A Dictionary of Albanian Religion, Mythology, and Folk Culture - Hardcover

Elsie, Robert

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9780814722145: A Dictionary of Albanian Religion, Mythology, and Folk Culture

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0814722148 ISBN 13: 9780814722145

Publisher: New York Univ Pr, 2000

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In some senses, Albania is a living museum of the past. Originally a small herding community in the most inaccessible reaches of the Balkans, the presence of Albanians in southeastern Europe has been documented for over a thousand years.

Albanian traditional folk culture, which evolved over centuries of relative isolation, is surprisingly rich. Yet despite recent events this culture remains little known to the Western world. Due to the lasting effects of a half century of Stalinist dictatorship, very few individuals even in Albania know much about their own popular traditions.

The Dictionary of Albanian Religion, Mythology, and Folk Culture makes available for the first time a wealth of knowledge about Albanian popular belief and folk customs. Alphabetical entries shed light on blood feuding, figures of Albanian mythology, religious beliefs, communities, and sects, calendar feasts and rituals, and popular superstitions, as well as birth, marriage, and funeral customs, and sexual mores. This unique volume will stand as the standard reference work on the subject for years to come.

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Synopsis:

This work examines the little known traditions of Albanian folk culture. Arranged in alphabetical order, the entries in this book shed light on such customs as: blood feuding, figures of Albanian mythology, religious beliefs, communities, calendar feasts and rituals, and popular superstitions.

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