the Turkish sources. For example, in the Project for the Liberation of Albania Approved by the Assembly of Chiefs of the fourteen Albanian regions that was held in Dukagjini of Mati on February 15, 1602 it is clearly said:
We, the Catholics are a force of forty thousand swordsmen, valuable fighters that can fight with bravery. Moreover, with us will be united all the Albanians that are of the Greek rite (the Albanians that were linked to Archbishopric of Ohrid of the Greek Orthodox rite) and those of the Serb rite (Albanian Orthodoxs linked to the Serb Church) that are our neighbors.”
This shows that although after the Ottoman occupation the Serb state and the Serb feudal class had disappeared, the Serb Orthodox Church still had managed to preserve some authority among the Albanian believers of the Orthodox faith. During the sixteenth century, although other factors were at work, the Serb Orthodox Church was losing ground due to the spread of Islam. Under these conditions, the common religious denomination, and to a certain extent even the cultural affinity that the Albanian Orthodoxs shared with the Serb minority - to this minority belonged the ruling elite which had controlled the state apparatus, the cultural, and the religious institutions - declined in intensity. Admittedly, it had been quite strong in the pre-Ottoman period. Also, this religious and cultural affinity had been the main cause which had created favorable conditions for the cultural and the ethnic assimilation of the Albanians. With the Ottoman occupation, a situation which was not very favorable to the colonization of these areas by the Slavs and to the Slavization of the Albanian population was created. Nonetheless, it must be noted that the a number of Slav ethnic elements continued to migrate in these areas well into the fifteenth century. Yet, neither the Orthodoxy during the period of Serb occupation nor the Islam during the period of Turkish domination - if we consider these religions as ideologies which were used to achieve at one time the Slavization of the Albanians and at another time, the cultural and the political assimilation of the Albanians in the Ottoman Empire - were able to render a final and conclusive solution in the form of a full assimilation. The reason why they failed must be sought in the presence of a compact and a massive Albanian population in this region, a component of the Albanian nation that had been formed several centuries ago. Although these pressures have left their mark on the Albanian culture, the Albanians in these areas managed to resist the divisive action of the religious factor, primarily thanks to their ethno-cultural unity and their inheritance.
From this point of view, neither the physical presence of the churches nor the previous existence of the statal and religious Serb institutions that the medieval Serb rulers built or invested with land property rights can be used as an argument of absolute validity. so They cannot be used to prove - as it has been done by the Serb historiography - that these territories were ethnically Serb. One cannot use the presence of the mosques and the existence of the Muslim religious institutions to prove that the population that lives in this region is Turkish. The existence of these institutions is linked to the political, social and ideological transformations which happened during the Serb or Ottoman domination of these areas and it has nothing to do with the ethnic character of population that lived in these areas. Furthermore, the occupation and the establishment of the administrative and religious center of the Serb state in Kosova during the thirteenth and the fourteenth century does not mean that this region was ethnically Serb. During the Serb domination of Kosova, the feudal class was predominantly Serb while the lower strata of population were overwhelmingly Albanian. The fact that the ruling class was Serb does not make Kosova an ethnically Serb region. This is neither the first nor the last case in the history of the Balkans and Europe when the ruling elite which controlled the state apparatus, the military and the religious authority belonged to one ethnic group and the auctochthonous population which was relegated to a lower status belonged to another ethnic group. Although in these regions the ethnic communities were living in the same conditions, Islam was spread to the Albanian Orthodox and Catholic population but not to the Slav minority. This becomes understandable when one is reminded of the enormous influence of the Patriarchat of Pejë. For obvious reasons, its influence was far greater among the Slav Orthodox minority than among the Albanian Orthodoxs and its existence was a greater obstacle to the conversion of Slav Orthodoxs to Islam. For the Albanians who lacked religious unity and a unified Church, the Patriarchat of Pejë represented an institution which was connected to the Serb ruling elite and its authority among the Albanians was weak. Other factors that contributed to the Islamization of the Albanian population were the socio-political factors. For instance, through repressive economic and political measures, the Ottoman authorities sought to break down the Albanians and to convert them to Islam.
The onomastic data of the cadastral registrations of the Plain of Dukagjini and Kosova bring strong evidence to prove the argument that the population which lived in these territories was overwhelmingly an agricultural Albanian population of the Catholic and Orthodox religions. This population carried Albanian names as well as Slav and Byzantine names. However, after the sixteenth century, with the spread of Islam, these names are substituted by Muslim names. The registers show that in the villages the ethnic Serb element was a negligible minority. This becomes even more clearer when we consider the conditions of the towns in the sixteenth century.
