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85-704: The name of the village is derived from the word Arbanas meaning " Albanian " in Bulgarian of the medieval period. During the Ottoman era, the Turkish term Arnavud meaning "Albanian" was also used as a name for the village. As of 2005, Arbanasi has a population of 291 and the mayor is Tosho Krastev. It lies at 43°6′N 25°40′E  /  43.100°N 25.667°E  / 43.100; 25.667 , 400 metres above sea level. The lack of other documentary material leaves different opinions and speculations about

170-512: A generous bribe, proceeded to the country he was selected to govern (whose language he usually did not know). When the new princes were appointed, they were escorted to Iași or Bucharest by retinues composed of their families, favourites and creditors (from whom they had borrowed the bribes). The prince and his appointees counted on recouping these in as short a time as possible, amassing an amount sufficient to live on after their brief time in office. Thirty-one princes, from eleven families, ruled

255-695: A number of Phanariots were appointed Hospodars ( voivodes or princes) in the Danubian Principalities ( Moldavia and Wallachia ) (usually as a promotion from the offices of Dragoman of the Fleet and Dragoman of the Porte ); the period is known as the Phanariot epoch in Romanian history. After the fall of Constantinople , Mehmet II deported the city's Christian population, leaving only

340-649: A petition campaign against the princes in power; addressed to the Porte and the Habsburg monarchy , they primarily demanded Russian supervision. Although they referred to incidents of corruption and misrule, the petitions indicate their signers' conservatism. The boyars tend to refer to (fictitious) " capitulations " which either principality would have signed with the Ottomans, demanding that rights guaranteed through them be restored. They viewed reform attempts by princes as illegitimate; in alternative proposals (usually in

425-614: A quadruple increase for forty years, indicating an influx of settlers. The village preserved its purely Christian character and prospered in the 17th century. Other sources that mention Arbanasi are the notes of Pavel Đorđić from 10 January 1595 addressed to the Transylvanian Prince Sigismund Báthory . The village is also mentioned by the Roman Catholic bishop of Sofia Petar Bogdan Bakshev , who visited Tarnovo in 1640. He remarked there

510-586: A race completely Hellenic". They emerged as a class of wealthy Greek merchants (of mostly noble Byzantine descent) during the second half of the 16th century, and were influential in the administration of the Ottoman Empire's Balkan domains in the 18th century. The Phanariots usually built their houses in the Phanar quarter to be near the court of the Patriarch , who (under the Ottoman millet system)

595-487: A role in the affairs of Great Britain, France and the Russian Empire. The Phanariots competed for the most important administrative offices in the Ottoman administration; these included collecting imperial taxes, monopolies on commerce, working under contract in a number of enterprises, supplying the court and ruling the Danubian Principalities . They engaged in private trade, controlling the crucial wheat trade on

680-590: A symbol of the Albanians in general, for example the flag of Skanderbeg , whose family symbol was the black double-headed eagle , as displayed on the Albanian flag . The other within scholarship connects it to the verb 'pronounce' ( shqiptoj ), deriving from Latin excipere . In this instance the Albanian endonym like many others would originally have been a term connoting "those who speak [intelligibly,

765-557: A total of ten times in Moldavia and Wallachia . The debt was owed to several creditors, rather than to the Sultan; the central institutions of the Ottoman Empire generally seemed determined to maintain their rule over the principalities and not exploit them irrationally. In an early example, Ahmed III paid part of Nicholas Mavrocordatos ' sum. The Phanariot epoch was initially characterized by fiscal policies driven by Ottoman needs and

850-704: A type of mountainous topography, meaning "hill, mountain", also present in Alps . The Lab , also Labe , Labi ; Albanian sub-group and geographic/ethnographic region of Labëri , definite: Labëria in Albania are also endonyms formed from the root alb . These are derived from the syllable cluster alb undergoing metathesis within Slavic to lab and reborrowed in that form into Albanian. Terms derived from all those endonyms as exonyms appear in Byzantine sources from

935-463: Is a derivation used by Balkan Slavic peoples and former states like Yugoslavia ; Albanians consider this derogatory due to its negative connotations, preferring Albanci instead. Phanariote Phanariots , Phanariotes , or Fanariots ( Greek : Φαναριώτες , Romanian : Fanarioți , Turkish : Fenerliler ) were members of prominent Greek families in Phanar (Φανάρι, modern Fener ),

