Nora of
Kelmendi
Kelmendi is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region in Malësia ( Kelmend municipality) and eastern Montenegro (parts of Gusinje Municipality). It is located in the upper valley of the Cem river and its tributaries in the Accursed Moun ...
is a legendary folktale 17th century Albanian woman for her beauty and valor.
She is sometimes referred to as the "
Helen
Helen may refer to:
People
* Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world
* Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress
* Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
Places
* Helen, ...
of
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
" as her beauty also sparked a great war. She is also called the Albanian
Brünhilde too, for she herself was the greatest woman warrior in the history of Albania. There are two versions of Nora's legend; both end with Nora killing the Pasha, head of the
Ottoman Army, who had vowed to reduce the Highland ( sq,
Malsia, also Malcia or Maltsia as for the
Gheg
Gheg (also spelled Geg; Gheg Albanian: ''gegnishtja'', Standard sq, gegërishtja) is one of the two major varieties of Albanian, the other being Tosk. The geographic dividing line between the two varieties is the Shkumbin River, which winds it ...
dialect) into ashes if Nora did not become his wife.
Legend
The events happened around the year 1637,
while other older sources place the culmination of Clementi-Ottoman clash during 1638
or 1639.
Nora’s father, a noble warrior, wanted a son to help him fight against the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. When Nora was born, he abandoned her at an
orphanage
An orphanage is a Residential education, residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the Childcare, care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parent ...
. His sister, knowing the doings of her brother, adopted Nora and raised her as a boy. Nora's biological father, having the desire to train some young man to become a fighter, decided to train the adopted "son" of his sister. Hence, unknowingly, he trained his own daughter to become a fighter. As she grew up, however, Nora turned out to be the most beautiful girl in Malsia. It is said that she was as pretty as a true
Zana (mountain
fairy
A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, ...
). Her fame spread through the whole country. A
pasha
Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, gener ...
who resided at the
Rozafati Castle in
Shkodra, heard of her too. One day, Nora came down to the city with her parents. The pasha came out of the castle and fell in love with Nora upon setting eyes on her.
Being from nearby Bosnia, which followed similar traditions to Albania, the pasha wanted to marry her by the laws of the Albanian
Canon ( sq, Kanun), which meant he would send a trusted man to Nora’s house and ask for her hand. However, Nora's family replied that the Albanian Canon did not allow for marriages with non-Albanians. The pasha was not accustomed to such refusal and kept a
harem of women from far and wide. He flew into a rage: "Either Nora will become my wife or I will burn all of Malsia to ashes." The pasha then led his army and besieged Malsia. Nora had proved to be a warrior, but now she had to prove that she was wise too, in order to spare Malsia from destruction. So she devised the plan to kill the angry Bosnian pasha.
There are two versions of the story. In the first version, Nora pretended to want to marry the Pasha without the permission of her family. Dressed with the
djubletah, traditional North Albanian women dress, she went to the pasha's tent. Seeing her, the Pasha fell on his knees and began to pray, believing she was a true gift from heaven as a reward from the almighty Allah for his services to Him. The pasha ordered his troops to rest and prepare to go back to Shkodra. The soldiers happily put down their arms and celebrated by putting their noses into their bags of
hashish
Hashish ( ar, حشيش, ()), also known as hash, "dry herb, hay" is a drug made by compressing and processing parts of the cannabis plant, typically focusing on flowering buds (female flowers) containing the most trichomes. European Monitorin ...
. When all was quiet around the pasha's tent, Nora retrieved a war
dagger
A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...
that her father had given her, a dagger that had been passed through her family for many generations. It was believed the dagger had magical powers, for no one who had carried it had died from wounds inflicted by opponents—highly unusual at that time and in this turbulent region. Nora stabbed the pasha, kicked him on back of his head, and choked him so he could not scream. The pasha fell on his
Persian rug
A Persian carpet ( fa, فرش ایرانی, translit=farš-e irâni ) or Persian rug ( fa, قالی ایرانی, translit=qâli-ye irâni ),Savory, R., ''Carpets'',(Encyclopaedia Iranica); accessed January 30, 2007. also known as Iranian ...
. At that point Nora could no longer stab him because by Albanian custom, it is dishonorable to strike a man who is not standing or to hit a man who does not fight back. Nora fled and, as planned, the army of Malsia attacked the Ottomans, winning temporary victory over them. The pasha survived his wounds, gathered his own special unit and followed Nora to her home.
In a second version of the legend, Nora never goes to the tent. Instead, as the armies fought, several of the Ottomans broke away from the main body of the army to attack the villages. Nora led an army of 300 women against the Ottomans who had set off to burn, pillage and
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
. In battle, Nora came face to face with the pasha and kills him in a duel.
In both versions, Nora kills the pasha in a fair duel. Both versions name the pasha as Vutsi Pasha from
Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...
.
Historical events
Historical sources give a less folkloric version of the story, focusing more on the ongoing struggle of over a decade between the Ottomans and Clementi highlanders initially due to their collaboration with the
Montenegrins, and their fame as the most stubborn between Albanian tribes, rather than the portrait of Nora or any other local heroine, though they mention that women fought as well. According to
Pjetër Bogdani's ''
Cuneus Prophetarum
''Cuneus Prophetarum'' ( sq, Çeta e profetëve, en, The Band of the Prophets) is a philosophical, theological and scientific treatise written by Pjetër Bogdani, an Albanian philosopher, originally published in Padua in 1685 in Albanian and La ...
'', there were around 500 Kelmendi attacking the Ottoman army of 12,000.
François Lenormant
François Lenormant (17 January 1837 – 9 December 1883) was a 19th-century French Hellenist, Assyriologist and archaeologist.
Biography Early life
Lenormant's father, Charles Lenormant, distinguished as an archaeologist, numismatist and Egypt ...
in his ''Turcs et Monténégrins'' (
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, 1866) mentions an Ottoman army of over 30,000 with 900 on the Clementi side, while the conflict starts in 1624 and spikes in 1638.
Another description comes from Father F. Arcangelo da Salto,
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
and counsellor of
Savoy
Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south.
Savo ...
and consultant of the
Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...
, who mentions around 700 Clementi, and the Ottoman casualties around 4,000, published in ''Vita del Venerabile Padre Fr.Bonaventura da Palazzuolo Riformato'', vol.II,
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, October 1722.
See also
*
Malësia
Malësia e Madhe ("Great Highlands"), known simply as Malësia ( sq, Malësia, cnr, / ), is a historical and ethnographic region in northern Albania and eastern central Montenegro corresponding to the highlands of the geographical subdivision ...
*
Yanitza Martinay
*
Diva Grabovčeva
Diva Grabovčeva (born in Rumboci (Prozor-Rama) – died c. 1680, Kedžara) was a Bosnian Roman Catholic virgin martyr.
Biography
According to the legend, she was born in the village of Rumboci in northern Herzegovina. She refused an Ottoman no ...
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nora Of Kelmendi
17th-century deaths
Legendary Albanian people
Albanian legends
17th-century Albanian people
Women in 17th-century warfare
Female duellists
Year of death unknown
Year of birth unknown
Albanian Roman Catholics
Women in European warfare