The Constitutional Court and the Albanian language

By Lutfi Dervishi

The Constitutional Court of North Macedonia is at a historical crossroads. The expected decision on the status of the Albanian language has an importance that goes beyond the legal framework, as it affects historical and national identity, cultural survival, and the very nature of the foundations of the state.

The history of the Albanian language is a story of challenge and resistance. Its survival is a testament to a people who refused the assimilation that swept across much of the continent. While other languages ​​in the Latin-speaking part of the Roman Empire (Portugal, Spain or France) were Romanized, the Albanians fanatically preserved their language.

For more than two millennia, Albanian survived in the face of waves of great imperial languages, from Roman Latin to Greek and Church Slavonic, from Ottoman Turkish to Arabic.

The importance of the Albanian language goes beyond its communicative function. Albanian is the bearer of a unique cultural and historical identity. Not in vain, the poet Pashko Vasa proclaimed the motto that is second to none on the planet: “The religion of the Albanian is Albanianism.” This statement declares that: the Albanian identity, embodied by the language, transcends religion, politics and external pressures/threats.

This motto was best expressed at the Congress of Manastir in 1908. Albanian intellectuals and patriots gathered in Manastir to standardize the alphabet of the Albanian language, ultimately choosing the Latin alphabet.

This bold decision, made under Ottoman rule and in the face of fierce debate and opposition, symbolized a break with the past and a step towards a Western future. Albanians became the first Muslim-majority nation in the world to embrace the Latin alphabet. This decision made in Manastir not only unified the language, but also marked the West as the North Star of Albanians.

In the context of North Macedonia, the Albanian language is not just a language spoken by at least ⅓ of the population; the Albanian language is a constitutional pillar. The 2001 Ohrid Agreement recognized Albanians as a constituent nation of the state. This agreement not only ended years of discrimination, but also sanctioned the principle of linguistic and identity equality.

To call into question the status of the Albanian language today with legal artifice is to call into question the very foundation of North Macedonia as a multiethnic state. The argument that the state belongs equally to Macedonians and Albanians is not only political, it is as historical as it is moral.

The Constitutional Court's decision on the Albanian language is not simply a legal issue; it is a testament to the country's commitment to equality and unity. Albanians have suffered enough, fought long, and shed blood to preserve their language, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.

The historical narrative is clear: Albanians have survived empires, foreign rule, and religious conversions, but they have never abandoned their language. From the recognition of its ancient roots to the historic decision of the Congress of Manastir, the Albanian language has remained the common denominator of all Albanians regardless of religious affiliation.

The judges of the Constitutional Court now face a simple choice. They can either honor this history by confirming the equal status of the Albanian language, thereby strengthening the foundations of a multiethnic state; or they can turn back the clock, reviving old tensions and undermining not only the progress achieved since the Ohrid Agreement, but perhaps the very existence of the state.

North Macedonia, our eastern neighbor, has suffered for decades and is still suffering, on its path to the EU due to disagreements with its neighbors: with the Greeks 30 years of deadlock over the name and now with the Bulgarians (among other things) over language issues. (On the long and tiring journey to the EU, the Macedonians have no better allies than the Albanians, but they should not mistake kindness for weakness.)

As history has taught us, languages ​​are more than words; they are circulating vessels of identity. And the history of the Albanian language is one of the most extraordinary stories of survival in human history.

It is a history that North Macedonia should not fear, but rather embrace, certainly if it wants to build a future based on equality and mutual respect.

Those who do not learn from history risk repeating its mistakes.