Editing Miloš Obilić

{{short description|Legendary Serbian knight}}
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{{Infobox person
| name               = Miloš Obilić<br/><small>Милош Обилић</small>
| image              = Miloš Obilić, by Aleksandar Dobrić, 1861.jpg
| image_size         = 
| caption            = Painting by Aleksandar Dobrić, 1861
| birth_date         = Unknown
| death_date         = 28 June 1389
| death_place        = [[Kosovo field]], [[District of Branković]]
| death_cause        = 
| resting_place      = 
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| known_for          = the assassination of [[Murad I]]
| occupation         = [[Knight]]
}}
'''Miloš Obilić''' ({{lang-sr-Cyrl|Милош Обилић}}, {{IPA|sh|mîloʃ ôbilit͡ɕ|pron}}) is a [[Legend|legendary]] Serbian knight traditionally said to have served [[Prince Lazar]] during the [[Ottoman Serbia|Ottoman invasion of Serbia]] in the late 14th century. Although absent from contemporary records, he features prominently in later accounts of the [[Battle of Kosovo|1389 Battle of Kosovo]] as the assassin of Sultan [[Murad I]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Battle of Kosovo {{!}} Summary|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Kosovo-1389-Balkans|access-date=2021-06-16|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> The assassin remains unnamed in historical sources until the late 15th century, but the widespread circulation of the story in Florentine, Serbian, Ottoman, and Greek sources suggests that versions of it were known across the Balkans within decades of the battle.

His original name is believed to have been Miloš Kobilić, though multiple variations exist in historical sources, and his actual existence remains uncertain.<ref name="AMH">{{cite book | last=Hoare | first=M.A. | title=Serbia: A Modern History | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s8_2EAAAQBAJ&pg=PT56 | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=2024 | page=46 | isbn=9780197790441}}</ref><ref name="TJ">{{cite book|last=Judah|first=Tim|title=The Serbs|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-15826-7|page=32|year=2009}}</ref> The [[Lazarević dynasty|Lazar dynasty]], consolidating its power, gave birth to the [[Kosovo Myth]], which incorporated the legend of Obilić.<ref name="TJ" /> [[Jelka Ređep]] notes that Obilić's legend significantly evolved through oral tradition, reflecting Serbian cultural ideals of heroism, loyalty and sacrifice. Over time, he became a central figure in [[Serbian epic poetry]], where he was elevated to the status of a national hero embodying medieval [[Serbian folklore]]. Alongside Prince Lazar’s [[martyrdom]] and the alleged treachery of [[Vuk Branković]], Miloš's deed became integral to Serbian narratives surrounding the Battle of Kosovo. By the 19th century, he was also venerated as a [[saint]] in the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]].

Miloš Obilić also appears in [[Albanian epic poetry]], where he is remembered as Millosh Kopiliqi, with his birthplace traditionally linked to the [[Drenica]] region in modern-day [[Kosovo]], where villages named Kopiliq still exist.<ref name="Schwartz"/><ref name="DiLellio1">{{harvnb|Di Lellio|2013|p=155|ps=:Kopiliq is believed to hail from a village by the same name in Drenica, a central and rural area of Kosovo, famous for its rebelliousness. He plays the role, together with historical characters from the same region, of establishing an uninterrupted genealogy of heroes through history.}}</ref> However, there is no definitive evidence confirming the identity of Murad’s assassin.<ref name="AMH2">{{cite book |last=Hoare |first=M.A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s8_2EAAAQBAJ&pg=PT56 |title=Serbia: A Modern History |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2024 |isbn=9780197790441 |page=46}}</ref><ref name="DAN2">{{cite book |last=Norris |first=D.A. |title=A Cultural History of Serbia: Tradition and Change |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2024 |series=Routledge Histories of Central and Eastern Europe |page=39}}</ref><ref name="AL2">{{cite book |last1=di Lellio |first1=A. |title=The Battle of Kosovo 1389: An Albanian Epic |last2=Elsie |first2=R. |publisher=I.B. Tauris |year=2009 |page=4 |quote=In truth, no historical evidence confirms Kopiliq's Albanian origin, but no evidence confirms Obilić's Serbian origin either.}}</ref>

==Name==
Miloš is a Slavic given name recorded from the early Middle Ages among the [[Bulgarians]], [[Czechs]], [[Polish people|Poles]] and [[Serbs]]. It is derived from the Slavic root ''mil-'', meaning "merciful" or "dear", which is found in a great number of Slavic given names.<ref>{{Citation| last=Miklosich| first=Franz| author-link=Franz Miklosich| year=1860| title=Die Bildung der slavischen Personennamen| publisher=Aus der kaiserlich-königlichen Hoff- und Staatdruckerei| place=Vienna| language=de| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=185EAAAAcAAJ| pages=[https://books.google.com/ebooks?id=185EAAAAcAAJ&pg=GBS.PA76 76–77]| mode=cs1}}</ref>

