Ancient Albanian customs and traditions.

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajtim
Vajtim or Gjëmë (Gjâmë in the Gheg dialect of the Albanian language) is the dirge or lamentation of the dead in the Albanian custom by a woman or a group of women. In Northern Albania, men can also be seen singing.
Gjâma e Burrave, (English: Men's Lament) is a death rite performed only by men and for men only, in Albania, exclusively in the highlands of Dukagjin, Gjakovë and Iballë, Pukë.[4]

Man Lamentation in North Albania
1937
Reimer Schulz
Burial and the Cult of the Dead among the Northern Albanian Highlanders


German anthropologist, Dr Reimer Schulz (d. 1941), took part in a German-Italian expedition to the northern Albanian mountains in 1937 on behalf of a “Thuringia Institute for Racial Studies” in Weimar. During a longer stay in Theth (Dukagjin), he measured body shapes and sizes and noted the physiognomic particularities of the natives for an academic discipline that was soon to fall out of fashion. He assembled over two hundred photographs of school children while in Dukagjin, and, as described below, attended a funeral and took the following photos.

AH1937_Schulz01_700.jpg

Nik Ndou, our dragoman, arrived at our camp earlier than foreseen. It was about 6 A.M. A call had echoed long through the valley early that morning. It began in the north and spread from cliff to cliff. The “Albanian telephone” then fell silent when it reached the end of the valley. This is the name the Austrians gave to the masterful way that the highlanders, the mostly Catholic inhabitants of the Northern Albanian Alps, spread news, by calling and taking advantage of the echo. Nik had heard the news and transmitted it, as a matter of course, to the next house. Now he wanted to inform us of what had happened, so he arrived at our camp earlier than usual. But he did not hustle. Albanians never hustle
From Nik we learned that Ujk Vuksani, a wealthy farmer from the northern end of the valley, had died the night before and was to be buried that day. Nik wanted to attend the funeral, and we joined him.
A burial in the highlands that includes all the funeral customs lasts a whole day, often late into the night. The tribesmen related to the deceased gather to pay their respects to him and to take part in the wake.
We got to the house of the deceased in the late morning hours. Nik accompanied us first to the home of the dead man’s brother. In the courtyard, large vats of food had been put out for the guests.
AH1937_Schulz02_700.jpg

The dead man’s brother was waiting for us at the doorway. We greeted him and his son with “Paçi baftin” which means more or less “May the deceased leave you good luck.” They replied, “May the deceased leave you good luck, too,” and accompanied us from the stable on the ground floor to the living room upstairs. Visitors were standing and squatting everywhere - in the stable, on the stairs and in the upstairs room. Five low, round tables had been set up in the living room. At each of them ten men sat on the floor, with their legs crossed. To make room for everyone, they say sideways, with their right flanks towards the table. Cornbread and sheep cheese were brought in for the guests. One man at each table broke the large round loaf of bread and the cheese into bits. A jug of water was also handed around. Corn mush was then served that the guests dipped into liquefied butter. On every table there was a large wooden bowl that everyone ate out of. The guests had all brought their own spoons with them. After this came kos, a type of sour milk. When the meal was over, they all took to smoking. Albanians hardly ever let their cigarettes go out - only when they are eating or sleeping.

After we had eaten, we proceeded to the house of the deceased man. His body was already laid out. From outside we could hear the wailing of the women, and the noise continued when we were inside. The women were sitting around the body, with one of them at his head waving a fan made of fern branches to keep the flies away. The deceased was dressed in his finest clothes. He was wearing a richly embroidered red waist jacket, typical for elderly men. His head was wrapped in a pure-white scarf that covered his new woollen fez. On the jacket were his medals, a Turkish one and an Austrian one, and a skilfully fashioned filigree chain. Around his waste was a loaded cartridge belt, with a pistol in it. His rifle was leaning at his side. He was also wearing white woollen trousers with black strips and a pattern on them, as well as beautifully embroidered socks and pointed Albanian shoes on his feet. A cigarette butt had been placed in his fingers. In his arms there were three apples, a bundle of tobacco leaves, a tobacco box and a bottle of raki. These were symbols of the generosity and hospitality of the deceased. In the afternoon, the body was taken to the graveyard on a narrow bier. Two boards were placed flat under a tree and the deceased was laid out there with all the gifts. The women carefully ordered his clothing, tightened his scarf and fanned the flies from him with the fern branches. Some men then began digging the grave.
AH1937_Schulz03_700.jpg

Twelve men, however, remained to one side, about two hundred metres away from the rest. They were standing in two lines, brow to brow. Their leader was in the middle. He bent his knees slightly, took a deep breath and began the tribal lamentation, emitting loud sighs. of “Mjeri, o, o, vëllathi i êm -, mjeri – o, o eh, eh!” (“Woe, my wretched brother!”). The words were repeated over and over, each time louder and with greater vehemence, and was accompanied by gestures. The men beat their breasts and rubbed at their temples. Then they held their noses and moaned, “eh, eh, eh.
AH1937_Schulz04_700.jpg

The group took several steps towards the body and repeated the lament and gestures in the same sequence. Step by step they approached the deceased until they stood in a semicircle around him. Once again they began lamenting and fell to their knees, leaning forwards. They held themselves up with one hand on the ground and placed the other at their sides. “Mjeri, o, o, o!” The cries were repeated, louder and louder. The brother of the dead man then came forth and placed his hand on the backs of the moaning men, to tell them that it was enough. The men fell silent and rose to their feet, withdrawing to one side to smoke a cigarette.
AH1937_Schulz05_700.jpg

