ODJECI BALKANSKIH RATOVA U ARAPSKOJ POEZIJI
ECHOES OF THE BALKAN WARS IN ARABIC POETRY

Summary/Abstract: The Arab world west of Egypt, during the times of the Balkan Wars, i.e. the times when the Ottomans were being pushed out from the Balkans, was still under the Ottoman rule. As early as 1882, Egypt was occupied by Britain while at the same time the Istanbul Sultan maintained his formal sovereignty which finally came to an end in 1914. In the Arab world, national awakening was still not well-articulated and was wrapped in the shadow of an idea of belongingness to a Muslim community - the shadow of pan-Islamic ideas that had appeared even before the Balkan Wars. A great number of Arab poets writing about the Balkan Wars came from Egypt. In their poetry, we find expressions of sincere empathy for Muslims in the Balkans, lamenting their agonies and mourning the Ottomans being pushed out of the Balkans. At the same time, we find criticism for the lack of empathy regarding tragedies befalling the Balkans and criticism aimed at double standards of Western countries.

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