Several versions of the hero's surname have been used throughout history.{{Cref2|A}} His original surname was Kobilić or Kobilović,{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=193}} a thesis which is further supported by archival findings by historian [[Mihailo Dinić]] in [[Republic of Ragusa|Ragusan]] archives of 1433 which show that Miloš's original surname was indeed Kobilić ({{langx|la|Cobilich}}).<ref name="Mihaljčić2001">{{cite book|author=Rade Mihaljčić|author-link=Rade Mihaljčić|title=Sabrana dela: I – VI. Kraj srpskog carstva|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XCAtAQAAIAAJ|access-date=10 September 2013|year=2001|publisher=Srpska školska knj.|page=44|isbn=9788683565023 |quote=Динић је у дубровачком архиву пронашао документ који нас приближава правом презимену и који сведочи о раној слави косовског јунака. Milosh Stanishich Cobilich ...}}</ref> In Albanian folklore, the original name is preserved and he is known as Kopiliq. The root of the name 'Kopiliq' might be in an old Balkan substrat word, in Albanian kopil (child or bastard child), in Romanian copil (child) and in Serbian kopile (bastard child) or kobila (mare, from which kobilić, son of the mare).<ref name="Di Lellio">{{cite book |last1=Di Lellio |first1=Anna |title=The Battle of Kosovo 1389 |date=2009 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |isbn=978-1-8488-5094-1 |page=4 |url=http://www.annadilellio.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Battle-of-Kosovo-Intro.pdf}}</ref> The etymological origin of his name is indicated in Serbian folk stories which claim that the hero is said to have been nursed by a mare.{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=26}}<ref name="Rossi">{{cite web|url=http://mss3.libraries.rutgers.edu/dlr/showfed.php?pid=rutgers-lib:26390|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130217104138/http://mss3.libraries.rutgers.edu/dlr/showfed.php?pid=rutgers-lib:26390|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 February 2013|title=Resurrecting the past: democracy, national identity and historical memory in modern Serbia|last=Rossi|first=Michael|year=2009|publisher=Rutgers University|page=187|access-date=25 January 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Katschnig-Fasch|first=Elisabeth|title=Gender and Nation in South Eastern Europe|year=2005|publisher=LIT Verlag Münster|location=Münster, Germany|pages=252|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=km132J3KYFQC&pg=PA96|isbn=9783825888022}}</ref> Jireček connected the surname to two noble families in medieval [[Dubrovnik|Ragusa]] and [[Trebinje]], the Kobilić and [[Kobiljačić]] in the 14th and 15th centuries, and noted that they altered their surnames in the 18th century because they considered it "indecent" to be associated with mares.<ref name=Jirecek-120/> A poem by Croat [[Andrija Kačić Miošić]] titled ''Pisma od Miloscia Cobilichja i Vuka Brancovichja'' (''Pisma od Kobilića i Vuka Brankovića'', modern spelling) preserves the old name in the 18th century.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bjelobaba |first1=Sonja |title=Översättning i nationens tjänst |url=https://gupea.ub.gu.se/bitstream/handle/2077/35387/gupea_2077_35387_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |page=62 |publisher=Göteborgs Universitet}}</ref>

The rendering Obilić has universally been used by Serbian writers in modern times. Its first version is found in the ''History of Montenegro'' (1754) by [[Vasilije III Petrović-Njegoš|Vasilije Petrović]], who wrote of one Miloš Obilijević, and in 1765, the historian Pavle Julinac who rendered the surname as Obilić.{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=193}} According to Czech historian [[Konstantin Jireček]], the surname Obilić and its different renderings are derived from the Serbian words ''obilan'' ("plenty of") and ''obilje'' ("wealth, abundance").<ref name=Jirecek-120>{{harvnb|Jireček|1967|loc= [https://books.google.com/books?id=G5JpAAAAMAAJ&q=Julinac+ p. 120]}}: {{blockquote|''In Ragusa gab es eine Familie Kobilić (einer war 1390 Visconte von Breno), in Trebinje im 14.-15. Jahrh. eine Adelsfamilie Kobiljačić. Erst im 18. Jahrh. fand man den Namen eines "Stutenschnes" unanständig; der serb. Historiker Julinac (1763) änderte ihn zu Obilić, der seitdem in den Büchern zu lesen ist, von obilan reichlich, obilje Fülle, Überfluss.''<br/> In Ragusa, there was a family Kobilić (one was Viscount in Breno, 1390), in the 14th and 15th centuries there was a noble family "Kobiljačić" in Trebinje. In the 18th century, they found the name of a "mare's son" indecent; the Serb historian Julinac (1763) changed it to Obilić, who has since appeared in the books, it comes from ''obilan'' ("plenty of"), ''obilje'' ("wealth", "abundance".)}}</ref>

Miloš is often referred to in the epic poems as "Miloš of Pocerje", and according to local legends, he came from the western Serbian region of [[Pocerina]]. In Pocerina there is a spring known as "Miloševa Banja" (Miloš's spring) and an old grave that is claimed to be the grave of Miloš's sister.<ref name="Vodnik1908">{{cite book|author=Branko Vodnik|title=Izabrane narodne pjesme|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bXhBAAAAYAAJ&q=miloseva+banja&pg=PA117|year=1908|publisher=Tisak Kralj. Zemaljske tiskare|pages=117–}}</ref>

==Literary sources==
The earliest sources on the Battle of Kosovo, which generally favour the cult of [[Prince Lazar]], do not mention Miloš or his assassination of the sultan.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=152}} The assassination itself is first recorded by [[Deacon Ignjatije]] on 9 July 1389, only 12 days after the battle.<ref>{{cite book|title=Историјски гласник: орган Друштва историчара СР Србије|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ny9NAAAAYAAJ|access-date=12 September 2013|year=1994|publisher=Друштво|page=9|quote=најстарији помен, настао свега 12 дана после битке,}}</ref> The assassination of sultan Murad and one of his sons ([[Yakub Çelebi]]) was also mentioned in the instructions of the [[Venetian Senate]] issued to Andrea Bembo on 23 July 1389, although Venetians were uncertain if news about the assassination were true.<ref name="HeywoodImber1994">{{cite book|author1=Colin Heywood|author2=Colin Imber|title=Studies in Ottoman History in Honor of Professor V.L. Ménage|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PYxpAAAAMAAJ|access-date=12 September 2013|year=1994|publisher=İsis Press|isbn=978-975-428-063-0|page=270|quote=For present purposes, the key importance of the July 23 senate deliberation record is its indication that one of Murad's sons died in... }}</ref> On 1 August 1389 King [[Tvrtko I of Bosnia]] (r. 1353–1391) wrote a letter to [[Trogir]] to inform its citizens about the Ottoman defeat.<ref name="BrkljačaSarajevo1996">{{cite book|author1=Seka Brkljača|author2=Institut za istoriju Sarajevo|title=Bosna i svijet|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NIBpAAAAMAAJ|access-date=12 September 2013|year=1996|publisher=Institut za istoriju|page=66|quote=O porazu Osmanlija pisao je 1. avgusta Trogiru, a oko dva mjeseca kasnije Firenci}}</ref> Victory over the Turks ({{langx|la|ob victoriam de Turcis}}) was also reported by [[Coluccio Salutati]] (died 1406), Chancellor of Florence, in his letter to King Tvrtko, dated 20 October 1389, on behalf of the Florentine Senate.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=153}}<ref name="Emmert2">{{harvnb|Emmert|1991}}</ref> The killer is not named but he is described as one of twelve Christian noblemen who managed to break through the Ottoman ranks:

