Vilayet of Kosovo

ولايت قوصوه‎ Vilâyet-i Kosova Vilajeti i Kosovës Kosovski Vilajet/Косовски Вилајет Косовски вилает
Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire
← 1877–1913 →   →
Kosovo Vilayet in 1900, area under Austrian-Hungarian occupation (Sandžak region) hashed
Capital		Pristina (to 1888);Uskub (Skopje)
History
•	Established	1877
•	Treaty of London	30 May 1913
Population
•	1911	1,602,949
Today part of		Kosovoa  Serbia  Macedonia  Montenegro
aSovereignty is disputed.

The Vilayet of Kosovo (Ottoman Turkish: ولايت قوصوه, Vilâyet-i Kosova‎;Turkish: Kosova Vilayeti; Albanian: Vilajeti i Kosovës; Macedonian: Косовски вилает, Kosovski vilaet; Serbian: Косовски вилајет, Kosovski vilajet) was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan Peninsula which included the current territory of Kosovo and the western part of the Republic of Macedonia. The areas today comprising Sandžak (Raška) region of Serbia and Montenegro, although de jure under Ottoman control, were in fact under Austro- Hungarian occupation from 1878 until 1909, as provided under Article 25 of the Treaty of Berlin. Uskub (Skopje) functioned as the capital of the province and the mid way point between Istanbul and its European provinces. Uskub's population of 32,000 made it the largest city in the province, followed by Prizren, also numbering at 30,000.

The Vilayet stood as a microcosm of Ottoman society; incorporated within its boundaries were diverse groups of peoples and religions: Albanians, Serbs, Bosniaks (assimilated Albanians from Serbia, muslims in religion) Muslims (Albanians) and Christians (Albanians both Orthodox and Catholic). The province was renowned for its craftsmen and important cities such as İpek (today's Peć, Albanian: Peja), where distinct Ottoman architecture and public baths were erected, some of which can still be seen today. The birthplace of the Albanian national identity was first articulated in Prizren, by the League of Prizren members in 1878.

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