Revival of Bektashism in Post-Communist Albania: Internal Developments and Transnational Connections By: Foti Vito On 27 January 1991, following the end of the communist dictatorship and the ban on all religious practices in Albania, a provisional committee for the revival of the Bektashi community was formed in Tirana.1 This was a defining moment for the revival of Bektashism in Albania and, more generally, the revival of Islam in the post-communist Balkans. When the World Headquarters of the Bektashi (Kryegyjshata Botëtore Bektashiane) subsequently reopened in Tirana on 22 March 1991, on the occasion of Nevruz, a new community emerged which has been increasingly active in reviving Bektashi religious institutions and practices in postcommunist Albania.2 While religious revival was more complex in Albania than other Balkan countries due to the experiences of multi-denominationalism and twentythree years of state atheism,3 the revival of Bektashism in Albania has proven to be a particular case, worth further examination. Among the dervish orders in Albania, Bektashism is considered the most influential and enjoys a separate organizational structure from the Muslim community of Albania, the latter being the main organization of Sunni Islam.4 This paper sets out to examine the efforts made by the Bektashi community to revitalize Bektashi religious institutions and practices in postcommunist Albania, and links these efforts to internal developments and transnational connections during the period under discussion. It strives to offer insight into the larger question regarding what extent could elements of Islam, particularly Bektashism, survive the communist regime and how Islam reorganized itself in the fragmented religious field that characterized postcommunist Albania.
-ary Haji Bektash Veli, who lived in Anatolia in the second half of the thirteenth century, where he is said to have founded the order (tarikat).6 Bektashi doctrines are characterized by their Shiite and pantheistic beliefs which have integrated various traditions, including elements of Christianity and folk religions.7 This syncretism contributed to the establishment of Bektashism as one of the leading dervish orders during the Ottoman period, where it spread to the Balkans and made significant contributions to the formation of Muslim communities in the region.8 By the fifteenth century, the Bektashis gained considerable influence and their tekkes (convents, lodges) became widespread in the Balkans partly due to their close ties with the Janissaries, the elite infantry troops of the sultan. While the date of arrival of the Bektashis in Albania is contested, historical records establish their noticeable presence in Albanian lands by the seventeenth century.10 When the Janissary corps were dismissed in 1826 in an effort to modernize the Ottoman military, the Bektashi order also became the subject of state persecution and was threatened by major decline.11 Doja describes how the Albanian lands, which were outside of the direct authority of the central Ottoman administration, consequently became a sort of “exile” for members of the Bektashi order.12 Clayer similarly underscores that “a ‘solidification’ of a properly Albanian Bektashism took place in the western confines of the Empire”13 as elements of Albanian nationalism were incorporated into Bektashi lore, especially in the southern Albanian lands where most Bektashi tekkes were located.14 Scholars generally agree that the Bektashis played a noteworthy role during the Albanian “national awakening” (Rilindja) from 1878 onwards as many leading figures of the movement belonged to the order, although this may be one of the myths surrounding Albanian Bektashism.15 Following the independence of Albania in 1912/13, it is estimated that approximately 15 to 20 percent of the Albanian population were members of Understanding Bektashism and Its Historical Presthe Bektashi order.16 For context, the multience in Albania denominationalism in the new frontiers of Albania Over the course of its development, Bektashism meant that approximately 70 percent of the population survived several crises and gradually became deeply were Muslims, 20 percent were Christian Orthodox, rooted in Albania. The Bektashi order of dervishes is and the remaining 10 percent were Catholics.17 The considered one of the many heterodox Sufi groups of Bektashi, located mainly in central and southern AlbaIslam that spread from Central Asia to Anatolia and lat- nia, were of numerical importance within the country er to the Balkans.5 The name originates from the legend- and many dervishes outside of the country were also of 52