:"Fortunate, most fortunate are those hands of the twelve loyal lords who, having opened their way with the sword and having penetrated the enemy lines and the circle of chained camels, heroically reached the tent of Amurat [Murad] himself. Fortunate above all is that one who so forcefully killed such a strong vojvoda by stabbing him with a sword in the throat and belly. And blessed are all those who gave their lives and blood through the glorious manner of martyrdom as victims of the dead leader over his ugly corpse."<ref name="Emmert2" /><ref>Emmert cites V.V. Makušev, "Prilozi k srpskoj istoriji XIV i XV veka," ''Glasnik srpskog ucenog društva'' 32 (1871): pp. 174–5.</ref>

Scholars consider many details in Tvrtko's letter to be fanciful, including the symbolic number 12.<ref name="Mock">{{cite book | last=Mock | first=Steven | title=Symbols of Defeat in the Construction of National Identity | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2011 |isbn=9781139503525 |page=173 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xb-9J4KoT6EC&pg=PA173}}</ref>

In 1402, an anonymous Catalan author assigned Murad's death to a Hungarian knight. The knight might have been related to Lazar through marriage and had sent a Hungarian contingent to the battle.<ref name="Mock"/><ref name="NM">{{cite book | last=Malcolm | first=Noel | title=Kosovo: A Short History | publisher=Pan Books | year=2018 | page=71}}</ref> In the legend, Miloš Obilić was Lazar's son-in-law; in reality, Lazar had a Hungarian son-in-law.<ref name="AMH" /> Another Italian account, [[Bertrando de Mignanelli|Mignanelli's]] 1416 work, asserted that it was Lazar who killed the Ottoman sultan.<ref name="Ćirković1990">{{cite book|author=Sima M. Ćirković|author-link=Sima M. Ćirković|title=Kosovska bitka u istoriografiji: Redakcioni odbor Sima Ćirković (urednik izdanja) [... et al.].|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V5pIAQAAIAAJ|access-date=11 September 2013|year=1990|publisher=Zmaj|page=38|quote=Код Мињанелиjа, кнез је претходно заробл>ен и принуЬен да Мурату положи заклетву верности! и тада је један од њих, кажу да је то био Лазар, зарио Мурату мач у прса}}</ref>

The assassin's first appearance in Serbian sources is in the biography of [[Stefan Lazarević]], Lazar's son, by [[Constantine of Kostenets|Constantine the Philosopher]], written in the 1440s. The hero, still anonymous, is described as a man of noble birth whom envious tongues had sought to defame before the prince. To prove his loyalty and courage, he left the front line on the pretext of being a deserter, seized the opportunity to stab the sultan to death and was killed himself shortly afterwards.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=153-154}} The initial phase of ignominy and its redemption by a courageous plot of slaying the sultan are narrative ingredients which would become essential to the Serbian legend as it evolved in later times.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=153-154}}

[[File:Death of Milos Obilic.jpg|thumb|right|Slaying of Miloš Obilić by [[Nakkaş Osman]]]]
The loss of the Sultan also made an impression on the earliest Ottoman sources. They usually describe how Murad was unaccompanied on the battlefield and an anonymous Christian who had been lying among the corpses stabbed him to death. In the early 15th century, for instance, the poet Ahmedi writes that "[s]uddenly one of the Christians, who was covered in blood and apparently hidden among the enemy dead, got up, rushed to Murad and stabbed him with a dagger."{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=157}}<ref>Ahmedi, ed. Olesnicki, "Turski izvori o Kosovskom bo ju."''Glasnik skopskog naucnog drustva'' 14 (1934): 60–2, as cited by Emmert.</ref>

[[Halil İnalcık]] explained that one of the most important contemporary Ottomans sources about the Battle of Kosovo is the 1465 work of [[Enveri]] ({{langx|tr|Düstûrnâme}}). İnalcık argued that it was based on the testimony of a contemporary eyewitness of the battle, probably Hoca Omer, an envoy sent by the Sultan to Lazar before the battle.{{Sfn|İnalcık|2000|p=25}} In this work Enveri explains that before he became a Serbian nobleman, Miloš (Miloš Ban is how İnalcık rendered the name in Enveri's text) was a Muslim at the Sultan's court who deserted Ottomans and abjured Islam. The Sultan allegedly called him to return to his service many times. Enveri explains that although Miloš always promised to return, he never did. According to this account, when Lazar was captured, Miloš approached the Sultan who was riding a black stallion and said: ''"I am Miloš Ban, I want to go back to my Islamic faith and kiss your hand."'' When Miloš came close to the Sultan, he struck him with the dagger hidden in his cuff. The Sultan's men cut Miloš into pieces with swords and axes.{{Sfn|İnalcık|2000|p=25}}

