Tribes of Montenegro

The tribes of Montenegro were historical tribes in the areas of Old Montenegro, Brda, Old Herzegovina and Primorje, and were geo-political units of the Ottoman Montenegro Vilayet (or Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro, 1697–1852), eastern Sanjak of Herzegovina, parts of the Sanjak of Scutari, and Venetian Albania, territories that in the 20th century were incorporated into Montenegro. Many tribes were united into the Principality of Montenegro (1852–1910). The tribal assembly (zbor) of the Principality of Montenegro initially officially composed of the two communities of Old Montenegro (crnogorci, "Montenegrins") and Brda (brđani, "Highlanders"). In anthropological studies these tribes are divided into those of Old Montenegro, Brda, Old Herzegovina, and Primorje, and then into sub-groups (brotherhoods/clans - bratstva, and finally families). Today they richly attest to social anthropology and family history, as they have not been used in official structures since (although some tribal regions overlap contemporary municipality areas). The kinship groups give a sense of shared identity and descent.

The tribes in what is today Montenegro were formed and developed in different times, in a process which was not uniform. The organization of the tribes can be followed during the Ottoman period. A basic condition of forming a tribe was the possession of a collective land (shepherding economy's property) defended by the whole tribe. Neighbouring tribes, and also members of the same tribe, fought each other over flocks and grazing lands. The winter pasture, katun, was the economic basis whose deprivity could threaten the survival of the tribe. Tribes were formed more often through agglomeration than through blood relation, although tribal lore has its members descending from a common ancestor; the core drew together smaller groups that would adopt the lore as their own.

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