Chapter 1 of Transforming Ethnic
Nationalism Draft v. 3.1 Please address all
inquiries regarding this paper to aasmund@aasmundandersen.net
This thesis is an attempt to analysis how the elite in Kosovo maintain and transform ethno-nationalistic sentiments in a society in transition from conflict to democracy under UN administration.
The purpose of the thesis is to gain understanding of how the high culture in Kosovo maintain and transform ethno-nationalistic sentiments. Only through such an understanding is it possible to suggest courses that can counter-balance the regional ethno-nationalistic politics in South-Eastern Europe today. Kosovo is in this respect an excellent laboratory for such experiments, as it is under UN juridical and administrative control.
The problem of investigation is: How can the high culture in Kosovo be
transformed to de-emphasise ethno-nationalistic sentiments and enhance a multi-cultural
society of tolerance and in respect of human rights values?
The analysis investigates the following hypothesises that is found to be crucial to the above problem:
1. Albanian high culture in Kosovo is currently in a process of diversification after a period where the Albanian ethnos has been mobilised as a result of Serbian state oppression, violence and threats of extinction.
2. There are changes in the civil society where a new high culture emerges partly as a response to international support and implementation of rule of law (and the subsequent re-establishment of Albanian trans-national communities). This new high culture represent a group that the international elite for many reasons find easy to co-operate with, and represent a group that has potential impact in the society.
3. The international community has a positive impact on the society as they display an example of successful multi-culturalism.
4. Territorial identity can be promoted as to counter-balance ethno-nationalistic sentiments.
These hypothesises will be tested by the use of participant observation as a method and address through ethnographical descriptions and analysis.
The thesis will use Ernest Gellners (1983,1999) definition of nationalism, nation-state and high culture. Gellners understanding of modern nation formation will serve as a fundament, as it has proven to apply well to the region. We will take Gellners theories regarding the role of high culture and education in maintaining national identity as a theoretical assumption. By using Gellners criteria, the new high culture will be assessed as to whether it may be successful or not. Further on, the investigation will draw much of its theoretical basis on the findings of Ger Duijzings (2000) with regards to ethnic and religious praxis in Kosovo.
The empirical basis for the investigation is ethnographical
descriptions and analysis of the high culture in Kosovo. This group is believed
to have an institutional basis and the method of investigation focuses
therefore on research institutions and the
The investigation focuses on elite culture and perceptions of ethnic versus civic identity. It does not represent any ambiguity with regards to analysing the performance of the UN administration or the Albanian elite in the process of state formation and implementation of administrative policies. Moreover, it does not represent any attempt to analyse vertical integration between the elite and the wider population and how popular support is gained.
After describing the method used for the investigation (Chapter 2), Chapter 3 seeks to place Albanian culture and identity in Kosovo in a wider historical and sociological context. Chapter 4 identifies Albanian high culture in Kosovo and the emergence of what is called New High Culture. Chapter 5, 6 and 7 consists of ethnographical descriptions and analysis of the intellectual elite (Chapter 5), the political elite (Chapter 6) and the intellectual elite (Chapter 7). In Chapter 8, ethnic nationalism versus a civic nationalism based on territorial identity will be discussed. Chapter 9 suggests different methods and approaches to deconstruct the basis for ethnic nationalism and politics based on ethno-nationalistic sentiments.