Constructing national identity in the public space. The discursive transformations of the semiotic-linguistic landscapes of Pristina, Kosovo

Abstract

This paper focuses on the discursive transformations of the semiotic-linguistic landscapes of Pristina, the capital of Kosovo as brought about by successive sociopolitical transformations and against the reversed power relations of the Albanians and Serbs. The study departs from the underlying assumption that the ethnic Albanian image the cityscape emits today does not coincide with the vision of civic inclusion and multi-ethnicity painted in the Constitution (2008) after the Declaration of Independence (2008). By means of a diachronic examination of successive alterations made to iconic landmark establishments at different political phases in time, it is posited that an appreciation of the contemporary discursive landscape requires an understanding of its dialogic relationship with the past. It is contended that semiotic changes reacted to the past by demarcating barriers that limit access to the previously dominant ethnic other. With reference to the ethnically segregated context of the 1990s in Pristina, attention is brought to the transgressive and invisible dimensions of the landscape for the construction of the city's identity today.

BAC, U KRY! Space, Albanian Commemoration and the Gheg Variety as a Linguistic Symbol of State Independence in Postwar Kosovo

“…As the Serbian authorities left the territory, the ethnic Albanians who have always constituted Kosovo's demographic majority asserted their political dominance. While after the Declaration of Independence (2008) Kosovo was officially proclaimed a multi-ethnic country with shared Albanian and Serbian co-officialdom, in reality, the reversed power relations challenged the notion of inclusiveness (Demaj & Vandenbroucke 2016, Demaj & Vandenbroucke 2022, Demaj 2022. Rather, the power reversal crystallized the division of society along ethno-spatial lines with ethnic segregation as the main impediment to the democratic development of Kosovo (Kostovicova 2005, OSCE 2008, Friedman 2014, Fridman 2015, Demaj & Vandenbroucke 2016, Demaj 2022.…”

“…Instead, Albanian serves as the main language of public discourse. It addresses the majority Albanian residents of the capital; Albanian also holds symbolic power since the language was banned for official use throughout the 1990s following the introduction of the Serbian-only language regime of Milošević in 1989 (see Demaj 2022, Greenberg 2004). The power shift after the war resulted in a shift in language hierarchies and attitudes vis-à-vis Serbian.…”

“…Yet, on the other hand, negotiations between the political leaders in Belgrade and Pristina yielded no results, as both parties refused to compromise in their political stances. The status quo maintained under the international supervision of UNMIK resulted in the Albanian appropriation of the socio-cultural and symbolic spheres (Krasniqi 2013, Demaj 2022, Demaj 2023. In this context, two different ideological routes took shape, creating tension between the vision of the Albanian majority elites and that of the international community.…”

“…In this context, two different ideological routes took shape, creating tension between the vision of the Albanian majority elites and that of the international community. Defined in Ermoli (2015) in terms of a discrepancy between civic and ethnic notions of national identity, by the time Kosovo attained national independence (2008), the symbolic configuration of the entity corresponded with the national ideological discourse of the ethnic Albanians (Demaj 2022, Demaj 2023. Against this backdrop, the study zooms in on Kosovo Albanian expression(s) of ethno-national identity as manifested in two dimensions of the built environment in the capital city of Kosovo, Pristina.…”