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1020-470: Is derived from the Latin excipere with both terms carrying the meaning of "to speak clearly, to understand". While the Albanian public favours the explanation that the self-ethnonym is derived from the Albanian word for eagle shqipe that is displayed on the national Albanian flag. The words Shqipëri and Shqiptar are attested from 14th century onward, but it was only at the end of 17th and beginning of

1105-817: Is still used as an endonym and exonym for Albanians that migrated to Italy during the Middle Ages, the Arbëreshë . It is also used as an endonym by the Arvanites in Greece . Within the Balkans, Aromanians still use a similar term, Arbinesh , in the Aromanian language for contemporary Albanians. Arbanas (Арбанас), plural: Arbanasi (Арбанаси); is the old ethnonym that the South Slavs , such as

1190-697: The Black Sea . The Phanariots expanded their commercial activities into the Kingdom of Hungary and then to the other Central European states. Their activities intensified their contacts with Western nations, and they became familiar with Western languages and cultures. Before the beginning of the Greek War of Independence , the Phanariots were firmly established as the political elite of Hellenism. According to Greek historian Constantine Paparrigopoulos, this

1275-614: The Bulgarians and Serbs , used to denote Albanians , dating back to the Middle Ages . Arbanaski (Арбанаски), Arbanski (Арбански) and Arbanaški (Арбанашки) are adjectives derived from those terms. The term Arbănas was also used by Romanians for Albanians. They first appear with this ethnonym in a Bulgarian manuscript dated 1000–1018, during the reign of Tsar Samuel , in which Arbanasi (Albanians) are mentioned as being half-believers (i.e. non-Orthodox Christians). The term

1360-667: The Elena and Teteven parts of the Balkan Mountains , but Arbanasi could never again reach its former heyday. An Ottoman royal decree of 1839 deprived the town of its former privileges and the development of handicraftsmanship after the Crimean War almost ceased. Arbanasi experienced strong Greek cultural influence for centuries. There was a Greek school and divine services were in Greek (at that time Bulgarian Orthodox Church

1445-736: The Great Turkish War . By the 17th century the Greek Patriarch of Constantinople was the religious and administrative ruler of the empire's Orthodox subjects, regardless of ethnic background. All formerly-independent Orthodox patriarchates, including the Serbian Patriarchate renewed in 1557, came under the authority of the Greek Orthodox Church. Most of the Greek patriarchs were drawn from the Phanariots. Two Greek social groups emerged, challenging

1530-582: The South Shetland Islands , Antarctica is named for Arbanasi. Names of the Albanians and Albania#Arbanasi The Albanians ( Albanian : Shqiptarët ) and their country Albania ( Shqipëria ) have been identified by many ethnonyms. The native endonym is Shqiptar . The name "Albanians" ( Latin : Albanenses/Arbanenses ) was used in medieval Greek and Latin documents that gradually entered European languages from which other similar derivative names emerged. Linguists believe that

1615-809: The Sultan replaced de jure the Byzantine Emperor for subjugated Christians, he recognized the Ecumenical Patriarch as the religious and national leader ( ethnarch ) of the Greeks and other ethnic groups in the Greek Orthodox Millet . The Patriarchate had primary importance, occupying this key role for Christians of the Empire because the Ottomans did not legally distinguish between nationality and religion and considered

1700-403: The alb part in the root word originates from an Indo-European term for a type of mountainous topography, meaning "hill, mountain", also present in Alps . Through the root word alban and its rhotacized equivalents arban , albar , and arbar , the term in Albanian became rendered as Arbëreshë ( Gheg Albanian : Arbëneshë ) for the people and Arbëria (Gheg Albanian: Arbënia ) for

1785-664: The decline of the Ottoman Empire , as European states became interested in halting Russian southward expansion (which included the 1812 annexation of Bessarabia ). New consulates in the two countries' capitals, ensuring the observation of developments in Russian−Ottoman relations, had an indirect impact on the local economy as rival diplomats began awarding protection and sudit status to merchants competing with local guilds . Nicholas I of Russia pressured Wallachia and Moldavia into granting constitutions (in 1831 and 1832, respectively) to weaken native rulers. The boyars began

