Kosovo

Kosovo and Metohia (Serbian: Косово и Метохија / Kosovo i Metohija, Albanian: Kosovë / Kosova), in English most often called just Kosovo, is a province of Serbia. It is the subject of an ongoing territorial dispute between the Serbian government and the province's majority ethnic Albanian population. It is a part of Serbia, but since the Kosovo War it has been administered by the United Nations as a protectorate. Its Albanian population referred to the province as the Republic of Kosovo between 1990 and 1999 and declared it an independent state, though this was recognized abroad only by Albania. The province's final status has yet to be determined; talks on this issue are scheduled for later in 2006.

Geography


With an area of 10,887 km² and a population of over 2 million on the eve of the 1999 crisis, Kosovo borders with Montenegro to the northwest, with the districts of Raška, Toplica, Jablanica and Pčinja in Central Serbia to the North and East, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the south, and Albania to the southwest. The largest cities are Priština (Albanian: Prishtina), the capital, with estimated 500,000 inhabitants, and Prizren in the southwest with 120,000: five other towns have populations in excess of 50,000.

Geographical regions
Metohija, called Rrafshi i Dukagjinit ("Dukagjin plateau") by Albanians, is the large basin at the west of the province. The region includes the towns of Istok, Peć, Dečani, Đakovica, Orahovac, and Prizren. The second largest region is Kosovo, a basin around the Sitnica river containing the cities of Uroševac, Priština, Vučitrn, and Kosovska Mitrovica. Kosovo Polje (Kosovo Field) is just a small field which was the site of the Battle of Kosovo; when the communist government changed the name of the province to Kosovo in 1968, they also started pushing "Kosovo Polje" as the name of entire region. Part of Kosovo along the river Lab which contains the city of Podujevo is called Malo Kosovo (literally "Little Kosovo"). Just between the Metohia and Kosovo is the Drenica with the cities of Srbica and Klina and Mališevo. Around the river Binačka Morava is Binačko Pomoravlje. At the southmost tip of the province, along the border with Macedonia lie the Gora, Sredačka Župa and Sirinićka Župa.

Name
The province is best known as Kosovo - this name has been the most widely used by maps and gazetteers within Serbia and abroad. The alternative spelling Kossovo was frequently used until the early 20th century and before that, Cassovo or Cassua, an Italianisation of the name.

The name Kosovo (pronounced "KO-so-vo" by Serbs, "ko-SO-vah" by Albanians) appears to have its roots in the Slavic word kos which means "blackbird". The root word is widely used as a toponym in Slavic countries and the historical German name for Kosovo Polje, Amselfeld, does indeed mean "field of the blackbird". The name "Kosovo" is itself used in other Slavic countries, appearing in Belarus, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Russia (see Kosovo (disambiguation)).

Kosova (pronounced "ko-SO-vah") is the Albanian spelling for the province. Albanians tend to use "Kosova" exclusively in preference to the Serbian name, which many of them reject as a symbol of Serbian dominance. It is also occasionally spelled as Kosovë; this is due to the fact that in Albanian, adding the definite article to a noun changes the ending of the word.

The Albanian-populated areas of the province and Albania itself tend to use "Kosova" exclusively. "Kosovo" is used, again almost exclusively, in the Serb-populated north of the province and in the rest of the former Yugoslavia. The international community tries to steer a middle path by referring formally to "Kosovo/Kosova." In practice, however, the Serbian variant is still the most frequently used outside of Kosovo while the Albanian variant is widely used by "internationals" within the province.

The use of the two alternative names is a highly sensitive political issue for both Serbs and Kosovo Albanians, who regard the use of the other side's name as being a denial of their own side's territorial rights. During the Kosovo War, United States President Bill Clinton was criticised for frequently using "Kosova" and appearing to pronounce "Kosovo" the Albanian way, putting the emphasis on the middle syllable rather than on the first syllable as in the Serbian pronunciation. This may, however, have been a simple mispronunciation.

Metohia (alternatively spelled Metohija) derives from the Greek word μετόχια (metochia), a term which denotes church-owned land. Historically, the estates of the Serbian Orthodox Church were located principally in this region. The name does not indicate a modern administrative district. Albanians tend not to use the name and instead prefer to call it Rrafshi i Dukagjinit, the "Dukagjin plateau".

Some Kosovo Albanians refer to Kosovo as Dardania, the name of the ancient Roman province which covered the territory of modern Kosovo and part of the Republic of Macedonia. Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova has been an enthusiastic backer of a "Dardanian" identity and his flag and presidential seal refer to this notional identity. However, it is not recognised by any international power and the name "Kosova" remains more widely used among the Albanian population.

Former official names

 * Autonomous Kosovo-Metohijan Area (1945-1963)
 * Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija (1963-1968)
 * Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo (1968-1989)
 * Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohia (1989 - present)
 * Kosovo was also called "Republic of Kosova" by the shadow Kosovo Albanian government between a 1990 declaration of independence and the Kosovo War in 1999.

Adjective form
The question of what to call the inhabitants of Kosovo collectively has also aroused some debate. They have been called variously "Kosovars", "Kosovans" and "Kosovians". The two words accepted by the Oxford English Dictionary are "Kosovar" (borrowed from Albanian), the most widely used variant in English, by a long way, and "Kosovan" (using the English rules for demonyms) much less used. "Kosovian" is considered a non-standard word and very little used at all.

As Kosovo has no formal statehood, current international usage is to refer to Kosovo Serbs and Kosovo Albanians. Most of the Albanian-descended community in Kosovo would prefer the use of Kosovar or Kosovan because of the attendant political overtones, whilst the Serb minority continue to think of themselves as Serb or Serbian (from Kosovo).

Kosovo placenames
Most localities in Kosovo have distinct Serbian and Albanian placenames, nearly all very similar, some differing radically, Like that of Ferizaj, for example. It went from Ferizaj to Ferizovic and eventually changed into Uroševac. During the Serbian administration of 1912-1999, Kosovo localities were known internationally almost exclusively by their Serbian names.

Since the United Nations took over administration of the province in June 1999, the administration and some international organisations have adopted a policy of treating both versions equally. For the sake of convenience, this article gives alternative placenames the first time a locality is mentioned, but will use the more familiar Serbian version thereafter. A useful list of Serbian and Albanian forms of Kosovo placenames is available here from the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, as the original page is missing.

Flag
The province never had an official flag of its own. The Albanian flag is used by the Albanian-dominated administration and the vast majority of Kosovo Albanians. Kosovo's president, Ibrahim Rugova, has proposed an alternative flag of "Dardania" based on the design of the Albanian flag, but even within Kosovo it is little used. The Serb-inhabited area of north Kosovo uses only the flag of Serbia, which is formally the flag of the whole of Serbia including Kosovo, although this usage is rejected by virtually all Kosovo Albanians. The United Nations administration in Kosovo intends to establish a new flag for the province, which will undoubtedly be very different from the two national communities' existing flags. The current flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina emerged from a similar process of national reconciliation.

History
See History of Kosovo.

Politics and international status
Kosovo's international status is anomalous in that although it is a province of the Republic of Serbia, actual administration is presently conducted by the United Nations with no involvement on the part of the Serbian governments (under Security Council resolution 1244 of 10 June 1999; see Security Council Resolutions 1999). The government of the province is the responsibility of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). Under the terms of the Kumanovo agreement and subsequent UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which ended the Kosovo War, security is provided by the Kosovo Force (KFOR), which is led by NATO and is answerable to UNMIK.

UNMIK has so far established a provisional assembly, provisional government and the office of provisional president, which are legislative and executive bodies under UNMIK's control. Control of security, justice and external affairs are still under full UNMIK control. The Assembly of Kosovo was elected in November 2001 and again in 2004. Ibrahim Rugova was elected as president in March 2002. The seat of the assembly, government and president is in Prishtina/Pristina. So far, the parliament has enacted and UNMIK approved a constitutional framework, customs code, and two criminal codes.

UNMIK is issuing travel documents which serve instead of passports in countries which are accepting to recognise them as such; UNMIK is also issuing identity cards and car plates, which again are valid only in countries which are accepting them as such. Kosovo's postal system is also usable only in countries which are accepting to recognise it as such (letters addressed to Kosovo only, or to Serbia and Montenegro have a chance of not arriving; the Universal Postal Union advises correspondents to use "Kosovo (UNMIK)" as the address ).

UNMIK has also created a police force (the Kosovo Police Service) with employees from all ethnic communities (Albanian, Serbian, Roma, Bosniac, etc), but dominated by veterans of the KLA. It also manages the province's railways and airline (Kosova Airlines). The airspace of the province is controlled by KFOR. UNMIK uses the United Nations flag.

The Constitutional Framework enacted by the Kosovo assembly (with UNMIK approval) has adopted a policy of affirmative action in the assembly to ensure that the province's minorities are properly represented. Out of 120 seats, 10 are reserved for Serbs and another 10 for non-Albanian minorities, while the remaining 100 seats are elected through direct voting.

