University of Pristina (1969–99)
| Universiteti i Prishtinës | |
| Active | 1969–1999 |
|---|---|
| Location | Prishtina, Kosova, |
The University of Pristina was founded in the Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo, Socialist Republic of Serbia, Yugoslavia, in the city of Pristina, for the academic year 1969–1970 and functioned until 1999. However, owing to political upheaval, war, successive mutual expulsions of faculty of one ethnicity or the other, and resultant pervasive ethnic-based polarisation, there came to be two disjoint institutions using the same name, albeit idiosyncratically to reflect ethnic identity. Albanian-language activity continues at the original location (Albanian: Universiteti i Prishtinës), whilst the Serbian-named Univerzitet u Prištini has relocated to Kosovska Mitrovica where it maintains its place within the Serbian education system.
The first higher education institutions in Kosovo were founded during 1958-69 and they functioned independently or as part of the University of Belgrade. As the League of Communists of Kosovo requested more self-governance for the region, extensive protests occurred in Kosovo during November 1968. As a result, the University of Pristina was established in 1969-70. The university's first faculties were those of engineering, medicine, law and philosophy, while the languages of instruction were Albanian and Serbo-Croat. Because the organizational status of the institution was language-based it is often regarded as two separate universities.
Albanian leaders of Kosovo welcomed the university's foundation, but expressed the view that the university was a milestone towards political equality within the federation and not a final goal. While the opening of the university was supported by Josip Broz Tito, according to a Kosovo Communist leader at the time, the university had faced strong political opposition from the Serbian Communists, who regarded it "as a harbinger of autonomy for Kosovo." As early as 1971, there were Serb and Montenegrin protests against the opening of the university.
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