One historian from [[Edirne]], [[Oruc Bey]], explains the lack of protection by saying that the army was preoccupied with pursuing the enemy in rear flight and introduces an element of deception: the Christian "had promised himself as a sacrifice and approached Murad, who was sitting alone on his horse. Pretending he wished to kiss the Sultan's hand, he stabbed the Sultan with a sharp dagger."{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=157}}<ref name="Emmert2" /><ref>Oruc, ''Tevarih I Al-i Osman'', as cited by Emmert.</ref>

Since about the late 15th century, Greek sources also begin to record the event. The Athenian scholar [[Laonicus Chalcocondyles]] (d. ''c''. 1490) claims to draw on Greek traditions when he refers to Murad's killer as ''Miloes'', "a man of noble birth [... who] voluntarily decided to accomplish the heroic act of assassination. He requested what he needed from Prince Lazar, and then rode off to Murad's camp with the intention of presenting himself as a deserter. Murad, who was standing in the midst of his troops before the battle, was eager to receive the deserter. Miloes reached the Sultan and his bodyguards, turned his spear against Murad, and killed him."{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=157}} Writing in the second half of the same century, [[Michael Doukas (historian)|Michael Doukas]] regarded the story as worthy of inclusion in his ''Historia Byzantina''. He relates how the young nobleman pretended to desert the battle, was captured by the Turks and professing to know the key to victory, managed to gain access to Murad and kill him.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=157-158}}

In 1976, Miodrag Popović suggested that the narrative elements of secrecy and stratagem in the Serbian tradition were all introduced from Turkish sources, seeking to defame the capabilities of their Christian opponents by attributing the death of the Murat to "devious" methods.<ref name="Greenawalt">{{cite web|url=http://www.yorku.ca/soi/Vol_3/_HTML/Greenawalt.html|title=Kosovo Myths: Karadzic, Njegos, and the Transformation of Serb Memory|last=Greenawalt|first=Alexander|publisher=York University|access-date=27 January 2013}}</ref> Thomas A. Emmert agrees with him.<ref name="Emmert2" />

Emmert says that Turkish sources mentioned the assassination several times, while Western and Serbian sources didn't mention it until much later. He thinks that Serbians knew about the assassination, but decided not to mention it in their first accounts for unknown reasons.<ref>{{harvnb|Emmert|1991}} "It is important to note that neither this chronicle nor any of the other early Serbian accounts of the battle attributes Murad's death to the hand of an assassin (...) The theme of assassination, which appeared in the contemporary accounts of the battle from Florence and Siena and was also an important theme in all of the fifteenth century Turkish sources for the battle, would eventually become a central element in the Serbian epic. (...) It is surprising that the assassination of Murad is not recorded in any of the Serbian cult sources for the battle. Why the Serbian authors would fail to speak of the assassin if they knew of him is unclear, (...). Whatever the reason for this silence, it appears from later sources that the story of Murad's assassination was clearly known in Lazar's principality. "</ref>

In 1512, Ottoman historian [[Mehmed Nesri]] wrote a detailed account of the battle that became the source for later Ottoman and Western descriptions of the battle. Nesri's account took several elements from popular Serbian tradition, and described the assassination in a way which reflected negatively on the perpetrators.<ref name="Emmert2" />

There is no evidence about the knight's origin; theories that the legend was based on a Serb, Albanian or Hungarian knight have been put forward.<ref name="AMH" /><ref name="AL">{{cite book | last1=di Lellio | first1=A. | last2=Elsie | first2=R. | title=The Battle of Kosovo 1389: An Albanian Epic | publisher=I.B. Tauris | year=2009 | page=4| quote=In truth, no historical evidence confirms Kopiliq's Albanian origin, but no evidence confirms Obilić's Serbian origin either.
}}</ref><ref name="NM"/>

==Oral traditions==
===Serbian traditions===
Miloš Obilić is a major hero of the Serbian legend of Kosovo, whose central part is the [[Battle of Kosovo]]. According to the legend, Miloš was married with the princess [[Jelena Lazarević|Jelena]], daughter of the Serbian [[Lazar of Serbia|Prince Lazar]]. A quarrel broke out between his wife and her sister who was married to [[Vuk Branković]], about superiority in valour of their respective husbands. As a consequence of this, Branković took offence and picked a fight with Miloš. Filled with hate, Branković maligned Miloš to Lazar, saying that he conspired with Turks to betray the prince. At Lazar's supper on the eve of the battle, the prince reproached Miloš for disloyalty. To prove his loyalty, Miloš went into the Turkish camp feigning defection. At a favourable moment, he stabbed and killed the Turkish Sultan Murad, whose attendants then executed Miloš. The legend then goes on to describe events regarding the battle.<ref name=redjep>{{Citation| last=Ređep| first=Jelka| year=1991| title=The Legend of Kosovo| journal=[[Oral Tradition (journal)|Oral Tradition]]| volume=6| issue=2–3| publisher=Center for Studies in Oral Tradition| place=Columbia, Missouri| issn=1542-4308| url=http://journal.oraltradition.org/issues/6ii-iii/redep| mode=cs1}}</ref>

There are two main views about the creation of the Kosovo legend. In one view, its place of origin lies in the region in which the Battle of Kosovo was fought. In the other view, the legend sprang up in more westerly Balkan regions under the influence of the French ''[[chansons de geste]]''. Serbian philologist Dragutin Kostić stated that the French chivalric epics had in fact no part in the formation of the legend, but that they "only ''modified'' the already created and formed legend and its first poetic manifestations".<ref name=redjep/> The nucleus from which the legend developed is found in the [[Cult (religious practice)|cultic]] literature celebrating Prince Lazar as a martyr and saint, written in [[Moravian Serbia]] between 1389 and 1420. Especially important in this regard is the ''Discourse on Prince Lazar'' composed by Serbian Patriarch Danilo III. The legend would gradually evolve during the subsequent centuries.<ref name=redjep/>