Kosovo is still recognised internationally as a part of Serbia. Its final status has not yet been resolved, though talks on the subject are planned for later in 2005, and considerable difficulties lie ahead in reconciling the incompatible positions of the Serbian and Albanian sides. The Albanians reject Serbian sovereignty and demand seccesion from Serbia. On the other side, Serbia is opposed to yielding any of its territory and for historical and religious reasons continues to see the province as the heartland of Serbian culture.

The international community is reluctant to see Kosovo become independent, as its independence without Serbia's consent would violate international law (the principles of territorial integrity and noninterference in internal affairs). It could also potentially provide a precedent for the parallel Serb demands of secession for the Republika Srpska from Bosnia, which could re-ignite the war in that country. The NATO-countries insisted on the republican borders as the only acceptable solution during the wars in Croatia and Bosnia Herzegovina in the nineties, but this does not rule out that they might violate this principle in the case of Serbia.

New Bi-Partisan Alliances such as the leading "Alliance for a New Kosovo" (www.newkosovo.org) strongly advocate for a free multiethnic, open society and proclaim very valid arguments on an eloquent basis that justify the final status for Kosovo as an independent sovereign Kosovo in the best sense of the word as the only way forward for the benefit of regional stability in South-Eastern Europe. The Alliance for a New Kosovo has a very experienced and powerful Advisory Board consisting of highly skilled former top US Government and Military officials and statesmen such as Hon. Frank Carlucci, former Secretary of Defence (Ronald Reagan).

Questions have also been raised about whether an independent Kosovo would be politically or economically viable, given the small size of the province and its feeble economy.

Currency
UNMIK declared the euro to be official currency of the province in 2001 in the course of implementing a currency reform. This was undertaken to replace the previous widespread use of the Deutschmark, which had become de facto currency even before the 1999 war. However, the Serbian dinar remains an official currency, though used principally by the Kosovo Serb enclaves; it is only used sporadically outside of them. Most trade is conducted using the euro, Kosovo's administration uses euros exclusively, and all commercial banks use the euro as the primary currency. Of other international currencies, the United States dollar and Swiss franc are the most widespread.

Demographics
Albanians now comprise an almost 90% majority of the population of the province. Their percentage as a proportion of the province's population has increased steadily over time as a result of a high birth rate, Albanian immigration and non-Albanian emigration. Most of the province's population became refugees during the war but most of the Albanian refugees quickly returned to their homes at its end. In the aftermath of the conflict, several hundred thousand non-Albanians, especially Serbs and Romas, fled the province to escape renewed intercommunal violence. The non-Albanian population of Kosovo has continued to fall in recent years due to a combination of economic hardship and ethnic tension.

According to the 2000 Living Standard Measurement Survey of the Statistical Office of Kosovo, Kosovo's total population is approximately 1,970,000 with the following ethnic proportions:


 * 92% Albanians (2,733,600)
 * 3% Serbs (75,000)
 * 1.9% Bosniaks and Muslim Slavs (37,400)
 * 1.7% Roma (33,500)
 * 1% Turks (19,700)

Intercommunal violence has further reduced the number of non-Albanians in Kosovo since this survey, and many of those who do remain now live in refugee camps or in heavily guarded villages.

Pro-Albanian

 * Balkan Update- A blog with news, analysis and the lates updates from Balkans
 * Kosovareport - A comprehensive blog in English with news from local, regional and international media
 * KosovaLive - Independent news agency with some news in English
 * Economic Initiative for Kosovo - "...latest news, analysis and publications from the Kosovar economy"
 * RTK - Kosova's public television (news in Albanian, Serbian, Turkish and Roma)
 * Kosova Information Center - LDK's news agency (Albanian only)
 * Albanian.com - general information
 * Kosovo Crisis Center - Serbian Massacres of Albanians
 * General information from Beqiraj.com (in German)
 * General information from Beqiraj.com (in Albanian)
 * Discussion Forum for albanians from Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro (English/Albanian)

Pro-Serb

 * Kosovo.com Serbian Orthodox Church's official website on Kosovo
 * Balkan Update- A blog with news, analysis and the lates updates from Balkans
 * Account of destroyed Serbian Orthodox churches in Kosovo and Metohia
 * Kosovo Newsgroup archive
 * Coordination Center of SCG and the Republic of Serbia for Kosovo
 * Serbian Government Kosovo-Metohija site
 * Eastern Orthodox Resource Centre

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