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1870-452: The radical , nationalist cause during and after the 1848 Wallachian revolution .). Phanariot attention focused on occupying the most favorable offices the empire could offer non-Muslims and the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, which were still relatively rich and—more importantly—autonomous (despite having to pay tribute as vassal states). Many Greeks had found favorable conditions there for commercial activities, in comparison with

1955-544: The 1580s), mistakenly identified with the Phanariots in modern Romanian historiography, were much older. The mismanagement of many Phanariot rulers contrasts with the achievements and projects of others, such as Constantine Mavrocordatos (who abolished serfdom in Wallachia in 1746 and Moldavia in 1749) and Alexander Ypsilantis , who were inspired by Habsburg serf policy. Ypsilantis tried to reform legislation and impose salaries for administrative offices in an effort to halt

2040-584: The 17th and 18th century, that evidences that Arbanasi reached its economic blossoming between the second half of the 17th and the end of the 18th century. The settlement had over 1,000 houses at the time, its population consisting mostly of eminent merchant families who traded in Transylvania (mostly Sibiu and Braşov ), the Danubian Principalities , Russia and Poland. Handicrafts were well-developed, with copper - and goldsmithing , vine-growing and silk production playing an important part. The homes of

2125-471: The 17th century, the Ottomans began having problems in foreign relations and difficulty dictating terms to their neighbours; for the first time, the Porte needed to participate in diplomatic negotiations. With the Ottomans traditionally ignoring Western European languages and cultures, officials were at a loss. The Porte assigned those tasks to the Greeks, who had a long mercantile and educational tradition and

2210-810: The 1820s it plummeted from about 50,000 to 20,000 gold coins (equivalent to Austrian gold currency ) in Wallachia and to 3,100 in Moldavia. Immediately afterward, Russia forcefully used its new prerogative. The deposition of Constantine Ypsilantis (in Wallachia) and Alexander Mourousis (in Moldavia) by Selim III , called on by French Empire 's ambassador to the Ottoman Empire Horace Sébastiani (whose fears of pro−Russian conspiracies in Bucharest were partially confirmed),

2295-459: The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople). Many members of Phanariot families (who had acquired great wealth and influence during the 17th century) occupied high political and administrative posts in the Ottoman Empire. From 1669 until the Greek War of Independence in 1821, Phanariots made up the majority of the dragomans to the Ottoman government (the Porte ) and foreign embassies due to

2380-688: The Great and the firm presence of the Habsburg Empire on the Carpathian border with the principalities. Dissidence in the two countries became dangerous for the Turks, who were confronted with the attraction on the population of protection by a fellow Eastern Orthodox state. This became obvious with Mihai Racoviță 's second rule in Moldavia, when the prince plotted with Peter to have Ottoman rule overthrown. His replacement, Nicholas Mavrocordatos ,

2465-600: The Greeks' higher level of education than the general Ottoman population. With the church dignitaries, local notables from the provinces and the large Greek merchant class, Phanariots represented the better-educated members of Greek society during Ottoman rule until the 1821 start of the Greek War of Independence . During the war, Phanariots influenced decisions by the Greek National Assembly (the representative body of Greek revolutionaries, which met six times between 1821 and 1829). Between 1711–1716 and 1821,

2550-637: The Jewish inhabitants of Balat , repopulating the city with Christians and Muslims from throughout the whole empire and the newly conquered territories. Phanar was repopulated with Greeks from Mouchlion in the Peloponnese and, after 1461 , with citizens of the Empire of Trebizond . The roots of Greek ascendancy can be traced to the Ottoman need for skilled, educated negotiators as their empire declined and they relied on treaties rather than force. During

2635-591: The Latin term after undergoing linguistic metathesis was rendered as Rabna (Рабна) and Raban (Рабан), while the adjective was Rabanski (Rабански). From these ethnonyms , names for Albanians were also derived in other languages that were or still are in use. In English Albanians ; Italian Albanesi ; German Albaner ; Greek Arvanites , Alvanitis (Αλβανίτης) plural: Alvanites (Αλβανίτες), Alvanos (Αλβανός) plural: Alvanoi (Αλβανοί); Turkish Arnaut , Arnavut ; South Slavic languages Arbanasi (Арбанаси), Albanci (Албанци) and so on. The term Arbëreshë

