Ethnography of Albanian mountain tribes during WWI in the works of Karel Sellner

Abstract

Utilizing both published and archival materials, this paper covers the accounts of Karel Sellner from his stay in northern Albanian mountains during World War I. Primarily, it aims to explore Sellner’s views regarding the local tribal society and to present his respective work, which is connected to both Albanian studies, ethnography and (to a lesser extent) Czech historiography, in regards to the engagement of Czech people in the Austro-Hungarian army during the last days of its existence. Since the author’s original work was written exclusively in Czech, this article also emphasizes direct quotes on the topic from his books, personal correspondence and other archival materials.

Keywords

• albania
• kanun
• tribal society
• blood feud
• ethnography
• travelogue
• world war 1