Thesis (Ph.D.) -- McMaster University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 429-460). Also available via World Wide Web.

The Arbëresh of Italy founded their communities in the 1400s when they were forced to flee their homeland, Albania, as the country was conquered and ruled by the Ottoman Empire. For centuries, they kept a close community in the Italian villages preserving their language, culture, rituals and traditions. These elements have defined them as “others” in the Italian community over the centuries, but today, they are better described as Italians who also embrace the Arbëresh culture. This dissertation explores the narratives of Arbëresh authors such as Carmine Abate, Anna Stratigò, and Pino Cacozza, who have preserved glimpses of their culture in their writings, thus creating an oasis that I call “the Arbëresh Utopia.” I situate them in the larger context of Arbëresh history, and in the environment where their stories are located. A recent research conducted through interviews in the Arbëresh towns of Calabria, will add an important “lived” tassel of information, by exploring the Arbëresh culture today in a state of what Michel Foucault calls heterotopia. After many years of living in a closed community, the Arbëresh have learned to live by addition. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection