National identity is a complicated and multifaceted subject
with a definition that is not deemed established or confirmed. It is more of a
sense of belonging to a nation and how the population feels like they belong to
the country. National identity can be sectioned down into certain segments like
culture, religion, and language (Triandafyllidou, 1998, p. 595). However, many countries speak the same language etc, so
here we are going to dig deeper into uniqueness and how they separate
themselves from the countries predominantly surrounding them.
This blog post will attempt to attach national identity to
the country known as Serbia. Most of the county’s past has affected its
position now. The break-up of Yugoslavia, Kosovo declaration and that Serbia is
defined as an ‘unfinished or undefined nation’ (Ristić, 2007, p. 185). It is
true to state that Serbia shares its identity in many different ways with it
sharing an almost identical language with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia,
Bulgaria, and Croatia, and a main orthodox religion with these Slavic nations. It
would be accurate to describe Serbia’s overall national identity as something
that is not established or well-known. This is due to the fact that when Serbian’s try to distinguish their identity it leads to
two completely different understandings, which is the reason why there is not
one reliable answer or conclusion. Ristic (2007, p. 190) argues these two
identities are
1.
‘Serbia as a
western European country, respectively a country that belongs to the western
culture.
- ‘Serbia as a traditional state that geographically belongs to
Europe but does not necessarily share all values considered as European.
Serbia shares many portions of
its national identity with its surrounding countries, but the combination is
unique to itself. For example, Macedonia is closely related to Serbia, with the
Serbian language being almost identical to the Macedonian apart from a couple
of differences in pronunciation (Britannica, 2016). Also, Orthodox is the most
common religion in Macedonian along with Serbia. However the biggest difference
comes from the history of origin in both countries, Serbia was dominant and in
control during the Yugoslavia stage, whereas many other countries declared
independence like Macedonia did in 1991 (Allcock & Lampe, 2018).
The Kosovo catastrophe brought an
episode in the Serbians decade of post-Yugoslavia decay. Questions were raised
like ‘how was it possible that the Serbs who had only recently represented a
democratic force against a dictatorship, now stood by their regime and
ferociously clung to a nationalist vision of Kosovo?’ (Jansen, 2000, P. 396).
Kosovo in Serbians eyes is of little relevance as a physical place with most
Serbians would not dreaming of visiting due to the country being ‘poor,
backward region run by competing mafias'(Jansen, 2000, P. 396). Kosovo can be
interpreted as a traumatic knot in Serbian nationalism.
According to Volcic ( 2005, p.
156), the national identity and sense of belonging which is what we highlighted
to be a key factor of national identity in the introduction, is constantly
being reworked, reinvented and reimagined. Serbia has a very complicated and
contradictory relationship to the west, due to the emotions towards the west
being described as a combination of ‘uncanny fascination with feelings of love
and hate’ (Volcic 2005, p. 156), the main question being does Serbia belong to the
west or east. Serbia has a lack of stable democratic political leadership and a
weak economy. The subjective positioning of Serbia is the most complex and
undefined characteristic of the country, the themes of belonging to the west,
draw on post-Yugoslav memories and a specific sense of cultural and social
superiority to the west.
The
Balkans were and currently still are seen as the dark side
of Europe, representing the darkness within. Volcic (2005 P. 159)recognizess
that the Balkans are identified and seen as the region with an image of danger,
instability, violence and eternal conflict.
Up until 27 April 1992 Serbia was part of the
kingdom of Yugoslavia. The capital city of Yugoslaviains
Belgrade which is in fact in Serbia, which in some respects you should claim
that Serbia is dominant and a leader in this aspect. Yugoslavia first formed as
a kingdom in 1918 and then recreated as a socialist state in 1945 after the Axis
powers were defeated in the World War II. Slovenia and then Croatia were the
first to break away, due to conflict with Serbia.
The Ottoman
Empire′s Principality
of Serbia and the Russian
Empire established official
relations in 1838. Serbia has an embassy in Moscow and Russia has an embassy in Belgrade. Russia
backed Serbia through all the allegations of Kosovo describing it as a terrible
precedent which breaks up the entire system of international relations that
have taken centuries to evolve. There is a group of Serbs living in Russia,
also known as Russian Serbs which includes Russian citizens of ethnic Serb
descent or Serbian-born people residing in the country.
Othering:
Significant others don't have to
be a stronger or larger nation, it just poses a threat to the existence of a
nation orblursr the distinctiveness of the group (Triandafyllidou, 1998, p. 600).
According to Triandafyllidou’s article ‘National identity and the ‘other'' she
explains significant others to be separated into three distinct groups;an internal majority, internal minority, and
external.
Serbia identifies themselves as
more irrational, proud, crazy, passionate, loving and even backward,
destructive and melancholic, than western Europeans.
The three main strategies of
othering within Serbia include, essentializing and stereotyping the west, the
process of internal Serbian othering which refers to the negative Balkan
stereotypes for those even further down in the imaginary hierarchy and thereby
the mobilization of these differences as a form of internal differentiation,
and finally the internalisation of western stereotypes (volcic, 2005, p. 162).
Serbia is not as different as the western capitalist culture as young elites
think.
Internal
othering:
The former Yugoslavia region
internal distinctions are remapped onto the dichotomy that opposes the
Europeans to the Balkans. The urban and rural divide within Serbia is seen as a
crucial internal distinction. ‘Today in
Serbia, you are still either a peasant, a primitive, barbaric, nationalistic
person; or you are a “gradjan”, a civil and well-behaved, tolerant,
cosmopolitan citizen.’. it is said that many interviewees are quick to mention
that many poor Serbians now live in their cities, therefore they feel the
capital city called Belgrade has been ‘invaded, colonized and occupied by refugees
from rural regions, and therefore ‘Belgrade has changed and lost its authentic
character' (Vujovic,
1997).
Word Count: 1077
References:
Ristic,
I. (2007). Serbian identity and the concept of Europeanness. Panoeconomicus, 54(2), 185-195.
Triandafyllidou, A. (1998).
National identity and the “other”. Ethnic
and racial studies, 21(4), 593-612
Volcic, Z. (2005).
The notion of ‘the West’ in the Serbian national imaginary. European Journal
Of Cultural Studies, 8(2), 155-175.
Vujacic, V. (2003).
Reexamining the "Serbian exceptionalism" thesis. Filozofija I
Drustvo, (21), 205-246.
Jansen, S. (2000).
Victims, Underdogs and Rebels. Critique Of
Anthropology, 20(4), 393-419.
Allcock, J. B., & Lampe, J. R. (2018 ). Yugoslavia | History, Map, Breakup, & Facts.
(2019). Retrieved from
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