The women then approach the corpse and sat closely around it. One young woman covered her face in her scarf and began the wailing of the women. Every phrase she uttered was echoed by the other women with groans of “eh, eh, eh”. The young woman mourned her beloved father who had left them forever. She told of his life, his family, his children, his virtues and his hospitality, but also of his suffering and death. The wailing of the women lasted for about half an hour and ended in groaning and sobbing.
We returned to our camp. We could hear the wild cries and lamentations of the men until midnight, echoing eerie in the night. The corpse was later placed in the grave filled with leaves. Two long boards were placed over it and were covered with earth.
The lamentation of the highlanders, the primarily Dinaric inhabitants of the Northern Albanian Alps, is a moving ceremony evincing tribal solidarity among simple peasants and shepherds. All the relatives bring forth their lament and do so as part of a cult tradition. Solemn and earnest, they reveal devotion and fervour, yet show no sign of ecstasy or demonic frenzy. The lamentation is the way the tribe honours its dead. It is not a fraternity of men or a secret society that is acting here, it is the entire tribe that is openly paying farewell to one of its members.


[Reimer Schulz: Leichenbegräbnis und Totenkult bei den Malisoren. in: Atlantis, Länder, Völker, Reisen, Leipzig, vol. 10 (1938), p. 257-259. Translated from the German by Robert Elsie.]
 
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This is a documentary which is not very qualitative, because it is made from amateur people, but can help to understand this tradition, and the most important is with english subtitles.
Highlanders believe that the first case of man lamention occurred when Lek Dukagjini lamented for the death of Skanderbeg.
But the scholars believe that the tradition is very old.

Gjama e maleve, The Lament of the Mountains

 
Sworn Virgins

The sworn virgins (Albanian: burrnesha or Albanian: virgjinesha) are women who take a vow of chastity and wear male clothing in order to live as men in the patriarchal northern Albanian society.
The reasons for this were overwhelmingly social, and one must first understand the social conditions under which these women lived and the "Kanun", the social law that governed local societies. The phenomenon is centuries old, perhaps even older, and it was observed in certain areas of the Western Balkans, especially Albania. It receded under Communist rule and its granting of more rights to women, but has survived in the mountainous northern Albania, where "burrneshas" still exist (though most of them aged by now).

For more information:

Portraits of Albanian Women Who Have Lived Their Lives As Men
 
The sworn virgins (Albanian: burrnesha or Albanian: virgjinesha) are women who take a vow of chastity and wear male clothing in order to live as men in the patriarchal northern Albanian society.
The reasons for this were overwhelmingly social, and one must first understand the social conditions under which these women lived and the "Kanun", the social law that governed local societies. The phenomenon is centuries old, perhaps even older, and it was observed in certain areas of the Western Balkans, especially Albania. It receded under Communist rule and its granting of more rights to women, but has survived in the mountainous northern Albania, where "burrneshas" still exist (though most of them aged by now).

For more information:
http://petapixel.com/2012/12/26/portraits-of-albanian-women-who-have-lived-their-lives-as-men/
 
The sworn virgins (Albanian: burrnesha or Albanian: virgjinesha) are women who take a vow of chastity and wear male clothing in order to live as men in the patriarchal northern Albanian society.
The reasons for this were overwhelmingly social, and one must first understand the social conditions under which these women lived and the "Kanun", the social law that governed local societies. The phenomenon is centuries old, perhaps even older, and it was observed in certain areas of the Western Balkans, especially Albania. It receded under Communist rule and its granting of more rights to women, but has survived in the mountainous northern Albania, where "burrneshas" still exist (though most of them aged by now).
For more information:

Portraits of Albanian Women Who Have Lived Their Lives As Men
 
An interesting costume and some interesting toponyms.

I was reading this article in this blog dedicated to folk costumes:
http://folkcostume.blogspot.al/2012/04/costume-of-arvan-valley-savoy-france.html

Saturday, April 21, 2012
Costume of the Arvan valley, Savoy, France
Hello all,
This is going to be my last posting about Savoy, at least for a while. This is the most unusual and likely the most famous of all the costumes in Savoy. The Arvan valley is in the southwest corner of Maurienne, south of Villards and west of Valloise. The image above is of a print which I have hanging on my wall. The costume worn in this valley is distinctive, but there are three basic variants, which differ primarily in the coif used, but also in other details.
The first variant is found in the communities on the north side of the Arvan river, namely, Jarrier, St. Pancrace, Fontcouverte and Villarembert. There are subtle differences between the costumes of each community.
The second is found in the three communities at the head of the valley, along the two upper branches of the Arvan, St. Sorlin d'Arves, St. Jean d'Arves and Montrond. The print above is of the second variant, which is the best known.
The third variant is found in the communities on the south side of the river valley, Albiez the Old, and Albiez the Young.
Here is a schematic map of the Arvan valley, It is found in the southwest 'corner' of Maurienne, off the main river valley of the Arc.

arvan+valley.jpg

This costume is extremely colorful and quite unusual in several respects. The basic garment is a chemise, which seems to have a stand-up collar, and only shows around the neckline, but is important as a foundation garment. The skirt is separate from the bodice, or jacket, which has sleeves. The Jacket is closed either by lacing up, in the first variant, or by a line of hooks in variants 2 and 3. The skirt is heavy wool, with a unique construction, with one double band of blue cloth sewn onto the back, a little below the waist in variant 1, somewhat lower in St Jean, variant 2, and just above the knees in variant three. The front is flat, and has 25 pleats from one hip to the other in varians 1 and 2, and only 11 in variant 3. The cincture 'ceinture' is closed in front with homemade 'chainettes', it is about 20 cm wide in variants 1 and two, and considerably narrower in the Albiez's. A rich apron and embroidered shawl is worn in all three variants, and in color varies with the Liturgical season. The three styles of coif are very different.

