Illyrian remains in Balkans after downfall of antique civilizations

Dema

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I have translated this small part of a book from A. Stipcevic about Illyrians. Since i could not find version issued in English language. Its Chapter two, about Illyrian remains in Balkans.

Illyrians, history, life and culture. Second version issued in 1989 in Zagreb.

Chapter II, Illyrian remains in Balkans after downfall of antique civilizations
:

Only recently science can give us answer on one another question that is very important about the subject that we are debating - the question about the relationship of old Illyrians and modern Albanians. Many experts today consider that it is proven that Albanians are the only Balkan people that are directly decedent from ancient Illyrians. Protected by the high and unreachable mountains and far from the roads which were used by barbarians in the time of big migrations of people, these last remains of Illyrians were preserved in many elements of spiritual and material culture of their distant relatives. Thesis that Albanians are remains of Illyrians was first time clearly formulated by German historian Johannes Thunmann in XVIII. cet. (1) He was claiming that it's historically impossible to prove any ethnic migration to territory of modern Albania from ancient times till today, Thunmann concludes that, judging by everything, people that live there today, lived on that territory since ancient times. This thesis were supported and accepted by many other historians. Among the first it was Slovenian historian and writer A. T. Linhart who claims that Illyrian language fully lives today, even though not that pure, in Albanian mountains (und noch heute, obwohl nicht mehr rein, in den Gebirge albaniens lebt) (2). But all of this was only guessing based on theory, but not opinions based on the scientific facts. The first one who will give scientific base to these thesis was an Austrian Georg von Hahn, major expert in Albanian history and Albanian language, all of his conclusions about autochthony of Albanians, he augmented with scientific facts.(3). Not denying old Balkan origin of Albanians, many historians and linguists in XIV. and XX. century suggested different solutions for the question of Albanian origin. By some of them, Albanians are descendants of Thracians (Karl Pauli, Gustav Weigand, Dimitar Dečev), by the others, from Dakomezians (Vladimir Georgijev) etc. But results that were achieved by the different scientific disciplines, especially in the few last years, have foreshadow many of these old doubts about this important question in paleobalkanistics. These researches have confirmed thesis that were brought two centuries before by the Thunmann(4). Linguists were the hardest ones to accept these thesis before but also sometimes today. They will contribute to the mess that was present for the long time in the scientific circles about this issue. Today linguists mostly agree that it can't be proven with high certainty that Albanian language is remain of Illyrian one, because Illyrian is too unknown so there could be grammatical and lexical comparison between them, but analysis of onomastic and toponomastic definition gave enough evidence to support thesis about direct origin of Albanian language from Illyrian language and to make it most plausible.

Furthermore A. Stipcevic says:
Other scientific areas have in many ways also contributed in claiming continuity of ancient Illyrians to modern Albanians. So archaeologists have played major role researching material culture of Early Middle Ages, where they have concluded that there is no interruption in continuity from the ancient Illyrian times to Early Medieval time. And that many artifacts found in necropolis from VII century and VIII century (Kalaja Dalmaçes, Kruja, etc) typologically connect with Illyrian ancient historical culture. Then there Stipcevic mentions Ethnologists who while researching extremely rich Albanian and still not enough explored ethnographic structure, they found plenty of various elements that directly derive from ancient Illyrian cultural heritage.

there is continuity and similarity found in ornaments and religious symbolic, folk dance, music, anthroponymy, toponymy,,



stipcevic-iliri-1.jpg
 
More about mentioned authors:


Aleksandar Stipčević - Archaeologist, bibliographer, albanologist, librarian and essayist. Born in Arbanas, near Zadar on October 10, 1930. He attended primary school and high school in Zadar and graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Zagreb in 1954 in archeology.


