Shqipėria
2
Tribes of Northern Albania / Malsia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highlands_of_Gjakova
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Highlands of Gjakova or Gjakova Highlands (Albanian: Malėsia e Gjakovės) refers to the mountainous ethnographic region in the eastern Albanian Alps that sits between north-eastern Albania and western Kosovo, serving as the historical centres of the Albanian Gashi, Krasniqi, Bytyqi, Morina, Nikaj and Mėrturi tribes. Traditionally, parts of the Gjakova Highlands that are now located in southern Montenegro were used as pasturelands by the local Albanian tribes.[1]
Gashi Tribe
Gashi is an Albanian surname and the name of one of the major historical tribes of northern Albania. It is a historical tribal region situated in the Highlands of Gjakova.[1][2] The Gashi tribe is known to follow the Kanuni i Malėsisė sė Madhė, a variant of the Kanun.[3] They were known among the mountain tribes for their wisdom.[4]Gashi is one of the most widespread Albanian tribes in northern Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia. Their tribal territory corresponds to the District of Tropoja and District of Gjakova in Albania and Kosovo respectively; it extends from the east of the town of Bajram Curri to villages such as Botushė and Koshare in Kosovo. Their tribal region is based on the valleys of the Llugaj and Bushtrica rivers, bordering the Krasniqi to the west, the Bytyēi to the south over the Luzha Pass (Qafa e Luzhės), and the Morina (tribe) to the southeast. The Gashi tribe also held summer pasturelands to the north of the mountain east of Vuthaj.[5]
During the Austro-Turkish War of 1683-1699, the Gashi and the other Catholic tribes of the area supported the Austrians, and were therefore punished by the Ottomans after the defeat of the Austrians.[18] In the years 1690-1693, the village of Gash was burned down by the Pasha of Peja and its population was expelled to the Llap region in Kosovo.[19] Nonetheless, some families either returned to their original territories or escaped persecution, as in 1693-1697, the Gash villages of Luzhė and Botushė appear in documents.[20] In 1716, the Gashi tribe, along with the Kelmendi, Pult, Shala and Mirdita tribal regions, were targeted by a punitive operation carried out by Tahir Pasha of Dukagjin.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gashi_(tribe)In May 1845, following Reşid Pasha's outlawing of the right to bear arms, the Gashi tribe, along with 2,000 people from the Gjakova region as well as the Gjakova Highlander tribes of Krasniqi and Bytyēi, rose in revolt. The rebels, numbering to about 8,000 men, drove the Ottoman garrison out of Gjakova.[21] The Ottomans suppressed the rebellion, but did not succeed in establishing effective control of the region.[22] In 1862, the Ottomans sent Maxharr Pasha with 12 divisions to implement the Tanzimat Reforms in the Highlands of Gjakova. Under the leadership of Mic Sokoli and Binak Alia, the Gashi, Krasniqi, Bytyēi and Nikaj-Mertur tribes organized a resistance near Bujan. The rebels were reinforced by the forces of Shala, led by Mark Lula. After heavy fighting, they managed to defeat the Ottoman force and expel them from the highlands.[23] The Gashi tribe, led by Ali Ibra and Haxhi Brahimi, participated in the Battle of Nokshiq in Montenegro, in which the Albanian League of Prizren defeated a numerically superior Montenegrin force.
Sulejman Aga Batusha of Botushė was a chief of the Gashi tribe and was their leader in the Gjakova region during the early 20th century, participating in many uprisings against the Ottoman Empire.[24][25]
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