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2720-534: The Ottoman Empire (the klephts and armatoloi ). A Greek presence had established itself in both Danubian Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia , resulting in the appointment of Greek princes before the 18th century. After the Phanariot era, some Phanariot families in Wallachia and Moldavia identified themselves as Romanian in Romanian society (including the Rosetti family; C. A. Rosetti represented

2805-641: The Ottoman Empire, and an opportunity for political power; they entered Wallachian and Moldavian boyar nobility by marriage. Reigns of local princes were not excluded on principle. Several hellenized Romanian noble families, such as the Callimachis (originally Călmașul ), the Racovițăs and the Albanian Ghicas penetrated the Phanar nucleus to increase their chances of occupying the thrones and maintain their positions. Most sources agree that 1711

2890-493: The Ottoman era was Michael "Şeytanoğlu" Kantakouzenos , who earned 60,000 ducats a year from his control of the fur trade from Muscovy . During the 18th century, the Phanariots were a hereditary clerical−aristocratic group who managed the affairs of the patriarchate and the dominant political power of the Ottoman Greek community. They became a significant political factor in the empire and, as diplomatic agents, played

2975-419: The Phanariot princes were capable, farsighted rulers. As prince of Wallachia in 1746 and Moldavia in 1749, Constantine Mavrocordatos abolished serfdom and Alexander Ypsilantis of Wallachia (reigned 1774–1782) initiated extensive administrative and legal reforms. Ipsilanti's reign coincided with subtle shifts in economic and social life and the emergence of spiritual and intellectual aspirations which pointed to

3060-891: The Republic of Albania. Historically as an exonym the Turkish term Arnaut has also been used for instance by some Western Europeans as a synonym for Albanians that were employed as soldiers in the Ottoman army. The term Arnā’ūṭ (الأرناؤوط) also entered the Arabic language as an exonym for Albanian communities that settled in the Levant during the Ottoman era onward, especially for those residing in Syria. The term Arnaut (Арнаут), plural: Arnauti (Арнаути) has also been borrowed into Balkan south Slavic languages like Bulgarian and within Serbian

3145-406: The ambitions of some hospodars, who (mindful of their fragile status) sought to pay back their creditors and increase their wealth while in a position of power. To make the reigns lucrative while raising funds to satisfy the needs of the Porte, princes channeled their energies into taxing the inhabitants into destitution. The most odious taxes (such as the văcărit first imposed by Iancu Sasul in

3230-527: The beginning of Arbanasi's history is a royal decree by the Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent from 1538, according to which the sultan offered the lands of the modern localities of Arbanasi, Lyaskovets , Gorna Oryahovitsa and Dolna Oryahovitsa to his son-in-law Grand Vizier Rustem Pasha as a gift. The four villages are united under the name Arnaud Kariyeleri ("the Albanian villages") in

3315-521: The case in the Ottoman realm. During the 16th century, the South Slavs —the most prominent in imperial affairs—converted to Islam to enjoy the full rights of Ottoman citizenship (especially in the Eyalet of Bosnia ; Serbs tended to occupy high military positions. A Slavic presence in Ottoman administration gradually became hazardous for its rulers, since the Slavs tended to support Habsburg armies during

3400-521: The change in leadership and boyar complaints, about 80 percent of those seated in the Divan (an institution roughly equivalent to the estates of the realm ) were members of local families. This made endemic the social and economic issues of previous periods, since the inner circle of boyars blocked initiatives (such as Alexander Ypsilantis') and obtained, extended and preserved tax exemptions . The Phanariots copied Russian and Habsburg institutions; during

3485-609: The chief Greek quarter of Constantinople where the Ecumenical Patriarchate is located, who traditionally occupied four important positions in the Ottoman Empire : Voivode of Moldavia , Voivode of Wallachia , Grand Dragoman of the Porte and Grand Dragoman of the Fleet . Despite their cosmopolitanism and often-Western education, the Phanariots were aware of their Greek ancestry and culture; according to Nicholas Mavrocordatos ' Philotheou Parerga , "We are

Arbanasi (Veliko Tarnovo) - Misplaced Pages Continue

3570-453: The country are based on the same common root alban and its rhotacized equivalents arban , albar , and arbar . The national ethnonym Albanian has derived from Albanoi , an Illyrian tribe mentioned by Ptolemy with their centre at the city of Albanopolis , located in modern-day central Albania, near the city of Krujë . The alb part in the root word for all these terms is believed by linguists be an Indo-European word for

