by Lulzim Osmanaj. Translation Petrit Latifi

Aeneas Dardani

The text “Albalonga and Albanian Rome” deals with a historical-linguistic hypothesis on the ancient connections between the Albanians (or their ancestors, the Dardanians and Pelasgians) and the peoples of ancient Italy, in particular with the Latins, Sabines and Albanians of Lacium.

The central idea is that there is a common cultural and linguistic heritage between the Trojans/Dardani who, according to the legend of Aeneas, settled in Italy after the fall of Troy, and the populations of Epirus and Macedonia, which are related to the origin of the Albanians.

In essence, the author argues:

• The name “Alba” and “Albani” in Italy proves a connection with the Albanians (“Albans”) of the Balkans.
  
• The Trojan and Dardanian migration may have been real (according to Malte-Brun), creating ethno-linguistic bridges between Italy and the Balkans.
  
• The Albanian language has deep connections with primitive Latin, which can be explained by this early proximity.
  
• Albanian contains elements in common with the ancient languages ​​of Greece and Latium, presenting itself as a descendant of a common Indo-European substratum that precedes Greek and Latin.
  This study attempts to shed light on one of the most ancient pages of the history of the Eastern and Western Mediterranean, seeking the roots of the ethno-linguistic connections between the Albanians and the Latins of Italy.
  
  Based on the hypotheses of Malte-Brun, as well as on early linguistic comparisons, the argument emphasizes that the names “Alba” and “Alban” in ancient Italy are not accidental, but are related to the same ethnic family that would later be known as Albanian.
  
  In this light, Albalonga, the legendary city that according to Latin tradition preceded the founding of Rome, is seen as a “first Albanian Rome”, symbolically linked to the Dardanians of Troy and to ancient Epirus. This interpretation seeks to reconstruct an early linguistic unity that extended from the Aegean coast to the Italic peninsula, placing Albanian as one of the most authentic descendants of the Pelasgian language and, indirectly, of primitive Latin.
  
  This view, although it remains hypothetical in some respects, sheds light on a common phase of Balkan-Italic civilizations, where the mythical clashes of Troy and the founding of Rome are linked through the common thread of Dardanian-Pellagian origin.
  
  References
  
• Malte-Brun, Conrad. Précis de la géographie universelle, ou Description de toutes les parties du monde (Paris, 1810–1829).
• Konda, Skënder. Albanians and the Pelasgian problem (Tirana, 1964).
• Çabej, Eqrem. Etymological studies in the field of Albanian, vol. I–VII (Tirana, 1976–1996).
• Meyer, Gustav. Etymological dictionary of the Albanian language (Strasburg, 1891).
• Hahn, Johann Georg von. Albanian studies (Jena, 1854).
• Albanians and the origins of Rome – a mythological and linguistic collection, Albanian academic publications (Tirana, Academy of Sciences, 1980).
• Wilkes, John. The Illyrians (Oxford: Blackwell, 1992).