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A significant number of people in the former Kingdom of Bosnia converted to Islam after the conquest by the Ottoman Empire in the second half of the 15th century, giving it a unique character within the Balkan region. It took over one hundred years for Islam to become the majority religion. [1]
Several factors appear to have been behind this process. Most important was that Christianity had relatively shallow roots in Bosnia prior to the Ottoman domination. Bosnia lacked a strong Christian church organization to command a strong following—the result of a scarcity of priests and competition among the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches and the schismatic Bosnian Church, which collapsed shortly before the Ottomans arrived. This left most people religiously unengaged and receptive to the appeal of Islam's institutions. This receptiveness was aided by the development among many people of a kind of folk Christianity centered on various practices and ceremonies that was adaptable to a form of folk Islam popular at the time of the invasion. [2]
One theory as to why conversion to Islam was more prevalent in Bosnia than other places in the Balkans is the possibility that the Bosnian Church practiced Bogomilism. Bogomilism was regarded as a major dualistic heresy by the Catholic Church and against whom Pope John XXII even launched a Crusade in 1325. Thus many adherents of the Bosnian Church were more receptive to conversion to Islam. In fact, in the Bogomilian tradition, there were several practices that resembled Islam: they repudiated the Cross as a religious symbol, they considered it as idolatry to bow down before religious images, relics or saints, and even prayed five times a day (reciting the Lord's Prayer.) [3] However, it is not universally accepted among historians that the Bosnian Church was Bogomilist.
This theory is supported by some historians, including Sir Thomas Arnold, but other historians consider it an oversimplification. It is pointed out that Bosnians of all Christian denominations converted to Islam, including from the Catholic and Orthodox churches, not just those from the Bosnian church. [4] Additionally, much of the population of Bosnia did not belong to the Bosnian church. [5] Finally, under Ottoman rule there was significant religious conversion in many directions: many Catholics converted to the Orthodox church and vice versa. [4]
According to scholar Fine, the reason why conversion to Islam was more prevalent in Bosnia (and Albania) as opposed to other areas under Ottoman rule is because these areas had multiple competing churches, none of which were dominant. Thus Bosnians were less devoted Christians than other Balkanites. [4]
Another way in which Bosnia differed from other parts of the Ottoman Balkans is that, for most of the Ottoman period, Bosnia was a frontier province, facing some of the empire's most important enemies— Austria, Hungary, and Venice. To fill up depopulated areas of northern and western Bosnia, the Ottomans encouraged the migration of large numbers of hardy settlers with military skills from Serbia and Herzegovina. Some of these settlers were Vlachs, members of a pre-Slav Balkan population that had acquired a Latinate language and specialized in stock breeding, horse raising, long-distance trade, and fighting. Most were members of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Before the Ottoman conquest, that church had had very few members in the Bosnian lands outside Herzegovina and the eastern strip of the Drina valley. There is no definite evidence of any Orthodox church buildings in central, northern, or western Bosnia before 1463. During the 16th century, however, several Orthodox monasteries were built in those parts of Bosnia, apparently to serve the newly settled Orthodox population there. [6]
Economic and social gain was also an incentive to become a Muslim: conversion to Islam conferred economic and social status. Under the feudal system imposed by the Ottomans, only those who converted to Islam could acquire and inherit land and property, which accorded them political rights, a status usually denied to non-Muslims. A number of Christian nobles, however, were able to retain their estates early on in the Ottoman rule by fighting on behalf of the Empire, suggesting that holding on to their property was not a major incentive for early conversions to Islam. At a lower socioeconomic level, most new converts to Islam were able to turn their holdings into freehold farms. At the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder were the serfs, who constituted the majority of the population and were predominantly Christians. In addition, only Muslims could hold positions in the Ottoman state apparatus, which conferred special privileges and a much higher standard of living. Muslims also enjoyed legal privileges: Christians could not sue Muslims and their testimony could not be used against Muslims in court. [7]
The gradual conversion to Islam proceeded at different rates in various areas and among different groups. Conversion to Islam was more rapid in urban areas, which were centers of learning and of the Ottoman administration, than in the countryside. Merchants found it advantageous to convert to Islam because they gained greater freedom of movement and state protection for their goods as Muslims. Many professional soldiers also converted to Islam to ensure more rapid promotion. [8]
