Drekale

Drekale
voivode of Kuči
Reign Second half of the 16th century
Successor Lale Drekalović
Full name
Andrej
Noble family Drekalović
Religion Roman Catholic
Orthodox Christianity

Drekale (Serbian Cyrillic: Дрекале) was according to tradition the chieftain (vojvoda, "duke") of the Kuči tribe and founder of the Drekalović brotherhood which produced the chieftains of Kuči for three centuries.

Name

Drekale is derived from the archaic Slavic Verb dreka (as in derati se) "to scream, shout, outcry".[1] Drekavac, literally "the screamer",[2] was the name for a mythological creature in Serbian folklore, a bogeyman (registered in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro).[3] According to Rovinski, Drekale is the Albanian-language corruption of Andrej;[4] that being his actual name.[5]

History

Drekale was elected the position of vojvoda ("duke") of the Kuči tribe probably in the second half of the 16th century, based on the proposal of Dreca Dedin.[6] According to a story, vojvoda Žijo Peralov of Kosor married his daughter Mara to Drekale.[7] Their descendants were to be known as Drekalović.[8]

There are several stories on his origin.

  • One story has Drekale as the "son of a Mrnjavčić and the daughter of Klimenti vojvoda Martin". This would mean that he was a descendant of the Old Kuči.[9]
  • Local legends tell that Drekale was Skanderbeg's grandson, baptized as a Serbian Orthodox Christian. There are three different versions of this connection. Two of them say that Drekale (Andreja) was the son of Skanderbeg's daughter Mara and a father from the Klimenti or Bratonožići tribe. In reality Skanderbeg never had a daughter. According to the third version, Drekale was a son of Skanderbeg's son Ivan (Gjon).[4][10] The connection of Drekale with Skanderbeg, as well as assertions that he was of Albanian origin is widely disputed, since it was impossible for Skanderbeg's great-grandson to be alive in the second half of the 16th century.[11]
  • According to Edith Durham Drekale descent from Berisha.[12]

Legends about the progenitor of the Kastrati say that it was Drekale's brother who had come from Kuči, while Đ. Slijepčević stressed that it was more likely that the progenitor came from Kuči but descended from some other family as Drekale in fact had no brothers.[13]

Dreca Dedin in fact passed his own title of Vojvoda to him, impressed by his successful peace negotiations with the Vizier of Skhoder. Marko Miljanov points out that he was the first eleceted Vojvoda, as well as the first Vojvoda of the overall tribe, since at the time the Ottoman authorities appointed one in every village. Drekale had two sons, Nikola and Lale. According to tradition, Drekale, along with his older son Nikola, was killed in a skirmish by the members of Kelmendi tribe while they were shepherding in the Žijevo mountains. His son Lale survived thanks to the fact that, being still young, he switched his clothes in child's play with a certain Muslim boy from Podgorica by the name of Lisičić. Unfortunate boy, who was occasionally shepherding with them, was killed instead. Some historians place this event around 1550.[14] Lale later avenged the death of his father and brother, with the help of Muslims from Podgorica. The vengeance is described in epic folk song Priest Milutin and the Drekalovići.[15]

Legacy

Drekale is commemorated in literature and oral traditional poetry, such as Vojvoda Drekale and Vuk of the Klimente.[16]

Marko Miljanov wrote about Drekale and his descendants in his works.[17] Simo Matavulj extensively discussed about Drekale in one of his novels.[18]

References

  1. Mate Šimundić (1988). Rječnik osobnih imena. Nakladni zavod Matice hrvatske.
  2. Levi, Pavle (2007) Disintegration in frames: aesthetics and ideology in the Yugoslav and post-Yugoslav cinema Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, page 181, ISBN 978-0-8047-5368-5
  3. Š. Kulišić; P. Ž. Petrović; N. Pantelić (1970). "Дрекавац". Српски митолошки речник (in Serbian). Belgrade: Nolit. p. 110.
  4. 1 2 Ровинский, П.А. (January 2013). Черногория в ее прошлом и настоящем. Рипол Классик. p. 79. ISBN 978-5-458-17333-9. По другимъ, она прибыла въ Брзкутъ, и тутъ у нея родился сынъ, котораго крестили по православному обряду, а имя дали Дрекале (по арнаутски: Андрей, Андрюша).
  5. Mitološki zbornik. 12. Centar za mitološki studije Srbije. 2004. p. 42. Родила је сина Дрекала (заправо Андреја), а потом ...
  6. Petrović, Rastislav V. (1981). Pleme Kuči: 1684-1796. Narodna knjiga. p. 33. У вероватно другој половини 16 века, на предлог Дреце Дедина, за војводу је изабран Дрекале, предак Дрекаловића.
  7. Đura Daničić; Pero Budmani; Tomislav Maretić (1976). Rječnik hrvatskoga ili srpskoga jezika. U knížarnici L. Hartmana na prodaju. p. 386. Žijo Peralov
  8. Slovanský sborník. 1881. p. 381. Dzija Peralova [...] Drekale
  9. Radovanović, Milovan (2004). Etnički i demografski procesi na Kosovu i Metohiji. Liber Press. p. 130. Дрекаловића повезују са братством Мрњавчића; при томе, како објашњава Никола Вукчевић, и ове две верзије садрже арбанашку компоненту јер је Дрекале „син једног Мрњавчића и кћери кли- ментског војводе Мартина .
  10. Mitološki zbornik. Centar za mitološki studije Srbije. 2004. p. 42. Родила је сина Дрекала (заправо Андреја), а потом ...
  11. Radomir V. Ivanović, ed. (1992). Život i djelo Marka Miljanova Popovića: zbornik radova. Kulturno-prosvjetna zajednica. p. 213. Из саме чињенице да је Лале Дрекалов био на поменутим састанцима, лако је закључити да његов отац Дрекале није могао бити рођен
  12. High Albania. Edith Durham.
  13. Slijepčević, Đoko M. (1983). Srpsko-arbanaški odnosi kroz vekove sa posebnim osvrtom na novije vreme. D. Slijepčević. p. 69. За предка Кастрата предања кажу, да је био брат Дрекалов и да је дошао из Куча, али је вероватније да је дошао из Куча а- ли да потиче из другого рода, јер Дрекале није имао браће.
  14. http://milacic.awardspace.com/Istorija.htm
  15. http://montenegrina.net/pages/pages1/istorija/plemena/drekalovici_porijeklo_vojvoda_drekale_m_miljanov.html
  16. "Drekale vojvoda i Klimenta Vuk". ted.lib.harvard.edu/. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
  17. Miljanov, Marko; Čađenović, Jovan (1996). Primjeri čojsvta i junaštva. Obod.
  18. Bibliografski vjesnik. Obod. 2001. p. 71. Уводни дио ове приповијетке одводи читаоце у прошлост, у годину 1687, у Куче, пце се укорщенио војвода Дрекале. Брзо се смјен>у1у оскудне слике: Дрекале силази ...
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