The tale of the maligned hero who penetrated the Turkish camp and killed Sultan Murad, is found in the ''Life of Despot Stefan Lazarević'' written in the 1430s by [[Konstantin the Philosopher]]. The hero's name is not mentioned in this work. The theme of the quarrel between Lazar's sons-in-law was first recorded in [[Herzegovina]] in the mid-15th century. Lazar's supper on the eve of the battle and his reproach of Miloš are mentioned in texts from the 16th century. The argument between Lazar's daughters over the valor of their husbands was first recorded by [[Mavro Orbin]] in 1601. The fully developed legend of Kosovo, with all of its elements, is recorded in the ''Tale of the Battle of Kosovo'' composed around the beginning of the 18th century in the [[Bay of Kotor]] or [[Old Montenegro]]. This was a very popular text, whose copies were continuously produced for some 150 years in an area stretching from the south of ex-Yugoslavia to Budapest and Sofia. The ''Tale'' played a notable role in the awakening of national consciousness of the Serbs in the [[Habsburg monarchy]], which began in the first half of the 18th century.<ref name=redjep/>
[[File:Miloš Obilić posle zavere pred šatorom Muratovim, Pavle Čortanović i Adam Stefanović.jpg|thumb|Miloš Obilić at the tent of Sultan Murad.]]

The first author to refer to Murad's killer by his full name is [[Konstantin Mihailović]], a Serbian [[Janissary]] from the village of Ostrovica, near [[Rudnik (mountain)|Rudnik]], who wrote his ''Memoirs of a Janissary'' or ''Turkish Chronicle'' in ca 1497. In a passage intended to infer a moral lesson about disloyalty from the Serbian defeat at Kosovo, Mihailović identifies Miloš Kobila{{Cref2|B}} as the knight who on the fateful last Friday of the battle slew Murad.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=154}} The next time a name is given in the sources is three decades later, in 1530, when the (Slovene) monk [[Benedikt Kuripečič]] (Curipeschitz) wrote memoirs of his travels through the [[Balkan Peninsula]]. His visit to Murad's tomb in [[Kosovo Polje]] provides the occasion for the story of the knight whom he names Miloš Kobilović.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=154-155}} Kuripešić elaborates on the humiliation and fall out favour which Miloš endured before the battle, his last dinner with Lazar and his nobles, his admittance to Murad's tent, the brutal murder and his own death on attempting to escape on horseback.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=154-156}} The monk, though not explicit about his sources, writes that Miloš was a celebrated figure in the popular traditions of [[Serbs]], who sing about his heroic exploits on the border.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=154-157}} He recorded some legends about the [[Battle of Kosovo]] and mentions epic songs about Obilić in regions far from Kosovo, like [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]] and [[Croatia]].<ref name="Ivić1996">{{cite book|author=Pavle Ivić|author-link=Pavle Ivić|title=Istorija srpske kulture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r3FpAAAAMAAJ|year=1996|publisher=Dečje novine|page=160|isbn=9788636707920 |quote=Бенедикт Курипечић. пореклом Словенаи, који између 1530. и 1531. путује као тумач аустријског посланства, у свом Путопису препричава део косовске легенде, спомиње епско певање о Милошу Обилићу у крајевима удаљеним од места догађаја, у Босни и Хрватској, и запажа настајање нових песама.}}</ref> In his 1603 work [[Richard Knolles]] described the [[Serbian epic poetry|"country songs" of Serbs]] about the Battle of Kosovo and refer to Obilić as "Cobelitz".<ref>{{cite book|title=Serb World: 1979–1983|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WnbxAAAAMAAJ|year=1979|publisher=Neven Publishing Corporation|page=4|quote=Richard Knolles, writing in 1603, refers to the 'country songs' of the Serbs which tell of the alleged duplicity of the ...In 1603, the English historian Richard Knolles called lim 'Cobelitz'}}</ref>

In Serbian epic poetry and song (e.g. "Radul-bey and Bulgarian King Šišman" and the song "Dušan's Wedding"), Miloš Obilić is often grouped along with other literary creations like [[Karadjordje]], [[Vuk Karadžić]] and [[Njegoš]] as Serbs of [[Dinarides|Dinaric origin]] who distinguished themselves as the great moral and/or intellectual minds of the past in contradistinction to Bulgarian contemporaries, who could claim no such status.<ref>{{harvnb|Gavrilović|2003|p=722}} citing Cvijić.</ref> In the poem "Obilić Dragon's Son", Miloš is given a mythical ancestry as the son of a dragon to emphasise his superhuman strength on a physical and spiritual level; in this, he joins the ranks of many other heroes of Serbian poetry who fought against Turkish oppression and are claimed to have been descendants of a dragon.<ref>{{harvnb|Gavrilović|2003|pages=721, 725}}</ref> Jelka Ređep, a scholar of [[Serbian folklore]] and [[epic poetry]], argues that Miloš Obilić’s story developed significantly through oral transmission, shaping him into a symbolic embodiment of [[Serbian national identity|Serbian cultural identity]] and heroic ideals.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ređep |first=Jelka |year=1991 |title=The Legend of Kosovo |url=https://journal.oraltradition.org/wp-content/uploads/files/articles/6ii-iii/11_redep.pdf |journal=Oral Tradition |volume=6 |issue=2–3 |pages=255–257}}</ref>

