Throw back Thursday: delving into History. Albania Vs England: Part 1 The names of the countries. The name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles [Please note: Angles, not Angels]. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages. The Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. [I would also just like to point this out as another anti UKIP note in that there is no such thing as pure English, the country isnt even named after an English settlement] Okay.. Kinda interesting I guess.. History.. Blah. Thats nice. Why do we [English] call Albania Albania? I mean the Albanians themselves call their country Shqiperia meaning Land of the Eagles which is no connection to the word Albania in English. Even before it was Albania, it was Illyria, again, no connection. So lets go back a little. Albania is actually the Medieval Latin name of the country from Medieval Greek Ἀλβανία Albania which may be derived from the Illyrian tribe of the Albani. The name may have a continuation in the name of a medieval settlement called Albanon and Arbanon. During the Middle Ages, the Albanians called their country Arbër or Arbën. [Under the Ottoman Empire Albania was referred to officially as Arnavutluk and its inhabitants as Arnauts.] Again, we name a country based on history... In the the 17th century the placename Shqipëria gradually replaced Arbëria. So why did Albanians change the name of their country to Shqiperia?What does Shqiperia mean? For this we have to refer to an old folklore. This is also the interesting bit which explain the flag also. The tale of the Eagle is an Albanian folk tale that explains how Albania and Albanians received their indigenous name: A youth was hunting in the mountains. An eagle flying above him alighted on top of a crag. The eagle was especially large and had a snake in its beak. After a while, the eagle flew away from the crag where it had its nest. The youth then climbed to the top of the crag where he saw, in the nest, an eaglet playing with the dead snake. But the snake wasnt really dead! Suddenly it stirred, revealed its fangs and was ready to pierce the eaglet with its deadly venom. The youth quickly took out his bow and arrow and killed the snake. Then he took the eaglet and started for his home. Suddenly the youth heard above him the loud whir of the great eagles wings. Why do you kidnap my child? cried the eagle. The child is mine because I saved it from the snake which you didnt kill, answered the youth. Give me back my child, and I will give you as a reward the sharpness of my eyes and the powerful strength of my wings. You will become invincible, and you will be called by my name! Thus the youth handed over the eaglet. After the eaglet grew, it would always fly above the head of the youth, now a grown man, who with his bow and arrows killed many wild beasts of the forest, and with his sword slew many enemies of the land. During all of these feats, the eagle faithfully watched over and guided him. Amazed by the valiant hunters deeds, the people of the land elected him king and called him Shqipëtar, which is to say Son of the Eagle (shqipe or shqiponjë is Albanian for eagle) and his kingdom became known as Shqipëria or Land of the Eagles.The two heads on the eagle represent the north and the south. Just. Seriously. Why do we not learn any of this in school!
Posted on: Thu, 29 May 2014 12:24:19 +0000
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