1. The hair is gathered in a chignon on top of the head, covered with a small coif, and then a 'beguine' of fan or butterfly shaped lace mounted onto a small piece of linen is pinned to it. It varies slightly in shape from one community to another.
Jarrier
Jarrier+01.jpg

Saint Pancrace
St+Pancrace+02.jpg

Fontcourverte
Fontcouverte+02.jpg

Villarembert
Villarembert.jpg

2. The coif is shaped somewhat like a bonnet without the front frill, it is set back somewhat on the head. The main part is cylindrical with a flat back. It is covered with red or rose colored cloth or ribbon. There is a ruched frill of lace attached halfway with the top slanting forward and the sides slanting back. In St. Sorlin the coif is covered with spangles and metallic braid behind the lace frill, and finished off with colored ribbon. In St. Jean the rear is covered with white gauze and finished off with a white ribbon.


Saint Sorlin
St+Sorlin+coif+03.jpg

St+Sorlin+coif.jpg

St+Sorlin+02.jpg

Saint Jean
St+Jean.jpg

St+Jean+02.jpg

3. In the two Albiez, the coif is a white bonnet which somewhat resembles the eskeuffia of Upper Maurienne, and combines features of the other two versions.
Image41b.jpg

costume-20e8209.jpg

Image42.jpg

In these last couple of photos, you can see that the jacket is trimmed with colorful woven ribbon, and is hooked closed up the front. This is visible because the Albiez sash is so much narrower than that of the other versions. Sometimes a hand-embroidered strip of cloth is used instead. The hooks are clearly visible, and in this case have been sewn on with green and yellow thread to match the embroidery. A cross on a ribbon is part of all three variants of the costume.
Image45.jpg

continue
 
The narrow ceinture of Albiez is usually embroidered, edged with ribbon and closed with a simple row of hooks. The apron is of a colorful material, has a patterned ribbon worn over it. The apron and/or the shawl may be embroidered as well.
Image21b.jpg

By contrast, the ceinture of the other two variants is wider, is also made of rich cloth, and has ribbon edging, but the two ends do not meet, rather there is a piece which overlaps behind. There are a series of chainettes which stretch across this central panel, and hook onto the edge beyond. This is one of the most striking features of this costume. This first example I believe is of variant 1, and the others of varient 2.
1256000011_6.jpg

Image24.jpg

Image23.jpg

There is often trim sewn onto the upper edge of the apron in variant 2.
Image17.jpg

Image31b.jpg

The last component of this costume which is very unique is the skirt and its construction. The top of the skirt is a normal full gathered skirt, but the lower edge is made of up to 30 separate strips sewn on one at a time, each longer than the last, and eased in to fit. Thus the skirt gets larger and larger with each new strip. The front is left flat. Since the number of pleats remains constant, either 25 or 11, each individual pleat gets wider towards the bottom. In many of the communities, the skirts turn up at the bottom to form 'magpie tails'. It takes a skilled seamstress up to 6 months to make such a skirt, the bottom hem may be up to 11 meters around, and the skirt itself may weigh 7 kilos. This results in a remarkable movement of the skirt when walking. If you look carefully, you can see the separate strips in the following photos.

St. Jean
skirt.jpg

img_2153-20e4eff.jpg

St Sorlin
Image8.jpg

Jarrier
Skirt+Jarrier.jpg

Magpie tails
skirt+hem+with+magpie+tails.jpg

The only other example of this kind of skirt construction which I know of is the Xhubleta of Albania [ pronounced Djoobleta ]. The xhubleta also has a number of strips sewn on one after the other, each of which is longer than the one before, making the garment wider and wider towards the bottom. In other respects the xhubleta is very different, not being pleated, being attached to a bodice, and having braid sewn on the various strips. Why these two unrelated, widely separated regions uniquely use this method of construction, I have no idea. Interestingly, the xhubleta is also worn with a short waist length jacket which fastens in front, called a mintan, and a wide [to 20 cm] cloth cincture which is highly decorated and hooks closed in front, called kerdhokla. Both of these are additional similarities to the Arvan Costume. This makes for some interesting speculation.
Here is a schematic of the construction, a photograph of a xhubleta from the rear and a woman wearing the full costume.
372.jpg

4782269169_f421ffc207_o.jpg

Image1.jpg

Here are just a few more images of the Arvan costume.
Image46.jpg

Image41.jpg

Saint+Jean+d%27Arves,+La+Savoie.jpg

Cimg0219.jpg

Thank you for reading, I hope you have found this interesting and informative.


Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. I also choreograph and teach folk dance.
Roman K.

