Chandra Prakash Bhongir, Civil Engr, May04 - Repositories

with one another and found Scanderbeg’s memory a common ground upon which
Albanian national identity was built. Thus Albanian memories of Scanderbeg, although
prevalent in Albania, did not become politicized until Diasporic intellectuals used them to
evoke memories of the past and build a strong basis for Albanian nationalism, which
served as a context for the movement toward Albanian independence and its achievement
on November 28,1912.
Methodology: Theoretical Foundation
Before identifying the occupants of the Albanian diaspora and their role in
passing on the memory of Scanderbeg it is necessary, to construct a theoretical lens
through which one can better examine the power of Scanderbeg’s memory with relation
to nation-state formation and nationalism. Nationalism, diaspora, and national memory
are all themes which help to explain why Scanderbeg continues to be remembered in
Albania and its diasporic communities outside Albania.
A popular folk song sung by the Arberesh in Calabria from the nineteenth
century, describes the emotive force of an imagined homeland and the relationship which
ensues between the disporic individual and the homeland: “We are like swallows, we are
like eagles,We are united, because we have common roots.” 2 While, the emotive power
of the song is inescapable it raises important questions to the process of one’s
displacement and issues of self identification. Under this premise it becomes important
to identify what constitutes a diaspora and how do diasporic individuals relate to their
country of origin.
33:1(1979):172.
2 Shkurtaj, Gjovalin, “Kenge Popullore te Arberesheve te Italise,” Studime Filologjike,
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