3655-475: The country. Contemporary Albanian language employs a different ethnonym, with modern Albanians referring to themselves as Shqiptarë and to their country as Shqipëria . Two etymologies have been proposed for this ethnonym: one, derived the name from the Albanian word for eagle (shqiponjë). The eagle was a common heraldic symbol for many Albanian dynasties in the Late Middle Ages and came to be

3740-530: The country. In Venice , the term albanesoti (singular, albanesoto ) was used in the 15th and 16th centuries for those Albanians and their descendants who had received Venetian citizenship and lived in Venetian territories in northern Italy. The term Albanesi was used for some Balkan troops recruited (mid 18th - early 19th centuries) by the Kingdom of Naples that indicated their general origins (without implying ethnic connotations) or fighting style, due to

3825-409: The depletion of funds the administrators, local and Greek alike, were using for their own maintenance; it was, by then, more profitable to hold office than to own land. His Pravilniceasca condică , a relatively modern legal code , met stiff boyar resistance. The focus of such rules was often the improvement of state structure against conservative wishes. Contemporary documents indicate that, despite

3910-519: The disappearance of promotions from the Phanar community; the Greeks were no longer trusted by the Porte. Amid tense relations between boyars and princes, Vladimirescu's revolt was primarily the result of compromise between Oltenian pandurs and the regency of boyars attempting to block the ascension of Scarlat Callimachi (the last Phanariot ruler in Bucharest). Ioan Sturdza 's rule in Moldavia and Grigore IV Ghica 's in Wallachia are considered

3995-419: The document, and the first settlers may have been Albanians and Greeks from Epirus ; although Albanian names could be found in the Ottoman tax registers, Orthodox and Slavic names already prevailed. The tax registers of 1541–1544 describe Arnavud köy (also Darı ova ) as a village of 63 households and 72 unmarried men. In 1579–1580, it already numbered 271 households and 277 unmarried men, or

4080-434: The early 18th centuries that the placename Shqipëria and the ethnic demonym Shqiptarë gradually replaced Arbëria and Arbëreshë amongst Albanian speakers in the Balkans. Skipetar is a historical rendering or exonym of the term Shqiptar by some Western European authors in use from the late 18th century to the early 20th century. The term Šiptar (Шиптар), plural: Šiptari (Шиптари) and also Šiftari (Шифтари)

4165-426: The eleventh century onward and are rendered as Albanoi , Arbanitai and Arbanites and in Latin and other Western documents as Albanenses and Arbanenses . The first Byzantine writers to mention Albanians in an ethnic sense are Michael Attaliates (in the book History ) and Anna Comnena (in the book Alexiad ), referring to them as Albanoi and Arbanitai , in the 11th century. In later Byzantine usage,

4250-564: The empire's Orthodox Christians a single entity. The position of the Patriarchate in the Ottoman state encouraged Greek renaissance projects centering on the resurrection and revitalization of the Byzantine Empire . The Patriarch and his church dignitaries constituted the first centre of power for the Greeks in the Ottoman state, which infiltrated Ottoman structures and attracted the former Byzantine nobility. The wealth of

4335-424: The extensive Greek merchant class provided the material basis for the intellectual revival featured in Greek life for more than half a century before 1821. Greek merchants endowed libraries and schools. On the eve of the Greek War of Independence, the three most important centres of Greek learning (schools-cum-universities) were in the commercial centres of Chios , Smyrna and Aivali . The first Greek millionaire of

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4420-421: The first dictionary of the Albanian language was titled: Dictionarium latino-epiroticum ("Latin-Epirotan [Albanian] dictionary"). Shqip(ë)tar and Shqyptar (in northern Albanian dialects) is the contemporary endonym used by Albanians for themselves while Shqipëria and Shqypnia/Shqipnia are native toponyms used by Albanians to name their country. All terms share the same Albanian root shqipoj that

4505-603: The first of the new period, although the new regime abruptly ended in Russian occupation during another Russo−Turkish War and the subsequent period of Russian influence. Most Phanariots were patrons of Greek culture , education and printing. They founded academies which attracted teachers and pupils from throughout the Orthodox commonwealth, and there was awareness of intellectual trends in Habsburg Europe. Many of