[email protected]



Source Material:
Daniel Dequier, 'Maurienne d'Hier et d'Aujourd'hui', Albertville, 1980
G. Collomb, 'Les Costumes de Savoie', Chambery, 1972
Fabian et Anne da Costa, 'Costumes Traditionels de Savoie', Lyons, 2000
Daniel Dequier & Francois Isler, 'Costumes de Fete en Savoie', Seyssinet, 2002
R. Feuillie, 'Quelques Costumes de Savoie', Annecy,
Andre Sainsard, 'Costumes Folkloriques Provinces Françaises', Paris, 1972
Royere, Gardilanne, Moffat et al, 'Les Costumes Regionaux de la France', New York, 1929
Charles-Brun, 'Costumes des Provinces Françaises', Paris, 1937
P. Leroux, 'Costumes Regionaux', Paris, 1940
Caroline Brancq, 'Les Costumes regioneaux d'Autrefois', Paris, 2003
Royere, Gardilanne, Moffat et al, 'Les Costumes Regionaux de la France', New York, 1929
Andromaqi Gjergji, 'Albanian Costumes through the Centuries', Tirana. 2004
 
Now, the interesting part are not only the folk costumes but also the toponyms.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principality_of_ArbanonArbanon (Albanian: Arbër, Arbëria, Greek: Ἄρβανον, Latin: Arbanum) or Albanon (Greek: Ἄλβανον), was an autonomous principality, the first Albanian entity during the Middle Ages, initially part of the Byzantine Empire and later of the Despotate of Epirus. In this French valley we find toponyms like: the Arvan, St. Sorlin d'Arves, St. Jean d'Arves and Montrond, Albiez the Old, and Albiez the Young, Albanne, Arvan valley.Thoughts?
 
[h=1]Dita e Verës[/h]
Every year on March 14, the people of Albania celebrate Dita e Verës—translated as "The day of summer", the country's largest pagan festival. It is intended to celebrate the end of winter, the rebirth of nature, and a rejuvenation of spirit among the Albanians. Although the center of this festival is around Shkumbin region in Elbasan, the festival is widely celebrated in Tirana and as far afield as the Arbëresh colonies in Italy. In 2004, Summer Day became an official holiday in Albania.
On this day and even since March 1, many youngsters and unmarried people usually wear a traditional bracelet called verore (a word derived from summer) made of two thin braided strings usually red and white.[1] At the end of the day, the bracelet is hung on a tree branch for good luck, and is believed that birds use it to build their nests. In recent years,[when?] festivities include a city marathon and are generally performed between 9 am and 9 pm. In Rinia Park, a circus show is put on the evenings and is packed with circus performers, acrobats and magicians and people celebrating the festival.
Dita e Veres is one of the oldest traditions in Elbasan. It is a community-wide event, with families often exchanging the traditional ballokume, a sugar and corn flour cookie, which is the symbol cookie of this day. Each family has its own recipe, considered a source of pride. People in Elbasan can be found during Dita e Veres, celebrating outside.

 
Ç’është Dita e Verës? / Është dita në të cilën shtërgjyshërit t’anë, kur s’kish lindur edhe krishtërimi, kremtojin bashkë me Romanët dhe me Grekët e Vjetër, perëndit’ e luleve, të shelgjeve, të krojeve.Kur çkrin dimëri, kur qaset Vera buzëqeshur e hollë dhe e gjatë si në piktyrë të Botticelli, zemra e njeriut çgarkohet nga një barë, shijon një qetësi, një lumtësi t’ëmblë. Në këtë gëzim, stërgjyshërit t’anë ndiejin një detyrë t’u falen perëndive që sillnin këto mirësira.Dhe ashtu leu festa hiroshe që quajmë Dit’ e Verës.(Faik Bej Konica, Botuar më 1911).

Elbasan



Tirana
Dita_e_Vesdfsdfres_ne_Shqiperi.jpg



 
A good example of how albanian epic verse (vid below) is transmitted orally.

Milman Parry and Albert Lord are the two most prominent scholars the field of "Oral Theory" a term for the study of the mechanisms of how the Homeric epics were orally transmitted, in terms of linguistics, cultural conditions, and literary genre.

Milman Parry and Albert Lord, after their studies of folk bards in the Balkans, developed the Oral-Formulaic Theory that the Homeric poems were originally improvised.

This theory found very wide scholarly acceptance. Albanian epic verse, unlike other oral traditions of southeast europe, is still alive today.

Here is a good english translation of one version of a famous ballad called Constantine and Doruntine, that is still sung today by Albanians in Chameria:


" Long ago there was a mother


Who had nine sons and a daughter.


All the lads were dashing heroes


And the maid was called Dhoqina,


Just a young girl, still unmarried,


Agile was she like a goshawk.


From afar did come a missive


Asking for her hand in marriage,


But the brothers would not let her,


Only would the youngest of them,


Only Constantine accepted,


Days went by and months receded,


Then she went abroad to marry


Seven days she journeyed thither.


All the brothers then departed,


Travelled far to serve as soldiers


Fighting in a war with Russia,


All nine brothers fell in battle.


Left was but the widowed mother:


“Constantine, my son, where are you?


While alive, you made a promise,


This was what you said on parting:


‘Be I dead or be I living


I’ll return to you Dhoqina!’


Constantine, my son, where are you?


What now of your word of honour?”


Thus complained the widowed mother,


Longing for her distant daughter.


From the grave arose Constantine,


Tombstone turned into a stallion,


Graveyard soil became a saddle,


On his black horse did he clamber,


One by one he crossed the mountains


Swiftly, slowly did he journey,


Passing seven alpine ranges,


Seized his sister from her dancing:


“Oh Dhoqina, poor Dhoqina,


Do you not long for your family?


