Musa Kesedžija, Musa Arbanas (

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also

* * * Old Serbian (disambiguat ...

and mk, Муса Кесеџија, bg, Муса Кеседжия), also described as Musa the Robber, Musa the Outlaw, Musa the Highwayman or Musa the Beheader, is a popular legendary villain of Serbian epic poetry and

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

and

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North M ...

folklore. He is most famous as a rival of Prince Marko (Serbian: Марко Краљевић), a hero of Serbian and South Slavic folklore. In the poem Musa is an

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

highwayman who confronts Prince Marko, a vassal of the Sultan, at the Kačanik Gorge, today in modern

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

Musa Kesedžija in literature and arts

Marko Kraljević and Musa Kesedžija

Musa Kesedžija first appeared in the poem ''Marko Kraljević and Musa Kesedžija'', which was recorded for the first time in Sremski Karlovci and published in 1815 by

Vuk Karadžić Vuk Stefanović Karadžić ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Стефановић Караџић, ; 6 November 1787 (26 October OS)7 February 1864) was a Serbian philologist, anthropologist and linguist. He was one of the most important reformers of the mode ...

. Karadžić recorded the poem sung by

Tešan Podrugović Tešan Podrugović ( sr, Тешан Подруговић) (Kazanci, Gacko, Herzegovina, Ottoman Empire 1775 — Sremski Karlovci, Austrian Empire 1815) was Serbian merchant, hayduk, storyteller and gusle player ( sr, guslar) who participated i ...

. Musa had three hearts which is a sign of exceptional heroism in Serbian epic poetry. Because of his three hearts, Musa can be seen as an anthropomorphised descendant of

chthonic The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...

monsters, as their anthropomorphosis can be reflected in the multiplication of body parts.

Other literature works

Petar I Petrović-Njegoš (1747–1830) mentions Musa and Marko Kraljević in his song ''The Sons of Ivan-bey'' ( sr-cyr, Синови Иванбегови), which was after his death published first in 1835 and then by

Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Petar II Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Петар II Петровић-Његош, ; – ), commonly referred to simply as Njegoš (), was a Prince-Bishop (''vladika'') of Montenegro, poet and philosopher whose works are widely considered ...

in his 1845 song collection ''Serbian Mirror'' ( sr-cyr, Огледало Србско). Musa appears in Macedonian folklore as a symbol of the

oppressive Oppression is malicious or unjust treatment or exercise of power, often under the guise of governmental authority or cultural opprobrium. Oppression may be overt or covert, depending on how it is practiced. Oppression refers to discrimination ...

Ottoman government. The song about Marko Kraljević and Musa Kesedžija also exists in

Bulgarian literature Bulgarian literature is literature written by Bulgarians or residents of Bulgaria, or written in the Bulgarian language; usually the latter is the defining feature. Bulgarian literature can be said to be one of the oldest among the Slavic peopl ...

as an epic retelling ( bg, Крали Марко се надбягва с Муса Кеседжия и го побеждава). In 1972

Werner Cohn Werner Cohn (1926 – October 19, 2018) was a sociologist who wrote on the sociology of Jews and of Romani people, and political sociology. He was a Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia. Biography Born in Berlin, Germany, Co ...

published a

gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

story about Marko Kraljević and Musa Kesedžija, which is also in the form of a retelling of another epic song — ''Marko Kraljević and Djemo the Monuntaineer''. In

Zakarpattia Zakarpattia may refer to: * Zakarpattia Oblast, an administrative region of modern Ukraine, on the inner side of the Carpathians ** Zakarpattia Oblast Council, regional assembly of Zakarpattia Oblast ** Administrative divisions of Zakarpattia Obla ...

the epic poetry about Marko Kraljević and Musa Kesedžija has been modified into stories connected with the

Kosovo battle The Battle of Kosovo ( tr, Kosova Savaşı; sr, Косовска битка) took place on 15 June 1389 between an army led by the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and an invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan ...

Historical background

Historical persons

The epic villain Musa Kesedžija is based on actual historical people. According to some authors he is the result of merging several historical people including

Musa Çelebi Musa Çelebi (died 5 July 1413) was an Ottoman prince ( tr, şehzade) and a co-ruler of the empire for three years during the Ottoman Interregnum. Background Musa was one of the sons of Bayezid I, the fourth Ottoman sultan.Kastritsis, Dimi ...

son of Bayezid I and Musa ( Teodor II Muzaka) from the

Muzaka The Muzaka were an Albanian noble family that ruled over the region of Myzeqe (southern Albania) in the Late Middle Ages. The Muzaka are also referred to by some authors as a tribe or a clan. The earliest historical document that mention Muzaka ...

Albanian noble family with whom Marko had dispute over Kostur.

Jovan Tomić Jovan Tomić (9 May 1869 in Nova Varoš – 22 July 1932 in Belgrade) was Serbian historian, academic and the former director of the National Library of Serbia from 1903 to 1927. Biography Tomić was born in Nova Varoš in the Zlatibor District ...

thinks that Musa Kesedžija is based on another historical person, on the supporter of Jegen Osman Pasha who has been transformed into another epic hero —

Djemo the Mountaineer Djemo the Mountaineer ( sr, Ђемо Брђанин) is a popular legendary hero of Serbian epic poetry who is depicted as enemy of Kraljević Marko and brother of Musa Kesedžija. His figure might be based on an actual historical person. There are ...

( sr, Ђемо Брђанин) in Serbian epic poetry. The epic poetry describes Djemo as Kesedžija's brother.

Historical events

Actual historical events do not support a plot in which Prince Marko (who died in 1395) killed

(died in 1413) or

Moisi Arianit Golemi Moisi Golemi, also known as Moisi of Dibra ( sq, Moisiu i Dibrës), was an Albanian nobleman and a commander of the League of Lezhë. In 1443–44 he captured all Ottoman holdings in the area of Dibër region. For a brief period in the 1450s h ...

(died in 1465).

John Van Antwerp Fine Jr. John V. A. Fine Jr. (born 1939) is an American historian and author. He is professor of Balkan and Byzantine history at the University of Michigan and has written several books on the subject. Early life and education He was born in 1939 and grew ...

emphasized that

Sandalj Hranić Sandalj Hranić Kosača ( cyrl, Сандаљ Хранић Косача; 1370 – 15 March 1435) was the most powerful Bosnian nobleman whose primary possessions consisted of land areas between Adriatic coast, the Neretva and the Drina river ...

should have been the epic hero who fought and killed Kesedžija rather than Marko Kraljević, because it was Hranić who significantly contributed to the death of Musa Çelebi.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kesedzija, Musa Characters in Serbian epic poetry Bulgarian folklore Fictional outlaws North Macedonia folklore