By the 17th century a majority of the population of Bosnia was Muslim. [4]
The various advantages and privileges that were reserved for Muslims and the large number of conversions they encouraged among the native population led to the emergence over time of a largely local Muslim ruling class that dominated political and economic power in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the later Ottoman period, Bosnia attracted Muslim refugees from lands that were reconquered by Christian powers (mainly Croatia, Hungary and Slovenia). [9] Some converted to Islam as a way to escape the devşirme tribute (whereby the son of Christian family would be taken for military service). At the same time, some Muslim families preferred to have their sons conscripted (e.g. into the Janissary) as that gave them a chance to go to school and advance professionally. [10]
Another way in which Bosnia was Islamized was through immigration. During the Great Turkish War of the late 1600s, the Ottoman Empire lost control of most of Hungary and portions of the northwestern Balkans. Many Muslims in these regions fled to other parts of the Balkans, including to Bosnia. [11]
Bogomilism was a Christian neo-Gnostic, dualist sect founded in the First Bulgarian Empire by the priest Bogomil during the reign of Tsar Peter I in the 10th century. It most probably arose in the region of Kutmichevitsa, today part of the region of Macedonia.
Muslims is a designation for the ethnoreligious group of Serbo-Croatian-speaking Muslims of Slavic heritage, inhabiting mostly the territory of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The term, adopted in the 1971 Constitution of Yugoslavia, groups together several distinct South Slavic communities of Islamic ethnocultural tradition. Before 1993, a vast majority of present-day Bosniaks self-identified as ethnic Muslims, along with some smaller groups of different ethnicities, such as Gorani and Torbeši. This designation did not include Yugoslav non-Slavic Muslims, such as Albanians, Turks and some Romani people.
The Bosnian Church was a schismatic Christian church in medieval Bosnia and Herzegovina that was independent from and considered heretical by both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox churches.
Islam is the most widespread religion in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was introduced to the local population in the 15th and 16th centuries as a result of the Ottoman conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, often referred to as Bosnian Serbs or Herzegovinian Serbs, are native and one of the three constitutive nations of the country, predominantly residing in the political-territorial entity of Republika Srpska. Most declare themselves Orthodox Christians and speakers of the Serbian language.
Omer Pasha, also known as Omer Pasha Latas was an Ottoman field marshal and governor. Born in the Austrian Empire to Serbian Orthodox Christian parents, he initially served as an Austrian soldier. When faced with charges of embezzlement, he fled to Ottoman Bosnia in 1823 and converted to Islam; he then joined the Ottoman army, where he quickly rose through the ranks. Latas crushed several rebellions all across the Ottoman Empire. He served as the main commander of the Crimean War, where he defeated the Russians at Giurgevo, regaining control of Bucharest and the Danubian Principalities, pushing the Russians outside of the Danube. Latas spearheaded notable victories at Oltenița, Cetate, Eupatoria, Sukhumi, and Sevastopol. As a commander, he was noted for his excellent strategic and diplomatic skills.
The Ottoman Empire era of rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Herzegovina lasted from 1463/1482 to 1908.
Bosniaks are a South Slavic ethnic group, native to the region of Bosnia of which the majority are Muslims (90%). The term Bosniaks was used to describe everyone in that region regardless of their religion until late 1800s. It was established again after decades of suppression in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The Bosniak Assembly adopted the ethnonym to replace "Bosnian Muslims." Scholars believe that the move was partly motivated by a desire to distinguish the Bosniaks from the term Muslim to describe their nationality in the former Yugoslavia. These scholars contend that the Bosniaks are distinguishable from comparable groups due to a collective identity based on a shared environment, cultural practices and experiences.
Under the Ottoman Empire's millet system, Christians and Jews were considered dhimmi under Ottoman law in exchange for loyalty to the state and payment of the jizya tax.
The Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina, often referred to as Bosnian Croats or Herzegovinian Croats, are native to Bosnia and Herzegovina and constitute the third most populous ethnic group, after Bosniaks and Serbs. They are also one of the constitutive nations of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina have made significant contributions to the culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Most Croats declare themselves Catholics and speakers of the Croatian language.