Tears are flowing down your mother’s


Face who cries to see her daughter.”


“Good or bad news are you bringing?”


“Come along now with me, sister,


As you are, dressed in those garments.”


O’er the horse’s rump he pulled her


As the birds chirped in the mountains:


“Tsili viu, tsili viu,


Have you seen them, have you seen them,


Dead man riding with the living?”


Then Dhoqina asked her brother:


“Constantine, oh dearest brother,


What has happened, what’s the matter?


What’s that heavy smell that’s coming


Off your arms and mighty shoulders?”


“Smoke and powder from my rifle


For I’ve been at war, in battle.”


“Constantine, oh dearest brother,


What is in your hair that’s glaring,


Flaring that it almost blinds me?”


“Do not worry, my good sister,


Just the dust whirled from the highway.”


“Constantine, oh dearest brother,


What’s the matter with our house here,


Why has it been painted over,


Has perchance misfortune struck it?”


“Do not worry, fair Dhoqina,


It’s just mother who’s grown older.


She no longer liked the colours,


Thus she had the house repainted


Black as symbol of her aging,


Nothing more and nothing less,” he


Told her at their destination.


“Off the horse now, fair Dhoqina,


Go into the house, my sister,


I’ll be with you in a twinkling.”


Constantine flew off that instant


And returned unto his graveyard.


To the doorway strode Dhoqina,


“Open, mother, it’s Dhoqina!”


“Who is claiming she’s Dhoqina?


May a bolt of lightning strike you!


Who has led you to my doorway?


All my sons are gone and perished.”


“Open up the door, dear mother,


For I’ve come back with my brother,


Come with Constantine on horseback.”


“Constantine is gone and perished,


Fell upon the field of battle,


Withered, turned to dust his body.”


Then she opened up the door and


Saw her daughter on the threshold,


Both the women died that second. "




 
Johane Deride this is the song of Doruntina's history:

 
@Johane Derite
There is also the version from Laberia, i don't know if they're the same, just posting it since it's more meaningful through albanian.

KËNGA E DHOQINËS...BALADË..VARIANTI I LABËRISË..
Ditën e pashkës së madhe/
Seç u ther një ka në fshat/
Vajta mora një ok mish/
Dhe e hodha në kusi/
Po në qepra mi shtëpi/
Na del një gjarpër i zi
U fut brenda në kusi
Dhe helmoi djemtë e mi...

Nëntë djem e nëntë nuse
Të nënta me djem në duar,
Nëntë djepe i përmbysi.
Nëntë pajë i zhuriti
Nëntë kapaklli mi shiti,
nëntë varre mi bitisi
mbeta unë kallogrinjë,
për të nxirosur shtëpinë.

Lanet paç,o Kostandin,
Lanet paç o biri im,/
Ma dhe Dhoqinën në fqinj
Më le vetëm për vajtim..
Kostandin çtë të thotë nëna?
Po tani që mu bë gjëma,
Ku është besa që më dhe?
Dhoqinën ti,ku ma ke?

E martove aqë larg..
Larg e larg mërguarë..
Tre male kaptuarë..
Ç’e vajton nëna mbi varr
Dhe u kthye duke qarë..

U ngris dita erdh akshami
Kostandini ungrit nga varri
Gur i varrit ju bë kalë
Dheu i varrit ju bë shalë
Mirë kalin e shaloi,
Mori udhën edhe shkoi..
Tre malet i kaptoi
Dhoqinën vate kërkoi..

Na ish dit e pashkës madhe
Dhoqina luante valle
Rrobat qëndisur me ar
Njihej që ish dere parë..

Preu vallen nusëria
Dhoqina njohu vëllanë
E njohu,dolli mënjanë
Edhe Kosta ju afrua
Mirdita motra Dhoqinë
Mir se erdhe Kostë vëllai
Për të keq a për të mirë..?
Në më erdhe për të mirë
Do vete të bëj stolinë
Të vesh kostumin e mirë
Të var gushës xhevahirë

Në më erdhe për të keq
Të vishem si kallogre

Unë të erdha për të mirë
O moj ti motra Dhoqinë
Po ç’i do rrobat e tjera?
Ashtu si të zuri hera!
Merrëm o vëlla i xhanit
Hipëm në vithje ë kalit
U nis kali e po shkonte
kalin Kosta e nxitonte
Si në erë fluturonte
Kali udhës turfullonte

Çka kali që turfullon
Mor Kostë vëllai?
Nga gëzimi që gëzon
Moj Dhoqinë motra
Udhësë tek shkonin
Te pemët dëgjonin
Zogjtë që cicëronin
Ciliviu,ciliviu...
Kini parë a skini parë
Dy veta hipur mbi kalë
Shkon i vdekuri me të gjallë..
Çkanë zogjtë që këndojnë
Çjanë ato fjalë që thonë/
O Kostë vëllai...?
Zogj janë,le të këndojnë...?
Si të duan le të thonë
Moj Dhoqinë motra
-Supet e tua të lartë
Pse më bien era baltë/
O Kosta vëllai?
Janë llohët e beharit..
Moj Dhoqinë motra..
Në varr te qisha arrinë..
Ik në shtëpi moj Dhoqinë
Se unë do ngjatoj dorinë..
Atje sipër në lëndinë...

Dhoqina u nis në portë..
Kostandini u fut në gropë..

