Post by masteralbanianknow on Jul 26, 2012 16:21:18 GMT -5
ALBANIAN TIES WITH ILLYRIA
Albanian Ties with Illyrian
Many lines of reasoning convince linguistic scholars that the Albanian people and language originated with the ancient lllyrians.1. The national name Albania is the name Albanoi, an Illyrian tribe mentioned by the geographer Ptolemy of Alexandria about A.D 150.2. The Albanoi territory then centered at Albanopoli, between Durrës and Kruja, the heartland of modern Albania.3. Four peoples speaking their own languages lived in the Balkans in ancient times: the Greeks in the south, the Macedonians in the center, the Thracians in the east and the lllyrians in the west.Today Albanian is spoken in most of the same region where Illyrian was spoken in ancient times.4. Those few language elements which are known as Illyrian can be explained through the Albanian language, and no other.5. A linguistic comparison of Albanian with ancient Greek and Latin indicates that Albanian was formed as a language at an earlier period than those other ancient languages.6. Archeological and historical data witness to the cultural continuity from the lllyrians to the Albanians. Continual contact with other peoples and languages has left its traces in the Albanian vocabulary. Foreign words have been borrowed from Greek, Latin, Slavic and Turkish, yet Albanian has been preserved as a separate language, its grammatical system remaining virtually unchanged.7. Linguists point out many technical similarities between Illyrian and Albanian words.8. Borrowings from northern Greek and from Latin incorporated in the Albanian language reflect the well-known political and cultural pressures on Illyrian territory. Linguistic studies indicate that Albanian developed from Illyrian as a distinct language between the fourth and sixth centuries A.D. Thus ancient borrowings of Greek and Latin vocabulary could not have moved directly into Albanian, but into Illyrian, through which these words entered into Albanian. Historical linguists point out that these borrowings from ancient Greek were in the Dorian dialect and penetrated into Illyrian through Corinthian commercial colonies in Corfu, along the Adriatic coast, and through border towns. Latin borrowings came later during the lengthy Roman occupation (NAlb 1986, 3:32). These ancient Greek and Roman contacts occurred precisely in the territory of old Illyria, leaving their traces in the Illyrian language from which they later passed into the Albanian language.9. Illyrian toponyms, ancient Illyrian place names for cities, rivers and mountains, are preserved today in the Albanian language, and only in Albanian. The names of Balkan villages usually lasted only a few centuries,for villages were often destroyed altogether during wartime. Cities lasted longer, so their names were usually older. But rivers, lakes and mountains endured through the centuries, and their ancient names usually continued in use. Even new inhabitants usually adopted the old names, just as American colonists adopted many old Indian place names in the United States. Accordingly, Albanian linguists have found more than 300 names of ancient cities like Shkodra, rivers like the Drin and mountains like Tomor which were mentioned by ancient Greek and Roman geographers or historians and which are still in use in Albania. Scholars show how the rules of historical phonetics explain any changes of spelling over the centuries from Illyrian to Albanian, as Scupi to Shkup, Scodra to Shkodra, Lissus to Lezha, Durrachium to Durrës, Drinus to Drin, Mathis to Mat. Certainly the Albanian language is derived from the Illyrian (Cabej 1985, 42-62).10. Illyrian proper names continue in use among present-day Albanians. Many of the individual Illyrian names of persons were preserved on epitaphs and inscriptions on coins. Then the names of other people like the Illyrian rulers Agron and Teuta were mentioned by Greek or Roman historians. The Albanian scholar Mahri Domi claims to have identified 800 of these (Liria 15 October 1982; 1 November 1983).11. The numerous marine terms for sea plants and animals in the Albanian language show that these people lived along the coast on what would correspond with Illyrian territory (AT 1983, 1:44-45).12. Then there are other words in Albanian which Greek or Roman writers long ago explicitly identified as Illyrian in origin.Down through the centuries many once great peoples have been either destroyed or assimilated by others so as to disappear altogether. But the Illyrian people with their distinctive dress, music, customs and especially their language have persisted in their shrinking territory along the western shore of the Balkan Peninsula. With no record or tradition even hinting at their extermination or assimilation or migration, one can only assume their unbroken historical continuity. There seems to be no question but that the present-day Albanians are the historically uninterrupted descendants of the lllyrians who were known to have inhabited that same region in early Greek and Roman times.
Taken from: The Albanians: an ethnic history from prehistoric times to the present, Edwin E. Jacques – 1995, pg.37 – 38.
“The Croats and Serbs rapidly absorbed most of the Latinized Illyrians. But the wealthy and powerful city-states on the coast were strong enough to maintain their independence and their distinctively Italian character. Other Roman provincials took refuge in the mountains of the interior; these Mavrovlachi, as they were called (see Dalmatia: Population; and Vlachs), preserved their language and nationality for many centuries. The Illyrian tribes which had withstood the attraction of Roman civilization remained unconquered among the mountains of Albania and were never Slavonized. With these exceptions Illyria became entirely Serbo-Croatian in population, language and culture.”
penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/…/Illyria*.html
Albanians represent Illyrians
* The Illyrians were last mentioned as such in Miracula Sancti Demetri (7th century AD), after which there is no other record of the name, except for one tribe of theirs, the Albanians. All the remaining tribes except perhaps the Romanized Vlachs were Slavicised in the course of the Middle Ages, while the Albanians represent an instance of southern Illyrian (or Thraco-Illyrian) continuity.