===Albanian traditions===
In [[Albanian epic poetry]], the hero is known as Millosh Kopiliqi, a version of the which corresponds to the original name attested in Slavic. He is thought to have been born in the village of Kopiliq in the [[Drenica]] region of Kosovo.<ref name="Di Lellio"/><ref name="DiLellio1"/> In Albanian epic poetry, Prince Lazar is not existent in most variants. Instead Milosh Kopiliq, presented as a Christian Albanian warrior, is the sole killer of Sultan Murat. In the story, after Murat's death he is betrayed by an old Slavic woman (''[[shkije|shkina]]'' in the original) and then is decapitated by the Ottomans.{{sfn|Di Lellio|2013|p=155|ps=:Kopiliq’s fantastic story—here a synopsis based on the longest variant —is the geste of a Christian, Albanian warrior who decided to fight to his death, against the better judgment of cautious and ready-to-compromise unnamed leaders. No Prince Lazar partakes in this story, with the exception of a mention in one variant. Kopiliq killed the Sultan, refusing to bow to his request for submission. He was subsequently decapitated by Turkish soldiers after being betrayed by an old Slav woman who revealed the secret place where he was hiding the key to his armor: his whiskers. Carrying his head under his arm, Kopiliq walked away, but died when two women saw him and caused him to drop his head.}} [[Gligorije Elezović]] recorded the Albanian version in the 1920s in Kosovo as sung by folk singers. [[Albert Lord]], an expert in Balkan epic poetry, considered the tale of Milos Kobilić as a "mainly Albanian folk expression which traced its major elements to Albanian oral traditions". By comparing the Slavic and Albanian traditions about Kobilić, Lord came to the conclusion that they developed independently, but also borrowed from each other. Lord considers this cultural meeting point to have happened in [[Sandžak]], where Albanians and Slavs lived as neighbours.<ref name="Schwartz">{{cite book |last1=Schwartz |first1=Stefan |title=Kosovo: Background to a War |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jL4tAQAAIAAJ |date=2000 |publisher=Anthem Press |isbn=978-1898855569 |page=38 |quote=The tale told to us by Berisha corresponds to an Albanian - language Kosovo ballad recorded by the folklorist G. Elezović in the 1920s and later commented upon anew by Lord . Indeed, Lord treats the tale of Murat and Milos Kobilić as a mainly Albanian folk expression, tracing its major elements to Albanian oral traditions and noting their absence from the canon elaborated by the famous Serb linguist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić. Lord argues that two traditions, Slav and Albanian, developed independently but then borrowed from each other, meeting in the Sandžak region. Cultural influences went in both directions with the story of the old woman and her advice to the Turks being considered by Lord as essentially Albanian but appearing as far north as eastern Croatia. Lord argued persuasively that this folk image emerged from ancient Albanian lore associated with the land and the origins of rivers.}}</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:Milos Obilic Hilandar.jpg|thumb|right|Fresco of Miloš Obilić in [[Hilandar]], depicted as a holy warrior.]]
The artistically valuable basin by the [[Šibenik]]-based goldsmith and engraver {{Interlanguage link|Horacije Fortezza|hr|Horacije Fortezza}} (c. 1530–1596) depicts three scenes from the life of the then-already legendary Christian hero, the Serb Miloš Obilić.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pelc |first=Milan |date=2003-12-01 |title=Ikonografija humanizma i narodne predaje na šibenskom umivaoniku Horacija Fortezze |url=https://hrcak.srce.hr/224197 |journal=Radovi Instituta za povijest umjetnosti |language=hr |issue=27 |pages=133–143 |issn=0350-3437}}</ref>

It was not until the early 19th century that Miloš was also venerated as a saint in the Serbian Church. During the [[Serbian Revolution]] (1804–1815), a fresco of Miloš as a haloed, sword-bearing saint was painted in Prince Lazar's [[narthex]] in the [[Hilandar]] Monastery on [[Mount Athos]] (Greece).{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=162}} The historian [[Rade Mihaljčić]] suggests that the cult was a popular movement which originated among the Serbs south of the [[Sava]] and [[Danube]] during the [[Ottoman period]].{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=162}}

Later in the same century, the heroic figure of Miloš was given a national boost in the epic poem ''[[The Mountain Wreath]]'' (1847) by [[Petar II Petrović-Njegoš]], prince-bishop of Montenegro. The poem praises the assassin's valour in battle, calling him "the victim of a noble feeling, / An all powerful military genius, / A dreadful thunder that smashes crowns".{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=154}} Njegoš also instituted the Obilić medal for courage.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://montenegrina.net/fokus/svetozar-n-popovic-obilica-medalja-odlicje-kao-obaveza-prema-crnoj-gori/ | title=Svetozar N. Popović – Obilića medalja odličje kao obaveza prema Crnoj Gori |date=16 September 2014 | website=Montenegrina.net}}</ref>

This event and the [[Battle of Kosovo]] itself has become embedded in the [[Serbs]]' national consciousness, history, and poetry. Njegoš's tales, including Miloš, inspired later generations of Serbs – notably [[Gavrilo Princip]], the assassin of [[Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria|Archduke Franz Ferdinand]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Judah|title=The Serbs|year=2009|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-15826-7|page=64}}</ref>

In 1913, the [[Medal for Bravery (Serbia)|Medal of Miloš Obilić]] was awarded by [[Peter I of Serbia|King Peter I]] to soldiers for the acts of great personal courage, or for personal courage demonstrated on the battlefield. It was given during the [[Balkan wars]], [[World War I]], and during [[World War II]], to members of the Yugoslav Army or allied forces and was discontinued with the end of the war.