4590-402: The form of constitutional projects), the boyars expressed desire for an aristocratic republic . The active part taken by Greek princes in revolts after 1820 and the disorder provoked by the Filiki Eteria (of which the Ghica , Văcărescu and Golescu families were active members after its uprising against the Ottoman Empire in Moldavia and Tudor Vladimirescu 's Wallachian uprising ) led to

4675-435: The houses in Arbanasi bear the names of their former Wallachian owners (Brâncoveanu, Cantacuzino , Filipescu ). As a result of well-organized brigand raids in 1792, 1798 ad 1810, the settlement was pillaged and burnt down. The plague and cholera epidemics further damaged the town's well-being. The richest merchants fled to Wallachia and Russia . A new settlement of Bulgarians began after 1810, when people came down from

4760-446: The interwar period, along with Alvanoi (Αλβανοί). The name was established in Greek language from the original ethnonym Alvanitis (Άλβανίτης), which in return derived from Alvanos (Άλβάνος). The name appears as the ethnonym of Albanians in medieval Byzantine sources, originally as "Arbanitai", (in Greek language the letter 'b' is pronounced as 'v'; hence "Arvanitai") and was rendered in modern Greek as "Arvanites". Today,

4845-502: The late Ottoman period, government officials used the terms Arnavudlar (Albanians) and Arnavud kavmı (the Albanian people) for the ethnic group, along with the terms Ghegs and Tosks for northern and southern Albanian ethno-cultural subgroups. At the same time Albanian regions within the empire were referred to as Arnavudluk (Albania) and the geographic terms Gegalık (Ghegland) and Toskalık (Toskland) were also used in government documents. In modern Turkish Arnavutluk refers only to

4930-489: The late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries due to socio-political disturbances by some Albanians in the Balkans the term was used as an ethnic marker for Albanians in addition to the usual millet religious terminology to identify people in Ottoman state records. While the term used in Ottoman sources for the country was Arnavudluk (آرناوودلق) for areas such as Albania, Western Macedonia, Southern Serbia, Kosovo, parts of northern Greece and southern Montenegro. During

5015-431: The leadership of the Greek Church: the Phanariots in Constantinople and the local notables in the Helladic provinces ( kodjabashis , dimogerontes and prokritoi ). According to 19th-century Greek historian Constantine Paparrigopoulos , the Phanariots initially sought the most important secular offices of the patriarchal court and could frequently intervene in the election of bishops and influence crucial decisions by

5100-461: The mid-18th century they made noble rank dependent on state service, as Peter I of Russia did. After the Treaty of Kuchuk-Kainarji (1774) allowed Russia to intervene on the side of Ottoman Eastern Orthodox subjects, most of the Porte's tools of political pressure became ineffective. They had to offer concessions to maintain a hold on the countries as economic and strategic assets. The treaty made any increase in tribute impossible, and between 1774 and

5185-408: The name of the Albanian language. These ethnonyms are derived from the Greek term Arvanites and entered Turkish after the syllable cluster van was rearranged through metathesis to nav giving the final Turkish forms as Arnavut and Arnaut . Meanwhile, in Greek the name Arvanitis was derived from the original name Alvanitis [Άλβανίτης] (in return derived from Alvanos [Άλβάνος]). In

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5270-402: The necessary skills. The Phanariots and other Greek as well as Hellenized families primarily from Constantinople , occupied high posts as secretaries and interpreters for Ottoman officials. As a result of Phanariot and ecclesiastical administration, the Greeks expanded their influence in the 18th-century empire while retaining their Greek Orthodox faith and Hellenism. This had not always been

5355-423: The patriarch. Greek merchants and clergy of Byzantine aristocratic origin, who acquired economic and political influence and were later known as Phanariots, settled in extreme northwestern Constantinople (which had become central to Greek interests after the establishment of the patriarch's headquarters in 1461, shortly after Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque). After the 1453 fall of Constantinople, when

5440-449: The principalities, resulting in long periods of political disorder, was dominated by a small number of ambitious families who competed violently for the two thrones and monopolized land ownership. A change in policy was indicated by the fact that autonomous Wallachia and Moldavia had entered a period of skirmishes with the Ottomans, due to the insubordination of local princes associated with the rise of Imperial Russia 's power under Peter