1. Polybius mention a city on modern central Albania called Arbon (its peoples he called Arbanios and Arbanitai)2. Pliny mention an Illyrian tribe named Olbonenses (Pannonia)3. Ptolemy the Geographer recorded a city called Albanopolis (according to his coordinates it may be found near Durrës territory). He named its inhabitants as Albanoi in his chapter about Macedonia.4. Stephanus of Byzantium wrote for a population called Abroi from Adria Taulantii and a city in Illyria called Arbon.
“Thus the Illyrians and Dacians were able to retreat into the mountains at the time of the Slavic invasions and retain their identities as Albanians and Vlachs.”
THE EARLY MEDIEVAL BALKANS , John Van Antwerp Fine, 1991, pg. 2
Byzantine references to Albanians
* In History written in 1079-1080, Byzantine historian Michael Attaliates referred to the Albanoi as having taken part in a revolt against Constantinople in 1043 and to the Arbanitai as subjects of the duke of Dyrrachium. Indeed, the center of the Albanians remained the river Mat, and in 1079 AD they are recorded in the territory between Ohrid and Thessalonika as well as in Epirus.
* The earliest Serbian source mentioning “Albania” (Ar’banas’) is a charter by Stefan Nemanja, dated 1198, which lists the region of Pilot (Pulatum) among the parts Nemanja conquered from Albania (ѡд Арьбанась Пилоть, “de Albania Pulatum”).
* 1285 in Dubrovnik (Ragusa) a document states: “Audivi unam vocem clamantem in monte in lingua albanesca” (I heard a voice crying in the mountains in the Albanian language).
* Arbanasi people are recorded as being ‘half-believers’ (non-Orthodox Christians) and speaking their own language in the Fragment of Origins of Nations between 1000-1018 by an anonymous author in a Bulgarian text of the 11th century.
Arbanitai of Arbanon are recorded in an account by Anna Comnena of the troubles in that region during the reign of her father Alexius I Comnenus (1081-1118) by the Normans.
The name of Illyrian tribe of Albanians has been reflected in the languages of Slavs who called Albanians as Арьбанась(Arbanas); Orientals called Albanians as ارناود (Arnauts) and Byzantines as Άρβανον (Arbanon).
Albanian Ties with Illyrian
Many lines of reasoning convince linguistic scholars that the Albanian people and language originated with the ancient lllyrians.1. The national name Albania is the name Albanoi, an Illyrian tribe mentioned by the geographer Ptolemy of Alexandria about A.D 150.2. The Albanoi territory then centered at Albanopoli, between Durrës and Kruja, the heartland of modern Albania.3. Four peoples speaking their own languages lived in the Balkans in ancient times: the Greeks in the south, the Macedonians in the center, the Thracians in the east and the lllyrians in the west.Today Albanian is spoken in most of the same region where Illyrian was spoken in ancient times.4. Those few language elements which are known as Illyrian can be explained through the Albanian language, and no other.5. A linguistic comparison of Albanian with ancient Greek and Latin indicates that Albanian was formed as a language at an earlier period than those other ancient languages.6. Archeological and historical data witness to the cultural continuity from the lllyrians to the Albanians. Continual contact with other peoples and languages has left its traces in the Albanian vocabulary. Foreign words have been borrowed from Greek, Latin, Slavic and Turkish, yet Albanian has been preserved as a separate language, its grammatical system remaining virtually unchanged.7. Linguists point out many technical similarities between Illyrian and Albanian words.8. Borrowings from northern Greek and from Latin incorporated in the Albanian language reflect the well-known political and cultural pressures on Illyrian territory. Linguistic studies indicate that Albanian developed from Illyrian as a distinct language between the fourth and sixth centuries A.D. Thus ancient borrowings of Greek and Latin vocabulary could not have moved directly into Albanian, but into Illyrian, through which these words entered into Albanian. Historical linguists point out that these borrowings from ancient Greek were in the Dorian dialect and penetrated into Illyrian through Corinthian commercial colonies in Corfu, along the Adriatic coast, and through border towns. Latin borrowings came later during the lengthy Roman occupation (NAlb 1986, 3:32). These ancient Greek and Roman contacts occurred precisely in the territory of old Illyria, leaving their traces in the Illyrian language from which they later passed into the Albanian language.9. Illyrian toponyms, ancient Illyrian place names for cities, rivers and mountains, are preserved today in the Albanian language, and only in Albanian. The names of Balkan villages usually lasted only a few centuries,for villages were often destroyed altogether during wartime. Cities lasted longer, so their names were usually older. But rivers, lakes and mountains endured through the centuries, and their ancient names usually continued in use. Even new inhabitants usually adopted the old names, just as American colonists adopted many old Indian place names in the United States. Accordingly, Albanian linguists have found more than 300 names of ancient cities like Shkodra, rivers like the Drin and mountains like