In the late 1980s, religious nationalists began to breathe further life into the figure of Miloš and the [[Kosovo Myth]].<ref name="Sells 1996 89–90">{{harvnb|Sells|1996|pp=89–90}}</ref> Special inspiration was taken from Njegoš's ''The Mountain Wreath'', with its portrayal of Lazar as a Christ-like martyr and Obilić as the Serb sacrificing himself to prove his loyalty and seek retribution.<ref>{{harvnb|Sells|1996|pp=79, 89–90}}</ref> A key event which gave expression to this idea was the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo ([[Vidovdan]]) on 28 June 1989, which was held at the Gazimestan plain, near the site of the battle.<ref>{{harvnb|Sells|1996|pp=68, 79}}</ref> Obilić's feat has been cited as a source of inspiration in public speeches by political leaders, notably President [[Slobodan Milošević|Milošević]], who referred to him in his [[Gazimestan speech]] on the occasion of the battle anniversary.<ref>{{harvnb|Judah|2000|p=56}}</ref> His regime often alluded to Obilić frequently in comparison to Milosević, who was proclaimed the "saviour of the nation".<ref>{{harvnb|Stevanovic|2004|pp=174}}</ref>

Obilić is featured in Serbian rhymical [[idiom]] "Dva loša ubiše Miloša" or "Dva su loša ubila Miloša" which translates as "Two no-goods have killed Miloš". The idiom addresses the issue of quantity prevailing over quality as a sad fact of life, since Obilić was outnumbered by the enemies.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tabanovic.com/1.poslovice.htm|title=Табановић – Народне пословице и изреке: Ко није служио, не умије ни заповедати.|website=www.tabanovic.com|access-date=8 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170810191506/http://www.tabanovic.com/1.poslovice.htm|archive-date=10 August 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In [[Serbian epic poetry]], there are several blood brotherhoods. Miloš Obilić with [[Milan Toplica]] and Ivan Kosančić,<ref name="Popov2000">{{cite book|author=Nebojša Popov|title=The Road to War in Serbia: Trauma and Catharsis|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GkBmdCwHuDsC&pg=PA192|date=January 2000|publisher=Central European University Press|isbn=978-963-9116-56-6|pages=192–}}</ref> Miloš Obilić with [[Prince Marko]],{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=26}} Miloš Obilić with the [[Jugović brothers]].<ref name="Segesten2011">{{cite book|author=Anamaria Dutceac Segesten|title=Myth, Identity, and Conflict: A Comparative Analysis of Romanian and Serbian Textbooks|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1SmTBNe0q2sC&pg=PA208|date=16 September 2011|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-0-7391-4865-5|pages=208–}}</ref>

He is included in ''[[The 100 most prominent Serbs]]''.

==See also==
{{Commons category}}
* [[Battle of Kosovo]]
* [[List of Serbs]]
* [[History of Serbia]]
* [[Lazar of Serbia]]

==Annotations==
{{Cnote2 Begin|liststyle=upper-alpha}}
{{Cnote2|A|The Serbian knight that killed Murad was unnamed until the 15th century; Athenian scholar [[Laonicus Chalcondyles]] (d. ca. 1490), claiming to draw on Greek traditions, refers to Murad's killer as ''Miloes''{{sfn|Emmert|1996|p=157}} or ''Milion''.<ref name=Jovicic/> In the work of [[Aşıkpaşazade]] (d. 1484), he is named (in Serbian transliteration) ''Biliš Kobila''.{{sfn|Šijaković|1989|p=6}}<ref>{{harvnb|Simonović|1992|pp=214–215}} {{blockquote|Ашик паша Заде помшье име Билиш Кобила. За Уруца убица је био један [...] И К. Михаиловип ^е за име сазнао посредством предан>а и то, веро- ватно, преко Турака. Дакле, извори наводе имена: Билиш Кобила, Милош Кобила, Милош Кобиловип, Димигрще Кобиловий. Сагласно је само презиме Кобила ...}}</ref><ref name=Jovicic>{{harvnb|Jovičić et al.|1988|p=125}}</ref> In the work of Serbian janissary [[Konstantin Mihailović]] (1435–1501) written in ca. 1497, his name is written as ''Miloš Kobila''.<ref name=CMSS-154>{{harvnb|Centar za mitološki studije Srbije|2006|p=154}}</ref><ref name=Skrivanic-52>{{harvnb|Škrivanić|1956|p=52}}</ref>{{sfn|Šijaković|1989|p=6}}<ref name=Jovicic/> In the work of Ottoman chronicler [[Mehmed Neşrî]] (d. ca. 1520), his name is rendered ''Miloš Kobila'' or ''Miloš Kobilović''.{{sfn|Šijaković|1989|p=194}}<ref name=Jovicic/> In Slovene monk [[Benedikt Kuripešić]]'s [[Balkans|Balkan]] travel memoirs dating to 1530, he uses ''Miloš Kobilović''.{{sfn|Emmert|1996|pp=154-155}}<ref name=Jovicic/> The Italian edition of Doukas chronicles (15th century) renders the name ''Miloš Kobilić''.<ref name=Jovicic/> [[Mavro Orbini]] (1601) renders the name ''Miloš Kobilić''.<ref name=Jovicic/> [[Ludovik Crijević Tuberon]] (1459–1527), in his ''Writings on the Present Age'' (published in 1603), ''Milon'' is used.<ref name=Jovicic/><br>In a manuscript written by Mihailo Miloradović dating to 1714–15, the form "Obilić" is used.<ref name=G-218>{{harvnb|Univerzitet u Novom Sadu|1975|p=218}} {{blockquote|Разлика међу рукописима Г и УБ постоји, као што смо видели, и у употреби форме Обилић и Кобилић. У рукопису УБ (1715–1725) сачувала се форма Кобилић а у рукописима ММ (1714–1715) и Г (1727) форма Обилић, што значи да се млађа форма Обилић јавља не иоловином XVIII века, као што је гврдио Драгутин Костић, већ и раније, почетком XVIII а можда и крајем XVII века.}}</ref> In a manuscript (УБ) dating to 1715–25, the form "Kobilić" is used.<ref name=G-218/> In a manuscript (Г) dating to 1727, the form "Obilić" is used.<ref name=G-218/> In the [[Podgorica chronicle]] (1738), "Omiljević" is used.<ref name=Jovicic/> In a manuscript written by Mihailo Jeličić dating to 1745, the form "Kobilić" is used.<ref name=G-217>{{harvnb|Univerzitet u Novom Sadu|1975|p=217}} {{blockquote|... Обилић и Кобилић. Рукопис Стевана Гезовића (СГ)*1, писан у XVIII веку, има форму Обилић. Преглед варијаната рукописне Приче о боју косовском показује да сле- дећи рукописи имају презиме Милошево: Кобилић: УБ, В, МЈ. Обилић: ММ, Г, К, НБ 433, СУД, ПН, ГК, ДК, Б, ПМ, СГ, односно Обилич: ИЈ, АМ, ТН Хобилић: ГК, ДК, МС, Р Кобилић и Обилић: САН 134, НБ 425, С, П, ЛВ Анализа ...}}</ref> In a manuscript written by Ilija Jovanov dating to 1750, both "Kobilić" and "Obilić" are used.<ref>{{harvnb|Univerzitet u Novom Sadu|1975|p=215}}</ref> In [[Vasilije III Petrović-Njegoš|Vasilije Petrović]]'s work ''History of Montenegro'' dating to 1754, "Obiljević" or "Obilijević" were used.{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=193}} Serbian historian Pavle Julinac used "Obilić" in 1763.{{sfn|Popović|1988|p=193}}{{sfn|Jireček|1967|p=120}} In a [[Ravanica]] manuscript dating to 1764, the form "Hobilić" (Хобилић) is used.<ref name=G-217/> Based on these studied manuscripts,<ref>{{harvnb|Univerzitet u Novom Sadu|1975|pp=215–218}}</ref> the younger form Obilić is first attested in the beginning of the 18th century and possibly the end of the 17th century.<ref name=G-218/> This refutes [[Dragutin Kostić]]'s view that the form Obilić is from the mid-18th century.<ref name=G-218/>}}
{{Cnote2|B|Several manuscripts of Mihailović's chronicle have been preserved, most of which use the form "Kobila" or "Kobyla", while the first printing in Czech, dating from 1565, uses the form "Kobiza".{{sfn|Łoś|1912|p=40}}}}
{{Cnote2 End}}