Hap moj nënë derën
Jam dhoqina vetëm
Lipsu moj murtajë e shkretë
Vjen këtu të më gënjesh
Ti më hëngre nëntë djemtë
Nëntë djem e nëntë nuse
Nëntë nuse e nëntë djepe
Kërkon dhe mua me vete...?
Do që të më marrç dhe mua..?
Hape,nënë çfarë thua...?
Hape nënë derën
Jam dhoqina vetëm...
Me kë erdhe moj Dhoqinë.../
Kam ardhë me kostandinë
Ç’Kostandin të ardhtë gjëma?
Kostandini vdekur../
ç’bën tre vjet pa treturë../
Kosta,kostë vëllai më pruri..
E ku e ke Kostandinë../
U ngjit lart në një lëndinë..
Shkoi të zgjatoi dorinë..
Nëna hapi derën
Sheh Dhoqinën vetëm..
Tek u puthnë e u ngalasnë..
Që të dia në vënt plasnë...!
 
Now, the interesting part are not only the folk costumes but also the toponyms.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principality_of_ArbanonArbanon (Albanian: Arbër, Arbëria, Greek: Ἄρβανον, Latin: Arbanum) or Albanon (Greek: Ἄλβανον), was an autonomous principality, the first Albanian entity during the Middle Ages, initially part of the Byzantine Empire and later of the Despotate of Epirus. In this French valley we find toponyms like: the Arvan, St. Sorlin d'Arves, St. Jean d'Arves and Montrond, Albiez the Old, and Albiez the Young, Albanne, Arvan valley.Thoughts?

Albanians have an Angevine element?

----

On the other hand the name at least in some cases should be associated with the founders of Rome who were called Albani.

[For what is worth (maybe not much for most), those Albani in Greek sources like Dionysius of Halikarnassus appear to be partly Mycenaean-related (Pelasgians, Arcadians), partly Trojan-related (Dardanidae).]
 
In Albanian folklore, Mount Tomorr is anthropomorphized and associated with the legendary figure of Baba Tomor, envisioned as an old giant with a long flowing white beard and four female eagles hovering above him and perching on his snow-covered slopes. According to German folklorist Maximilian Lambertz, Baba Tomor is the remnant of an Illyrian deity.


Baba Tomor has taken the Earthly Beauty to be his bride. She spends her days with her sister, the Sea Beauty, ("E Bukura e Detit"), but when evening comes, The Wind, faithful servant of Baba Tomor, carries her back up the mountainside to him. Mount Tomor overlooks the town of Berat, which the old man jealously guards as his favourite city. Across the valley is Mount Shpirag with furrow-like torrents of water running down its slopes. While Baba Tomor was dallying in bed with the Earthy Beauty one day, Shpirag took advantage of the moment and advanced to take over Berat. The four guardian eagles duly awakened Baba Tomor from his dreams. When told of Shpirag's surreptitious plans, Baba Tomor arose from his bed. His first concern was for the safety of the Earthly Beauty and so he ordered the East Wind to carry her back to the home of her sister. Mounting his mule, Tomor then set off to do battle with Shpirag. With his scythe, Tomor lashed into Shpirag, inflicting upon him many a wound which can be seen today as the furrows running down the mountainside. A trace of the hoof of Baba Tomor's mule can, it is said, be seen near the village of Sinja BR. Shpirag, for his part, pounded Tomor with his cudgel and left many a wound on the lofty mountain, but was overcome. The two giants ultimately slew one another and the maiden drowned in her tears, which became the Osum river."


— Legend of Baba Tomor

Despite it's "pagan" origin, Mount Tomorr is a sacred site to both Albanian Christians, who climb it on Assumption Day (August 15) to honor the Virgin Mary, and Albanian Bektashi Muslims, who honor Abbas ibn Ali during an annual pilgrimage on August 20–25.

Here is an Albanian song singing praises to Baba Tomorri:



Mali_i_Tomorrit_nga_k%C3%ABshtjella_e_Beratit.jpg
 
It would seem that Mt Tomorri was known to Strabo as well:

"

Now although in those earlier times, as I have said, all Epeirus and the Illyrian country were rugged and full of mountains, such as Tomarus and Polyanus and several others, still they were populous; but at the present time desolation prevails in most parts, while the parts that are still inhabited survive only in villages and in ruins. And even the oracle at Dodona, like the rest, is virtually extinct.


This oracle, according to Ephorus, was founded by the Pelasgi. And the Pelasgi are called the earliest of all peoples who have held dominion in Greece. And the poet speaks in this way: ““O Lord Zeus, Dodonaean, Pelasgian”; and Hesiod: ““He came to Dodona and the oak-tree, seat of the Pelasgi.”

The Pelasgi I have already discussed in my description of Tyrrhenia; and as for the people who lived in the neighborhood of the temple of Dodona, Homer too makes it perfectly clear from their mode of life, when he calls them “men with feet unwashen, men who sleep upon the ground,” that they were barbarians; but whether one should call them “Helli,” as Pindar does, or “Selli,” as is conjectured to be the true reading in Homer, is a question to which the text, since it is doubtful, does not permit a positive answer.

Philochorus says that the region round about Dodona, like Euboea, was called Hellopia, and that in fact Hesiod speaks of it in this way: ““There is a land called Hellopia, with many a corn-field and with goodly meadows; on the edge of this land a city called Dodona hath been built.”