What was the ethnic composition of the towns in the Plain of Dukagjini and in Kosova during the second half of the sixteenth century (there are plenty of data for this period), almost a century before the supposedly massive migration of Serbs from Kosova happened? Historical documents clearly prove that the Albanian population was present and constituted the overwhelming majority of the urban population. The best way to clarify this matter is to consider the evidence we have from the cadastral registration conducted by the Ottoman Empire during that time. According to these data, the number of urban households appears as follows: the town of Prizren had 557 houses; the town of Prishtina had 506 houses; the town of Trepça had 447 houses; the town of Novobërda had 366 houses; the town of Vuçitern had 286 houses; Janjeva had 288 houses; Peja had 158 houses; while Gjakova, at that time only a village, had only 46 houses.
In the cities, the process of conversions to Islam had progressed with accelerated rhythms. When taken together, the inhabitants of the towns of Peja, Prizren, Vuçitern, and Prishtina had 1000 Muslim houses or about 65 % of their population compared to 547 Christian houses which constituted only 35%. In the towns of Janjeva, Trepça, and Novoberda, where at the time of registration, the Muslim population constituted something around 25% of the population, the process of Islamization had been less effective. Taken together, these three towns had 273 Muslim houses and 828 Christian houses.
If we take every town separately, the percentage of the households which had converted to Islam is as follows: Peja, 90%; Vuçitern, 80%; Prishtina, 60%; Trepça, about 21%; Novobërda, 37%; and Janjeva 14%. There is not the slightest doubt that the population which converted to Islam were Albanians. This is clearly shown by the fact that in most cases the people who converted to Islam preserved the Christian surnames of their parents, or they carried last names that were distinctive and characteristic for the Albanians. Among many such cases are Ali Gjoci, Hysein Barda, Hasan Gjini, Ali Deda, Ferhat Reçi, Hasan Bardhi, Iljaz Gaçja, Hëzër Koka in Prizren; Mustafa Gjergji, Aliu the son of Bardhi, Ahmeti, the son of Ali Deda, Rexhep Deda in the town of Vuçitern. Outside these towns, such as for example in the villages of the nahija of Peja, the nahija of Altun-Ili, the nahija of Rudina, the nahija of Domeshtiç, the nahija of Pashtrik, the nahija of Hoça and the nahija of Opoja in the Plain of Dukagjini - an area where the process of Islamization was still going on at the time of this registration - we find numerous Muslim inhabitants that during the second part of the sixteenth century continued to retain their Albanian surnames. In the Plain of Dukagjini, the population was almost entirely Albanian and the process of conversions to Islam in the towns and in the villages continued with the same pace. However, a distinctive feature of the pattern of conversion to Islam in the urban areas was that the rhythms of conversions there were accelerated when compared to the countryside. To be sure, the same factors that pressured the peasantry to convert to Islam - the repressive economic and political measures - determined the pace of conversions in the towns. The relative acceleration of the conversion process in the towns was mainly due to other factors which were more influential in the urban environment, such as the presence of administrative apparatus, the cultural influence and the concentration of religious institutions.
Evidence that the Muslim population was Albanian is attained by the reports of the various emissaries of Papacy, such as Pjetër Mazreku, and Gjergj Bardhi. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, these high Catholic prelates, were often traveling and visiting the territories under consideration. Speaking about several cities, these authors explicitly point out that the Muslim population there was of the Albanian nationality. In many cases, the relators of the sixteenth century tell us that the term ‘Turk’ used by them to define the Albanians converted to Islam, was employed due to the religious significance and without any considerations about the ethnic aspect of the individual. This is quite clear when they write about the Muslim peasants. On the other hand, the ethnic element is clearly distinguished in the registrations of the cities where Turkish ethnic elements are clearly distinguished by the Albanians, such as the Bali the Turk, Ahmet the Turk, or Hasan the Turk, in the town of Janjeva. The need on the part of the registrar to make such a distinction shows that the Muslim population which was not Turkish, was Albanian. In short, the conversion of the Albanians to Islam did not bring about their cultural and ethnic assimilation. Independently of the conversion to another religion, the population remained ethnic Albanians.
