Ballad of Masonry in the Castle and Bridge as an Ethno-Cultural Differentiation between Ghegs and Tosks in Albania

Abstract

The Speech takes for comparison two essential elements on which the muring ballad is based, in an environment with geographic and cultural heritage proximity, the “Bridge of Arta” and “Rozafa Castle”. It aims at highlighting the meaning of symbolism in the ethno-cultural identification of respective communities. The comparative method is used in the field of folk creativity, sociology and anthropology. The bridge is treated as a symbol of passing, of relationship, of the possibility of integration. The castle as a protective means, but also as a means of separation and isolation. Conclusions: In the case of the Bridge, identity appears as an organic gestation of the autochthonous tradition with the newly created one, - a product of the opening and a result of various influences. The castle evidences the social organization based on tribes and the ethno-cultural identity as a vertical line that reproduces the autochthonous tradition at every level.

DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2015.v4n2p287