It is thought, Apollodorus says, that the land was so called from the marshes around the temple; as for the poet, however, Apollodorus takes it for granted that he did not call the people who lived about the temple “Helli,” but “Selli,” since (Apollodorus adds) the poet also named a certain river Selleeïs. He names it, indeed, when he says, ““From afar, out of Ephyra, from the River Selleeïs”; however, as Demetrius of Scepsis says, the poet is not referring to the Ephyra among the Thesprotians, but to that among the Eleians, for the Selleeïs is among the Eleians, he adds, and there is no Selleeïs among the Thesprotians, nor yet among the Molossi. And as for the myths that are told about the oak-tree and the doves, and any other myths of the kind, although they, like those told about Delphi, are in part more appropriate to poetry, yet they also in part properly belong to the present geographical description.


In ancient times, then, Dodona was under the rule of the Thesprotians; and so was Mount Tomarus, or Tmarus (for it is called both ways), at the base of which the temple is situated. And both the tragic poets and Pindar have called Dodona “Thesprotian Dodona.” But later on it came under the rule of the Molossi. And it is after the Tomarus, people say, that those whom the poet calls interpreters of Zeus—whom he also calls “men with feet unwashen, men who sleep upon the ground”—were called “tomouroi”; and in the Odyssey some so write the words of Amphinomus, when he counsels the wooers not to attack Telemachus until they inquire of Zeus: ““If the tomouroi of great Zeus approve, I myself shall slay, and I shall bid all the rest to aid, whereas if god averts it, I bid you stop.”

”For it is better, they argue, to write “tomouroi” than “themistes”; at any rate, nowhere in the poet are the oracles called “themistes,” but it is the decrees, statutes, and laws that are so called; and the people have been called “tomouroi” because “tomouroi” is a contraction of “tomarouroi,” the equivalent of “tomarophylakes.” Now although the more recent critics say “tomouroi,” yet in Homer one should interpret “themistes” (and also “boulai”) in a simpler way, though in a way that is a misuse of the term, as meaning those orders and decrees that are oracular, just as one also interprets “themistes” as meaning those that are made by law. For example, such is the case in the following: ““to give ear to the decree of Zeus from the oak-tree of lofty foliage.



At the outset, it is true, those who uttered the prophecies were men (this too perhaps the poet indicates, for he calls them “hypophetae,” and the prophets might be ranked among these), but later on three old women were designated as prophets, after Dione also had been designated as temple-associate of Zeus. Suidas,however, in his desire to gratify the Thessalians with mythical stories, says that the temple was transferred from Thessaly, from the part of Pelasgia which is about Scotussa (and Scotussa does belong to the territory called Thessalia Pelasgiotis), and also that most of the women whose descendants are the prophetesses of today went along at the same time; and it is from this fact that Zeus was also called “Pelasgian.”


[h=1]-Strabo, Geography, Book 7, Chapter 7[/h]
 
In Albanian folklore, Mount Tomorr is anthropomorphized and associated with the legendary figure of Baba Tomor, envisioned as an old giant with a long flowing white beard and four female eagles hovering above him and perching on his snow-covered slopes. According to German folklorist Maximilian Lambertz, Baba Tomor is the remnant of an Illyrian deity.


Baba Tomor has taken the Earthly Beauty to be his bride. She spends her days with her sister, the Sea Beauty, ("E Bukura e Detit"), but when evening comes, The Wind, faithful servant of Baba Tomor, carries her back up the mountainside to him. Mount Tomor overlooks the town of Berat, which the old man jealously guards as his favourite city. Across the valley is Mount Shpirag with furrow-like torrents of water running down its slopes. While Baba Tomor was dallying in bed with the Earthy Beauty one day, Shpirag took advantage of the moment and advanced to take over Berat. The four guardian eagles duly awakened Baba Tomor from his dreams. When told of Shpirag's surreptitious plans, Baba Tomor arose from his bed. His first concern was for the safety of the Earthly Beauty and so he ordered the East Wind to carry her back to the home of her sister. Mounting his mule, Tomor then set off to do battle with Shpirag. With his scythe, Tomor lashed into Shpirag, inflicting upon him many a wound which can be seen today as the furrows running down the mountainside. A trace of the hoof of Baba Tomor's mule can, it is said, be seen near the village of Sinja BR. Shpirag, for his part, pounded Tomor with his cudgel and left many a wound on the lofty mountain, but was overcome. The two giants ultimately slew one another and the maiden drowned in her tears, which became the Osum river."


— Legend of Baba Tomor

In Albanian, Tomorr's most faithful servant ("The Wind") is called Era, which is a female name which literally also means the wind.

An interesting parallel with Zeus's wife Hera.