In 1977 he graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zadar with the thesis "Religious Symbolism in Illyria". For a short time he worked at the Archaeological Museum in Zadar and at the Institute for Historical Sciences in Zadar, and in 1957 he moved to the National and University Library in Zagreb as head of the Department of Prints. In 1974, he assumed the duties of the Director of the JAZU Library (today the HAZU), and at the end of 1983 he moved to the then Yugoslav Yugoslav Republic of Lexicography Institute "Miroslav Krleža", where he took up the post of chief editor of the Croatian biographical lexicon.

In November 1987, after leaving the second volume, he moved to the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Zagreb - Department of Information Sciences: Department of Library Sciences, where he teaches the following subjects: "History of Books and Libraries", "Bibliography" and "Sociology of Books and Libraries ". In February 1978 he gained the title of a Librarian Adviser, and in the same year JAZU recognized the position of a scientific advisor in the field of historical sciences. In 1990 he was elected as a science advisor in the field of information science. From 1970 to 1973, as a senior lecturer, as an external associate, he teaches "Introduction to Archeology" at the Faculty of Philosophy in Pristina. At the end of 1971 he was elected lecturer for the subject "Introduction to the history of books and libraries" at the postgraduate study of library, documentation and information sciences at the University of Zagreb. In 1978 he was elected honorary associate professor at the newly founded department of libraries at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Zagreb, and in 1987 he was elected full professor at the same faculty. Retired in 1997.

From 1987-1996. He was the head of the Department of Library Sciences at the Department of Information Science, and from 1992-1995. head of the Department of Information Science at the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb. He has held a number of responsible positions in library organizations: from 1967 to 1973 he was president of the Croatian Library Society and from 1967 to 1969. he is vice president of the Association of Librarians of Yugoslavia.

From 1992-1997. holds the office of President of the Council (later Council) for the libraries of the Republic of Croatia. In the period 1993-1996. member of the Committee on Human Rights and Rights of Ethnic and National Communities and Minorities of the House of Representatives of the State Parliament of the Republic of Croatia.

From 1973 to 1999 he is a member of the editorial board of the editorial board of the Annual Bibliography of the History of the Printed Books and Libraries. In 1968 he started publishing activity of the Croatian Library Society. He is the editor-in-chief of social editions of the Croatian Library Society until 1984. He is a professional editor in the editions of the Lexicographic Institute "Miroslav Krleža" (Second Edition of the Encyclopaedia of Yugoslavia, Croatian Biographical Bulletin, Croatian Encyclopaedia).

Since 1983 he has been a member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo since 2001, and since 2001 he has been an international member of Accademia Marchigiana di Scienze, Lettere e Arti in Ancona. He has also been a member of the PEN Croatian Center since 1985, as well as the Croatian Archaeological Society since 1966 and the Croatian Matic since 1962.

He received numerous awards for his work: in 1983 he received Kukuljević's charter for work in the library profession and in 1998 he was awarded the Order of Danica hrvatska with the character of Marka Marulić. The Zagreb City Award was awarded in 2004 and the Zadar City Prize for Lifetime Achievement. He was also awarded the Charter of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Zagreb for the highest achievements and achieved results in theoretical and practical work (2006). He was also awarded the highest Albanian prizes: gold medal "Naim Frasheri" for the contribution of "Illumination of Illyrian History" (2001) and "Skenderbeg", with the award by which the Albanian President rewards the most famous Albanians and Albanian friends who promote Albanian culture and the country (2015) .

He has participated at numerous scientific conferences in the country and the world. He was on study trips and scholarships in Italy, Germany, England, Korea, Jordan, Turkey, Denmark, Albania and many other countries.

He deals with the arts and religions of the ancient Illyrians, the bibliography, the general and national history of books and libraries, especially the questions of censorship and the general fate of books in society. He wrote the first synthesis of the art of Illyria and the synthesis of Illyrians that has so far had nine editions in four languages ​​(Croatian, English, Albanian and Italian). He has written many works and books about Zadar Arbanas. He has published over two hundred scientific and professional papers in Croatian, Italian, Albanian, English and French, both in national and international publications. In recent years, most of it is written about the history of Croatian books and Croatian libraries.