5525-597: The reputation Albanians held of serving as mercenaries in Ottoman armies. By the Late Middle Ages , during the period of Humanism and the European Renaissance , the terms epirot , Epir and gjuhë epirote ( Latin : epirota , Epirus , lingua epirotica ) were preferred in the intellectual, literary and clerical circles of the time, used as synonyms for arbën , Arbën , Dheu i Arbënit , Arbëní/rí , abënuer/arbëror , i arbënesh/arbëresh , and later, respectively for shqiptar , Shqipni/Shqipëri , (lingua) shqipe . Subsequently, this linguistic-historical ethnic association

5610-460: The rich merchants, as well as the five churches built in the years of progress, bear record of the economic upsurge and prosperity. In the 18th century, Arbanasi was regularly donated by the Phanariote rulers of Wallachia , and a number of expelled Wallachian nobles settled temporarily in the village, e.g. Nicolae Brâncoveanu, Ioan (Ianache) Văcărescu, etc. In 1790, there were 17 Wallachian nobles with their families in Arbanași. To this day, some of

5695-468: The same language]". Attested from 14th century onward, the placename Shqipëria and the ethnic demonym Shqiptarë gradually replaced Arbëria and Arbëreshë amongst Albanian speakers between the late 17th and early 18th centuries. That era brought about religious and other sociopolitical changes. As such a new and generalised response by Albanians based on ethnic and linguistic consciousness to this new and different Ottoman world emerging around them

5780-569: The settlement's origin, name and population. It is accepted by some scholars that the village was populated by Bulgarian boyars that came from the westernmost parts of the Second Bulgarian Empire after Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria 's important victory over the Byzantines near Klokotnitsa on 9 March 1230, when the tsar conquered "the land of the Albanians" (зємѧ арбанаскѫѫ). This assumption is supported by 19th century notes from Georgi Rakovski and other scholars, but by no direct evidence or contemporary source. The earliest written document that marks

5865-444: The succession to the throne of Moldavia. This was followed by similar measures in Wallachia, prompted by Ștefan Cantacuzino 's alliance with Habsburg commander Prince Eugene of Savoy in the closing stages of the Great Turkish War . The person raised to the office of prince was usually the chief dragoman of the Porte, well-versed in contemporary politics and Ottoman statecraft. The new prince, who obtained his office in exchange for

5950-435: The term Arvanites is used by Greeks to refer to descendants of Albanians or Arbëreshë that migrated to southern Greece during the medieval era and who currently self identify as Greeks, as a result of assimilation. Sometimes its variant Alvanites may be used instead. In the region of Epirus within Greece today, the term Arvanitis is still used for an Albanian speaker regardless of their citizenship and religion. While

6035-402: The term Arvanitia alongside the older Greek term Epirus for parts or all of contemporary Albania and modern Epirus in Greece until the 19th century. Arnaut (ارناود), Arvanid (اروانيد), Arnavud (آرناوود), plural: Arnavudlar (آرناوودلار): modern Turkish : Arnavut , plural: Arnavutlar ; are ethnonyms used mainly by Ottoman and contemporary Turks for Albanians with Arnavutça being

6120-591: The term Arvanitika (Αρβανίτικα) is used within Greece for all varieties of the Albanian language spoken there, whereas within Western academia the term is used for the Albanian language spoken in Southern Greece. Alongside these ethnonyms the term Arvanitia (Αρβανιτιά) for the country has also been used by Greek society in folklore, sayings, riddles, dances and toponyms. For example, some Greek writers used

6205-423: The terms "Arbanitai" and "Albanoi" with a range of variants were used interchangeably, while sometimes the same groups were also called by the classicising name Illyrians. The first reference to the Albanian language dates to the year 1285. The country was known in Byzantine sources as Arbanon (Άρβανον) and in Latin sources as Arbanum . In medieval Serbian sources, the ethnonym for the country derived from

6290-497: The two principalities during the Phanariot epoch. When the choice became limited to a few families due to princely disloyalty to the Porte, rulers would be moved from one principality to the other; the prince of Wallachia (the richer of the two principalities) would pay to avert his transfer to Iaşi, and the prince of Moldavia would bribe supporters in Constantinople to appoint him to Wallachia. Constantine Mavrocordatos ruled

6375-501: The word has also acquired pejorative connotations regarding Albanians. During the Ottoman era, the name was used for ethnic Albanians regardless of their religious affiliations, just like it is today. Albanese and Albanesi is an Italian surname meaning "Albanian", in reference to the Arbëreshë people (Italo-Albanians) of southern Italy . Among people who have the surname it is common in southern Italy and rare elsewhere in