The following is from wikipedias etymology on Hera:

The name of Hera may have several of mutually exclusive etymologies; one possibility is to connect it with Greek ὥρα hōra, season, and to interpret it as ripe for marriage and according to Plato ἐρατή eratē, "beloved"[4] as Zeus is said to have married her for love.[5] According to Plutarch, Hera was an allegorical name and an anagram of aēr (ἀήρ, "air").[6] So begins the section on Hera in Walter Burkert's Greek Religion.[7] In a note, he records other scholars' arguments "for the meaning Mistress as a feminine to Heros, Master." John Chadwick, a decipherer of Linear B, remarks "her name may be connected with hērōs, ἥρως, 'hero', but that is no help, since it too is etymologically obscure."[8] A. J. van Windekens,[9] offers "young cow, heifer", which is consonant with Hera's common epithet βοῶπις (boōpis, "cow-eyed"). R. S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin.[10] Her name is attested in Mycenaean Greek written in the Linear B syllabic script as 𐀁𐀨, e-ra, appearing on tablets found in Pylos and Thebes.[11]
 
Albanians have an Angevine element?
The use of these toponyms in Albania predate with thousands years the arrival of the Angevines.
The first time that Arber is mentioned, is in an inscription, III century BC, in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finiq in South Albania:

It is writen arbaios for arber.
attachment.php

In the second century AD, Ptolemy the ancient geographer and astronomer from Alexandria shows the city of Albanopolis in the northeast of Durrës.
BookReaderImages.php

Source: https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_4ksBAAAAMAAJ
At the same period it is a grave found in Gorno Sonje near Shkup, today capital of FYROM, where someone named Mikat from Albanopolis is mentioned:
images


Original text of the inscription:
POSIS MESTYLV F FL DELVS MVCATI F DOM
ALBANOP IPSA DELVS
/...../

The inscription transcribed:pOSIS MESTYLU F(ILIUS) FL(AVIA) DELUS MUCATI
F(ILIA) DOM(O)
ALBANOP(OLI) IPSA DELUS
/...../
The inscription translated version in English:
Posis Mestylu, son of Flavia Deluse his daughter Mucatus residing in Albanopolis/...../
The name Mikatus is conisdered an Illyrian name. It appears in the inscription of the village Middle Konjare
SHkup (Dragojevic-Josifovska 1982: 133).
For further information about this inscription see: (Dragojevic- Josifovska, 1971: 513-522)
In another grave of IV century AD found in Stobi Southeast Shkup today capital of FYROM, is found the name Albanos.
see: (Spasovska-Dimitriovska 1993-1995:123-135)

In the 6th century AD, Stephanus of Byzantium, in his important geographical dictionary entitled Ethnica (Ἐθνικά),[30] mentions a city in Illyria called Arbon (Greek: Ἀρβών), and gives an ethnic name for its inhabitants, in two singular number forms, i.e. Arbonios (Greek: Ἀρβώνιος; pl. Ἀρβώνιοι Arbonioi) and Arbonites (Greek: Ἀρβωνίτης; pl. Ἀρβωνῖται Arbonitai).
BookReaderImages.php

Source: https://archive.org/details/stephanibyzanti00meingoog



----

On the other hand the name at least in some cases should be associated with the founders of Rome who were called Albani.

[For what is worth (maybe not much for most), those Albani in Greek sources like Dionysius of Halikarnassus appear to be partly Mycenaean-related (Pelasgians, Arcadians), partly Trojan-related (Dardanidae).]
You are talking about this:
The Roman Antiquities of Dionysius Halicarnassensis
Book Second; Chapters I to X.
ΔΙΟΝΥΣΙΟΥ ΑΛΙΚΑΡΝΑΣΕΩΣ ΡΩΜΑΙΚΗΣ ΑΡΧΑΙΟΛΟΓΙΑΣ
ΛΟΓΟΣ ΔΕΥΤΕΡΟΣ.

%CE%91%CE%BB%CE%B2%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%BF%CE%AF+%CE%A1%CF%8E%CE%BC%CE%B7.PNG

%CE%91%CE%BB%CE%B2%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%BF%CE%AF+%CE%A1%CF%8E%CE%BC%CE%B71.PNG

Always google translation:
3. While the Aborigines occupied this region, the first to join them in their settlement were the Pelasgians, a wandering people from the country then called Hémonie and now Thessaly, where they had lived for a while. After the Pelasgians came the Arcadians of the city of Pallantium, who had chosen as head of their colony Evander, son of Hermes and the nymph Themis. These built a town near one of the seven hills near the center of Rome, calling the place Pallantium, after the name of their metropolis in Arcadia.

4. Shortly after, when Hercules landed in Italy, bringing back his army of Erytheia, he left some of his forces there. They were Greeks who lived near Pallantium, near another hill which is now shut up in the city. The inhabitants then called it the hill of Saturn, but the Romans today call it the Capitol. Most of these men were Epeans who had abandoned their city in Elis after their country was ravaged by Hercules.
II. 1. The sixteenth generation after the Trojan War the Albanians united these two places in a village, surrounding them with a wall and a ditch. Until then there were only meadows for cattle and sheep and refuges for shepherds, because the surrounding land abounded in grasses, not only for winter but also for summer grazing, because of the rivers who cooled and watered it.

2. The Albanians were a mixed nation composed of Pelasgians, Arcadians, Epeans from Elis, and, lastly, Trojans who had arrived in Italy with Aeneas, the son of Anchises and Aphrodite, after taking Troy. It is also likely that a barbaric element among the neighboring peoples or a remnant of the ancient inhabitants of the place has mixed with the Greeks. But all these people, having lost their local designations, were called by a common name, Latin, after the name of Latinus, who was king of this country.
Virgil, The Aeneid

«Αλβανοί πατέρες,των Λατίνων το γένος»
"Albanian fathers, Latins the genus"

%CE%91%CE%BB%CE%B2%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%BF%CE%AF+%CE%A1%CF%8E%CE%BC%CE%B72.PNG
https://books.google.gr/books?id=mc...&oi=book_result&ct=result#v=onepage&q&f=false
 
Ok


Lets not push far,
Αρβηλα of Persia
today Iraq/Kurdistan !!!!
 

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