The Formation of the Ethno-National Consciousness of the Muslims of Southwestern Serbia
The Formation of the Ethno-National Consciousness of the Muslims of Southwestern Serbia

Summary/Abstract: Islam in the Balkans represents the most important imperial legacy of the Ottoman Empire. Among Muslims, unlike Christians, there is a noticeable delay in building a national identity. The first significant forms of the formation of common ethnic consciousness and nationalization followed in contact with the administration of Christian countries. The aforementioned logic was also followed by the small Muslim community in southwestern Serbia. At the very beginning, that identity was characterized by the practice of the religion and religious principles of Islam, as well as the protection of its heritage, so that in a later period of time, due to secularization, that identity took on the character of emphasizing cultural heritage, customs and patterns of behavior created in the previous period. The paper presents and analyzes the process of development and formation of the ethno-national consciousness of the Muslims of southwestern Serbia through a longue durée.

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