History, Politics and the Complexity of Kosovo Albanian Identity

Abstract

National identity remains one of the most challenging identities to research and define, due to lack of common agreement on linguistic and conceptual definitions, but also due to the ever-changing dynamics of identities. Research is further complicated as identities do not necessarily reveal what we are, but rather what we think we are. The national identity of Kosovo Albanians, especially after the declaration of independence in 2008, became a debatable issue revealing the competition between the new Kosovo state identity reinforced by legal and constitutional requirements, but also the new state symbols, versus the national Albanian identity, as a collective identity of all Albanians, rooted in history, symbols and common myths. Through Schils reproductive theory and comparative methods, the paper analyzes the complexity of the Kosovo Albanian identity from a linguistic, sociological and constitutional perspective, but also argues that the identity complexity is heavily attributed to historical and political circumstances leading to the independence of Albania and the independence of Kosovo, a century after. Selected survey results for PhD thesis purposes of the author are used to illustrate the identity sentiments of the Albanians in Kosovo. The importance of the paper is to generate further discussions and wider research on the Albanian identity, and optimally provide options in harmonizing the national and state identity.