6460-520: Was a change in ethnonym. Arbën , Arbëneshë , Arbënuer (as rendered in northern Gheg dialects) and Arbër , Arbëreshë , Arbëror (as rendered in southern Tosk dialects) are the old native terms denoting ancient and medieval Albanians used by Albanians. The Albanian language was referred to as Arbërisht ( Gheg Albanian : Arbënisht ). While the country was called Arbëni , definite : Arbënia and Arbëri , definite: Arbëria by Albanians. These terms as an endonym and as native toponyms for

6545-405: Was a natural evolution given the Phanariots' education and experience in supervising large parts of the empire. According to Nikos Svoronos argued, the Phanariots subordinated their national identity to their class identity and tried to peacefully co−exist with the Ottomans; they did not enrich the Greek national identity and lost ground to groups which flourished through their confrontation with

6630-551: Was a village up in the mountains, from where the whole of Tarnovo could be seen, that had about 1,000 houses. Another Roman Catholic bishop, Anton Stefanov, refers to Arbanasi in 1685. According to his account, there were Arbanasi merchants trading in Italy , Hungary , Poland and particularly in Muscovy . There is considerably richer documentary material, such as correspondence and chronicler's notes on religious books, preserved from

6715-661: Was banned by the Ottoman authorities and Bulgarian orthodox population officially had to be served by the Greek Orthodox Church). This, however, did not reflect the local population's national self-consciousness, as Arbanasi residents took part in the organized armed struggle of Bulgarians that ultimately led to the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule as a consequence of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78 . Arbanasi Nunatak on Livingston Island in

6800-596: Was faithfully followed also by the Albanian intellectuals and Catholic clerics during the Middle Ages. On a letter sent to the Prince of Taranto Giovanni Orsini in 1460, the Albanian Lord Skanderbeg wrote: “Se le nostre cronache non mentono, noi ci chiamiamo Epiroti” ("If our chronicles don't lie, we call ourselves Epiroti"). Published in Rome in 1635 by the Albanian bishop and writer Frang Bardhi ,

6885-611: Was in use amongst South Slavs until the mid 20th century. The name Arbanasi is still used as an exonym for a small Albanian community in Croatia on the Dalmatian coast that migrated there during the 18th century. In modern South Slavic languages the term is Albanac . Arvanitis (Αρβανίτης), plural: Arvanites (Αρβανίτες); is a term that was historically used amongst the wider Greek-speaking population to describe an Albanian speaker regardless of their religious affiliations until

6970-607: Was recognized as the spiritual and secular head ( millet-bashi ) of the Orthodox subjects—the Rum Millet , or "Roman nation" of the empire, except those under the spiritual care of the Patriarchs of Antioch , Jerusalem , Alexandria , Ohrid and Peja —often acting as archontes of the Ecumenical See . They dominated the administration of the patriarchate, often intervening in the selection of hierarchs (including

7055-530: Was the casus belli for the 1806–1812 conflict, and Russian general Mikhail Andreyevich Miloradovich swiftly reinstated Ypsilantis during his military expedition to Wallachia. Such gestures began a period of effective Russian supervision, culminating with the Organic Statute administration of the 1830s. The Danubian principalities grew in strategic importance with the Napoleonic Wars and

7140-465: Was the first official Phanariot in his second reign in Moldavia and replaced Ștefan Cantacuzino in Wallachia as the first Phanariot ruler of that country. A crucial moment was the Russo−Turkish War of 1710−1713, when Dimitrie Cantemir sided with Russia and agreed to Russian tutelage of his country. After Russia experienced a major defeat and Cantemir went into exile, the Ottomans took charge of

7225-595: Was when the gradual erosion of traditional institutions reached its zenith, but characteristics ascribed to the Phanariot era had made themselves felt long before it. The Ottomans enforced their choice of hospodars as far back as the 15th century, and foreign (usually Greek or Levantine ) boyars competed with local ones since the late 16th century. Rulers since Dumitraşcu Cantacuzino in Moldavia and George Ducas (a prince of Greek origin) in Wallachia, both in 1673, were forced to surrender their family members as hostages in Constantinople. The traditional elective system in

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