동유럽 발칸지역의 이슬람에 대한 연구

Abstract

In this paper I investigate the Islamic features and characteristics of cultures in East Europe and the Balkans. The phrase “East Europe” dates back to the time of the Cold War and may be regarded by some as an out-of-date term. However, Islamic cultural features are spread around the geographical region of East Europe, especially the Balkans, so I have decided to use this terminology. The history of Islamic culture in this region mainly begins after its conquest by the Ottoman Empire in the 14th century. The Ottoman Empire governed the area through social institutions such as timar (a tax system), millet (culture-based communities) and devshirme ( regional human resource development programs). Of these three institutions, timar and devshirme helped spread Islam the most rapidly throughout this region. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the Western European powers divided up the region according to their political interests without considering the religious and ethnic classifications of its peoples. Thus, in Bosnia, Macedonia, Kosovo and Bulgaria, religious and ethnic conflicts arose between Muslims and Orthodox Christians, and between ethnic Albanians, Turks, and Slavs. Based on my research, I found two main tracks of conflict related to Islam in the region. One is the struggle for political autonomy and independence of the Muslims and ethnic Albanians in Bosnia, Macedonia, and Kosovo. Its proponents were more radical and confrontational in their tactics than in the other conflict, which was for the political autonomy of Muslims and ethnic Turks in Bulgaria.