He has published the following titles: Arte degli Illiri, Milano 1963 (edition 1963), Discipline Manual,Zagreb, 1964 (in collaboration with Lela Canico and Janko Zivkovic), Gli Illir, Milano 1966 (translation into Albanian 1967), Bibliographia Illyrica, Sarajevo 1967 (supplements printed in 1974, 1978 and 1984), the Illyrians - history, culture , 1974, 1989, 1991 (translated into English in 1977 and in Albanian 1980, 1990 and 2002), Bibliography of Antique Archeology in Yugoslavia 1-2, Sarajevo 1977, Cultural Symbols at Ilira, Sarajevo 1981 (issue in the Albanian language in 1983, 1990 and 2002), History of the Book, Zagreb 1985 (editions in Albanian 1988 and 2000, in Arabic 1993 and in Persian language 1994, second, expanded and supplemented in 2006) , Censorship in Libraries, Zagreb 1992, About the Perfect Censor, Zagreb 1994 (Albanian Language Release 2002), Interpretations of Albanology, Skopje 1994, How to Avoid Censors, Zagreb 1997, Croatian Biographical Lecture , Zagreb 1997, The Destiny Book, Lokve 2000, The Social History of the Book in CroatsI-III, Zagreb 2004-2008, T Radical Culture of Zadar Arbanas , Zagreb 2011.


http://www.matica.hr/knjige/autor/3/



Johann Georg, von Hahn (11 July 1811 – 23 September 1869) was an Austrian diplomat, philologist and specialist in Albanian history, language and culture.
Hahn was born in Frankfurt am Main. In 1847, he was named Austrian consul in Ioannina, today in Greece. He was transferred to the Hellenic Kingdom on the island of Syros in 1851, and from 1869 was the consul-general in Athens. He is considered the founder of Albanian studies. He assembled and published source materials on Albanian language and culture, learned the Albanian language and demonstrated its membership in the Indo-European family of languages. He died, aged 58, in Jena.

His published works:
Albanesische Studien. 3 vols. Jena: F. Mauko, 1854; Vienna: Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, 1853 (reprint Dion.Karavias, Athen 1981)
Reise von Belgrad nach Salonik. Vienna: K. K. Consul für östliche Griechenland, 1861.
Griechische und albanesische Märchen. 2 vols. Leipzig: 1864; Munich/Berlin 1918 – as ebook and several Google Books scans at archive.org
Reise durch die Gebiete von Drin und Wardar. Vienna: 1867.
Contes populaires grecs Free Google eBook (1879). A.-F. Høst, ed.



Anton Tomaž Linhart - (11 December 1756 – 14/15 July 1795) was a Carniolan playwright and historian, best known as the author of the first comedy and theatrical play in general in Slovene, Županova Micka (Micka, the Mayor's Daughter). He is also considered the father of Slovene historiography, since he was the first historian to write a history of all Slovenes as a unit, rejecting the previous concept which focused on single historical provinces. He was the first one to define the Slovenes as a separate ethnic group and set the foundations of the Slovene ethnography.



Johann Erich Thunmann or Johannes or Hans
- (August 23, 1746 — December 17, 1778) was a linguist, historian and theologian born in Thoresund (Södermanland) in Sweden. He studied at Strängnäs and Uppsala then left Sweden to study at Greifswald. Thunmann was professor of philosophy at the University of Halle.
Thunmann was one of the most important early authors writing about the language and origin of Albanians. The first serious attempts to present scientific explanation of the origin of Albanians began with Thunmann. He believed that the history and language of Albanians, besides Aromanians, were the least known European people in the West.
Thunmann was the first scholar to disseminate the theory about the autochthonous Albanians and to present the Illyrian theory of the origin of Albanians. Thunmann researched the origin of the term "Skipatar", the term Albanians use as their ethnic name. In 1774 Thunmann republished a three-language (Albanian, Greek and Aromanian) lexicon Theodor Kavalioti first published in 1770, and later added a Latin translation. Thunmann believed in Illyro-Thracian unity
 

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