Dëbëlldeh (, ) is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

of Vitia,

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 ...

Etymology

The name of the village comes from the Slavic words "Debeli Deo" () which translated into English mean "Thick Place"

Geography

The village is located in the Karadak Mountain range, northwest of Kopilaq Mountain. It borders the village of Mjak in the west and

Tanuševci Tanuševci (, ) is a village in the Municipalities of North Macedonia, municipality of Čučer-Sandevo Municipality, Čučer-Sandevo, Republic of North Macedonia. Name Tanuševci, in local Albanian Tanushë comes from the name Tanush. Tanush is ...

in the south which is located in

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

History

The inhabitants of the village belong to the same clan originating from the Berisha tribe and are separated into two branches; The Mahalla of Fejzalar with nine families, and the Mahalla of Qorroll with thirteen families. During the 19th century, the ancestors of the village residents expelled all the Serb inhabitants from the village. Two Serbian families from Dëbëlldeh moved to the village of

Klokot Klokot (Serbian Cyrillic: Клокот) or Kllokot ( sq-definite, Kllokoti) is a town and municipality in the District of Gjilan The District of Gjilan (; ) is one of the seven Districts of Kosovo, districts (the higher-level administrative div ...

after their expulsion. In 1901, the village was known as "Deblidel" and consisted of a population of 117 people, all of whom were

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. The Bajraktar of the village was Halil Arifi. The village alongside

became a strongholds of

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

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 ...

and were the site of the Congress of Kopilaqa of

Karadak Karadak is a village in the municipality of Raška, Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map ...

Leaders such as Mulla Idriz Gjilani, Sulë Hotla, Jusuf Lipovica and others. During the

Interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

, two Albanian families from Dëbëlldeh moved into the village Beguncë. During the

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 ...

, most of the village was burned down and property was looted and 4 Civilians in the village were killed by Serb Forces During the Conflict in Macedonia in 2001, the village became a stronghold of the NLA, from which many attacks on Macedonian forces were conducted. Following an agreement between

Serbia and Montenegro The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

and

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

the village alongside Mjak were supposed to be given to

, the idea was given up after local residents from Dëbëlldeh and Mjak rose up to arms and threatened to start a new conflict, the locals were supported by ANA militants and former NLA commanders such as

Xhezair Shaqiri Xhezair Shaqiri (; born 15 May 1965), also known as Commander Hoxha, is a Macedonian politician of Albanian descent, former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and commander of the National Liberation Army (NLA). Life Xhezair Shaqiri wa ...

References

Villages in Viti, Kosovo {{Kosovo-geo-stub