Çyçavica or Čičavica is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

situated at the center of

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

with a length of about and a width of about . Its highest peak reaches a height of . It is in the boundary line between the Kosovo Plain, the

Drenica Drenica (, ), also known as the Drenica Valley, is a hilly region in central Kosovo, covering roughly around of Kosovo's total area (6%). It consists of two municipalities, Drenas and Skenderaj, and several villages in Klina, Zubin Potok, Mitr ...

and the Artakolli i Çyçavicës region. The river

Sitnica The Sitnica (; sr-Cyrl, Ситница) is a river in Kosovo. It flows into the Ibar at Mitrovica, and it is the longest river that flows completely within Kosovo. History In the 14th century, during the reign of king Milutin, a canal con ...

passes by it. The villages of Oshlan and Akrashticë are located to the right of the mountain. Large towns and cities like

Skenderaj Skenderaj ( sq-definite, Skënderaji) or Srbica ( sr-Cyrl, Србица) is a List of cities in Kosovo, town and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality located in the District of Mitrovica, Mitrovica District of Kosovo. According to the 2021 cens ...

Vushtrri Vushtrri ( sq-definite, Vushtrria; sr-Cyrl, Вучитрн, ''Vučitrn'') is a List of cities in Kosovo, city and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality located in the District of Mitrovica, Mitrovica District in Kosovo. According to the 2024 c ...

and

Drenas Drenas or Gllogovc/Gllogoc ( sq-definite, Drenasi or ''Gllogovci/Gllogoci'') or Glogovac ( sr-Cyrl, Глоговац) is a town and municipality in the District of Pristina in Kosovo. The municipality has an area of . According to the last cens ...

are located close by the mountain.

Etymology

The name is inherited from the ancient legend of th
Çyçja
According to the legend, Muja and Halil got their well-known strength in Çyçavica after drinking milk from Zana's breast and then comparing their new strength in the form of throwing stones.

History

During the Kaçak movement, Çyçavica was fully inhabited by

Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...

who, under the leadership of

Azem Galica Azem Bejta (10 December 1889 – 15 July 1924), commonly known as Azem Galica, was an Albanian nationalist, resistance fighter and rebel who fought for the unification of Kosovo with Albania. He is known for leading the Kachak Movement again ...

, took up arms against the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

under the leadership of

Shaban Polluzha Shaban Mustafë Kastrati (1871 – 21 February 1945), known as Shaban Polluzha, was a Kosovo Albanian military leader of Drenica Brigade which was formed in December 1944 to support the 6th Albanian communist Brigade during World War II. He serve ...

, Çyçavica was a stronghold of the

Balli Kombëtar The Balli Kombëtar (literally ''National Front'') was an Albanian nationalist, Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborationist, and anti-communist resistance movement during the Second World War. It was led by Ali Këlcyra a ...

. During the 1998-1999

Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...

, Çyçavica was heavily used by the UÇK, which used its strategic location to fight against the

Serbian Armed Forces The Serbian Armed Forces () is the military of Serbia. The President of the Republic acts as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, while administration and defence policy is carried out by the Government through the Ministry of Defence. The h ...

. On September 22 and 23, 1998, a battle took place in the region. In those days, over 25,000 Serbian soldiers and police surrounded Çyçavica and launched an attack along all the roads, which converged at a single point, at its peak, a bare meadow, from where almost all of Kosovo could be seen. Many villagers took refuge in the mountain until the war ended. Nowadays, Serbian colonists who were sent by the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

have left the mountain turning Çyçavica into a homogenous place inhabited by Albanians once again.

Notable people

Adem Jashari Adem Shaban Jashari (born Fazli Jashari; 28 November 1955 – 7 March 1998) was one of the founders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a Kosovo Albanian separatist militia which fought for the secession of Kosovo from the Federal Republi ...

, Father of KLA *Bekim Shyti, UÇK commander *Aziz Zhilivoda, Ballist *Adnan Shyti, UÇK soldier *Qazim Morina, Ballist *Enver Zymberi,

Police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...

*Hamit Saraçi, Kachak *Ferat Hashim Hasani, Ballist *Rrahman Rama, Commander of

Kosovo Security Force The Kosovo Security Force (KSF) is the military of Kosovo. The KSF is tasked with defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo, military support for civilian authorities, and participation in international Peacekeeping, peacekee ...

* Tahir Meha, Albanian Political Activist and Patriot. *

, Kachak Leader *

Shote Galica Shote Galica (born Qerime Radisheva; 10 November 1895 – 1 July 1927) was a Kachak Albanian insurgent. She has been declared a People's Heroine of Albania. Biography She was born in Radisheve village of Drenica region in Kosovo which was then ...

, Albanian insurgent *

Hasan Prishtina Hasan bey Prishtina, (born Hasan Berisha; 27 September 1873 – 13 August 1933), was an Ottoman, later Albanian, politician who served as the 8th prime minister of Albania in December 1921. Biography Family and early life In his memoirs, Pris ...

, Rilindas * Ahmet Delia, Albanian patriot *Mehmet Gradica, Ballist, Vullnetari and Albanian nationalist *Emin Lati, Kachak *Sami Lushtaku, UÇK Soldier and former mayor of Skenderaj *Zejnullah Begu, wealthiest person east of Çyçavica. *

Fehmi Lladrovci Fehmi Lladrovci (15 May 1956 – 22 September 1998) was a commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Alongside his wife, Xhevë Krasniqi-Lladrovci, he was killed in battle against the Serbian forces. Early life He completed primary school in Dobra ...

, UÇK commander *Xhevë Lladrovci, UÇK soldier *Hysen Bojku, Ballist

References

Mountains of Kosovo Drenica Artakolli i Çyçavicës {{Kosovo-geo-stub