In the urban areas of Kosova, in addition to the Albanian population that converted to Islam and which was in clear majority in the towns, there lived other inhabitants who carried distinctive and characteristic Albanian names such as Pal, Gjon, Lika, Deda, Doda, Kola and others. There are 188 heads of households who carry these names in the towns of Prizren, Janjeva, Trepçë, and Novobërdë. They make up 17.5% of the heads of the households that are Christians (Orthodox and Roman Catholics) in the town of Prizren, 33% in the town of Janjeva, 12% in the town of Novobërdë, and 7% in the town of Trepçë.
If taken as a single unit, the towns of Pejë, Gjakovë, Prizren, Vuçitern, and Prishtinë had a majority of the heads of households that were Muslims (1006 households). They also had 547 Christian households. Within this group, about 217 heads of household carried distinctive Albanian names or mixed Albanian-Slav names. Only 330 heads of households carried names that are characteristic for the anthroponimic sphere of the Orthodox Serb and Byzantine Greek denominations. Clearly the ethnic Slav element is in minority. It must be remembered that within the Slav anthroponymy there are many families that are actually Albanians that were Orthodox Christians. Therefore, the number of ethnic Slav households could not have been as high as 330. The Albanian Orthodox element was spread more in Prizren and in Prishtina. In addition, as we can deduce from the Slav names held by the Catholic inhabitants of the Quartier of Latins (Catholics) in Prishtina, there must have had also colonies of the Ragusan merchants. From the anthroponymic evidence, we can conclude that even in the towns of Trepçë, Janjeva and Novobërdë, the Albanians constituted the majority of population. If these three towns are taken as a single unit, there were a total of 273 heads of households that were Muslims, 222 that held distinctive Albanian names, and 606 that had Slav and Byzantine names. However, the Slav element in these towns must have been more numerous than in Prizren and Prishtinë. These areas were very important minerary centers and of particular importance to the Serb state. The Slav colonization of these towns - mainly people employed in the administrative apparatus of the Serb state, Serb Orthodox clergy and Serb merchants - was more consistent and of greater intensity. As we know from the documentation of the pre-Ottoman occupation of Kosova, in these towns, there must have been present Slav Orthodox elements and Slav Catholics who had come from other places. An exemplary such case is the presence of the Ragusan merchants in Janjeva. Similarly, in Trepçë, more here than in the other towns, we find inhabitants who carry names characteristic for the Catholic Croats and Orthodox Serbs. These names have suffixes characteristic of Slav names. We also find remnants of the German Saxons who, in the previous centuries, had come to these areas to work as specialists in the mines. The existence of the Serb minorities in these towns is quite understandable. Due to their geographic proximity to the Serb enclaves, these areas were a target for the neighboring Serb. On the other hand, these territories had been for centuries occupied by Serbs. They had become very important state, administrative, and religious centers. For all these reasons, these towns were more exposed to the colonization by Serb elements.
As the evidence shows, in the sixteenth century, the towns of Kosova and the Plain of Dukagjini were inhabited almost entirely by the Albanians. This is almost one century before the so-called massive Serb migration supposedly occurred in 1690’s. At least this is the thesis which is being defended by the Yugoslav and Serb historiography. In so far as the villages of Kosova and the Plain of Dukagjini are concerned, it is quite clear that we cannot speak of a significant presence of the Serb minorities in the peasant dwellings of Kosova. The Serb colonization of the villages had been very limited.
That the population of Kosova was Albanian is proven also from another important source. During the second half of the sixteenth century and the beginning of the seventeenth century, there were a number of Assemblies of the representatives of the Albanian nation. These Assemblies sought to organize the resistance of the Albanian people against Turkish occupation and coordinate that resistance with the efforts of other Balkan nations and European states. This resistance movement was institutionalized and politically organized. In the documents of the time these are known as the “Albanian Assemblies.” In these Assemblies participated only representatives of the regions that were rebelled against the Turks. One of these Assemblies, the ‘Assembly of Dukagjini’ of the year 1601-1602 was held in the village of Macukull in the region of Mati. At this Assembly there were representatives from the fourteen Albanian regions. There were four representatives of the Albanians from Kosova: Pjetër Kolamari, Andrea Kolesi (Koleshi) Feta Kuka, and the Catholic priest Mark Belaçi. In the Albanian Assemblies of the sixteenth and seventeenth century participated exclusively only representatives of the Albanian regions that were rebelled against the Turks. In these Assemblies were not allowed to participate representatives who belonged to other neighboring ethnic groups. The representatives of Kosova participated in the Assembly because Kosova was a territory inhabited from the Albanians.