Tomor which were mentioned by ancient Greek and Roman geographers or historians and which are still in use in Albania. Scholars show how the rules of historical phonetics explain any changes of spelling over the centuries from Illyrian to Albanian, as Scupi to Shkup, Scodra to Shkodra, Lissus to Lezha, Durrachium to Durrës, Drinus to Drin, Mathis to Mat. Certainly the Albanian language is derived from the Illyrian (Cabej 1985, 42-62).10. Illyrian proper names continue in use among present-day Albanians. Many of the individual Illyrian names of persons were preserved on epitaphs and inscriptions on coins. Then the names of other people like the Illyrian rulers Agron and Teuta were mentioned by Greek or Roman historians. The Albanian scholar Mahri Domi claims to have identified 800 of these (Liria 15 October 1982; 1 November 1983).11. The numerous marine terms for sea plants and animals in the Albanian language show that these people lived along the coast on what would correspond with Illyrian territory (AT 1983, 1:44-45).12. Then there are other words in Albanian which Greek or Roman writers long ago explicitly identified as Illyrian in origin.Down through the centuries many once great peoples have been either destroyed or assimilated by others so as to disappear altogether. But the Illyrian people with their distinctive dress, music, customs and especially their language have persisted in their shrinking territory along the western shore of the Balkan Peninsula. With no record or tradition even hinting at their extermination or assimilation or migration, one can only assume their unbroken historical continuity. There seems to be no question but that the present-day Albanians are the historically uninterrupted descendants of the lllyrians who were known to have inhabited that same region in early Greek and Roman times.
Taken from: The Albanians: an ethnic history from prehistoric times to the present, Edwin E. Jacques – 1995, pg.37 – 38.
“The Croats and Serbs rapidly absorbed most of the Latinized Illyrians. But the wealthy and powerful city-states on the coast were strong enough to maintain their independence and their distinctively Italian character. Other Roman provincials took refuge in the mountains of the interior; these Mavrovlachi, as they were called (see Dalmatia: Population; and Vlachs), preserved their language and nationality for many centuries. The Illyrian tribes which had withstood the attraction of Roman civilization remained unconquered among the mountains of Albania and were never Slavonized. With these exceptions Illyria became entirely Serbo-Croatian in population, language and culture.”
penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/…/Illyria*.html
Albanians represent Illyrians
* The Illyrians were last mentioned as such in Miracula Sancti Demetri (7th century AD), after which there is no other record of the name, except for one tribe of theirs, the Albanians. All the remaining tribes except perhaps the Romanized Vlachs were Slavicised in the course of the Middle Ages, while the Albanians represent an instance of southern Illyrian (or Thraco-Illyrian) continuity.
1. Polybius mention a city on modern central Albania called Arbon (its peoples he called Arbanios and Arbanitai)2. Pliny mention an Illyrian tribe named Olbonenses (Pannonia)3. Ptolemy the Geographer recorded a city called Albanopolis (according to his coordinates it may be found near Durrës territory). He named its inhabitants as Albanoi in his chapter about Macedonia.4. Stephanus of Byzantium wrote for a population called Abroi from Adria Taulantii and a city in Illyria called Arbon.
“Thus the Illyrians and Dacians were able to retreat into the mountains at the time of the Slavic invasions and retain their identities as Albanians and Vlachs.”
THE EARLY MEDIEVAL BALKANS , John Van Antwerp Fine, 1991, pg. 2
Byzantine references to Albanians
* In History written in 1079-1080, Byzantine historian Michael Attaliates referred to the Albanoi as having taken part in a revolt against Constantinople in 1043 and to the Arbanitai as subjects of the duke of Dyrrachium. Indeed, the center of the Albanians remained the river Mat, and in 1079 AD they are recorded in the territory between Ohrid and Thessalonika as well as in Epirus.
* The earliest Serbian source mentioning “Albania” (Ar’banas’) is a charter by Stefan Nemanja, dated 1198, which lists the region of Pilot (Pulatum) among the parts Nemanja conquered from Albania (ѡд Арьбанась Пилоть, “de Albania Pulatum”).
* 1285 in Dubrovnik (Ragusa) a document states: “Audivi unam vocem clamantem in monte in lingua albanesca” (I heard a voice crying in the mountains in the Albanian language).
* Arbanasi people are recorded as being ‘half-believers’ (non-Orthodox Christians) and speaking their own language in the Fragment of Origins of Nations between 1000-1018 by an anonymous author in a Bulgarian text of the 11th century.
Arbanitai of Arbanon are recorded in an account by Anna Comnena of the troubles in that region during the reign of her father Alexius I Comnenus (1081-1118) by the Normans.
The name of Illyrian tribe of Albanians has been reflected in the languages of Slavs who called Albanians as Арьбанась(Arbanas); Orientals called Albanians as ارناود (Arnauts) and Byzantines as Άρβανον (Arbanon).