Islam in Kosovo has a long-standing tradition dating back to the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. Before the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, the entire Balkan region had been Christianized by both the Western and Eastern Roman Empire. From 1389 until 1912, Kosovo was officially governed by the Muslim Ottoman Empire and a high level of Islamization occurred among Catholic and Orthodox Albanians, mainly due to Sufi orders and socio-political opportunism. Both Christian and Muslim Albanians intermarried and some lived as "Laramans", also known as Crypto-Christians. During the time period after World War II, Kosovo was ruled by secular socialist authorities in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). During that period, Kosovars became increasingly secularized. After the end of Communist period religion had a revival in Kosovo. Today, 95.6% of Kosovo's population are Muslims, most of whom are ethnic Albanians. There are also non-Albanian speaking Muslims, who define themselves as Bosniaks, Gorani and Turks.
The Eastern Orthodox Church is the most widespread Christian denomination in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the second most widespread religious group in the country, following Islam and followed in turn by Roman Catholicism. Orthodox Christians in Bosnia and Herzegovina belong to the Serbian Orthodox Church. According to the CIA World Factbook, Orthodox Christians make up 30.7% of the country's population.
Bosnia and Herzegovina fell under Austro-Hungarian rule in 1878, when the Congress of Berlin approved the occupation of the Bosnia Vilayet, which officially remained part of the Ottoman Empire. Three decades later, in 1908, Austria-Hungary provoked the Bosnian Crisis by formally annexing the occupied zone, establishing the Condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the joint control of Austria and Hungary.
The Bosniaks are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, culture, history and language. Predominantly adhering to Sunni Islam, they primarily live in Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Kosovo as well as in Austria, Germany, Turkey and Sweden. They also constitute a significant diaspora with several communities across Europe, the Americas and Oceania.
Bosnians are people native to the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially the region of Bosnia. As a common demonym, the term Bosnians refers to all inhabitants/citizens of the country, regardless of any ethnic, cultural or religious affiliation. It can also be used as a designation for anyone who is descended from the region of Bosnia. Also, a Bosnian can be anyone who holds citizenship of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and thus is largely synonymous with the all-encompassing national demonym Bosnians and Herzegovinians.
During the decline and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, Muslim inhabitants living in Muslim-minority territories previously under Ottoman control often found themselves persecuted after borders were re-drawn. These populations were subject to genocide, expropriation, massacres, religious persecution, mass rape, and ethnic cleansing.
The term Laraman in Albanian refers to crypto-Christians who adhered to Islam officially but continued to practice Christianity within the household during the Ottoman era. It was derived from the Albanian adjective i larmë, meaning "variegated, motley, two-faced", a metaphor of "two-faithed" (l'arë), a reference to the Laramans following both Christianity and Islam (nominally).
Vlachs was a social and fiscal class in several late medieval states of Southeastern Europe, and also a distinctive social and fiscal class within the millet system of the Ottoman Empire, composed largely of Eastern Orthodox Christians who practiced nomadic and semi-nomadic pastoral lifestyle, including populations in various migratory regions, mainly composed of ethnic Vlachs, Serbs and Albanians. From the middle decades of the 17th century the amalgamation of the process of sedentarization of the Orthodox Vlachs and their gradual fusion with Serbian rural population reached a high level and was officially recognized by the Ottoman authorities.
Vlachs in medieval Bosnia and Herzegovina were a Western Balkans population descending from a mixture of Romanized pre-Slavic Romance-speaking peoples and the South Slavs. From the 14th century the ethnic meaning of term "Vlach" was replaced with societal meaning and often meant the Slavic population with similar lifestyle. They practiced transhumance as herdsmen, shepherds, farmers, and in time developed peculiar socio-political organizational units known as katuns. With their caravans, Vlach carried out much of the traffic between Bosnian inland and coastal cities such as Dubrovnik. They also had close contacts and militarily served various Bosnian noble families and kings.
The Islamization of Albania occurred as a result of the Ottoman conquest of the region beginning in 1385. The Ottomans through their administration and military brought Islam to Albania.