==References==

'''References:'''

{{reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
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*{{cite book|last1=Jovičić|first1=V.|last2=Petrović|first2=M.|last3=Jovičić|first3=O.|title=Kosovo u svesti i nadahnuću Srpskoga naroda|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p6xIAQAAIAAJ|year=1988|publisher=Nova knjiga|pages=125–126|quote=<!-- И доцније извори, све до XVIII века, не помињу име Милош Обидић. Код Ашик-пашезаде (ХV век) Муратов убица зове се Билиш Кобила; Халкокондилес (крај I V века) га назива Милион, А Констан- тин Михаиловић (1497) Милош Кобила. У италијанској преради Дуки- не хронике (крај К\ века) и код Орбина (1601) биће Милош Кобилић; код Цријевића (почетак ХV века) Милон; у Курипечићевом путопису (1531), ... -->|ref={{harvid|Jovičić et al.|1988}} }}
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* {{cite book|last=Škrivanić|first=Gavro A.|title=Kosovska bitka, 15 juna 1389|year=1956|publisher=Istoriski institut NR Crne Gore|location=Podgorica|pages=52|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uc0MAAAAIAAJ}}
* {{cite book|author=Univerzitet u Novom Sadu |author2=Univerzitet u Beogradu|title=Godišnjak|volume=17|year=1975|publisher=Filozofski fakultet u Novom Sadu|location=Novi Sad|pages=215–218|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PgbRAAAAMAAJ|ref=CITEREFUniverzitet u Novom Sadu1975}}
* {{cite book |chapter=Czasów popisanie o tureckich sprawach przez Konstantego syna Michała Konstantynowica z Ostrowice Raca, jen był wzięt od Turkow miedzy janczary |title=Pamiętniki Janczara czyli Kronika Turecka Konstantego z Ostrowicy napisana między r. 1496 a 1501 |editor-last=Łoś |editor-first=Jan |year=1912 |publisher=Akademia Umiejętności |location=Kraków |url=https://www.wbc.poznan.pl/dlibra/publication/1161/edition/1761?language=en}}

==Further reading==
;Primary sources
*[[Deacon Ignjatije]] wrote a description of the battle on 27 June 1389, only 12 days after the battle.
*The instructions of the [[Venetian Senate]] issued to Andrea Bembo on 23 July 1389.
*King [[Tvrtko I of Bosnia]] sent a letter with information about Ottoman defeat to [[Trogir]] on 1 August 1389 [https://archive.org/stream/monumentaspecta07unkngoog#page/n61/mode/2up "Monumenta spectantia historiam Slavorum meridionalium", p.48]
*[[Coluccio Salutati]] (chancellor of [[Florence]], died 1406) wrote a letter to King Tvrtko on 20 October 1389.
*anonymous Florentine Chronicle, ed. L.A. Muratori, ''Cronica Volgare di Anonimo Fiorentino dall' anno 1385 al 1409''. Rerum Italicarum Scriptores vol. 17, fasc. 152. [[Citta di Castello]], 1917. pp.&nbsp;77–9.
*[[Bertrando de Mignanelli]] of [[Siena]], ''Life of [[Timur|Tamerlane (Timur)]]'' (1416)
*[[Constantine of Kostenets|Constantine the Philosopher]], ''Life of Despot [[Stefan Lazarević]]'' (written 1440s)
*[[Konstantin Mihailović]] (15th century), ''Memoirs of a Janissary'' (or ''Turkish Chronicle'') written in period 1490–1501
*[[Ludovik Crijević Tuberon]] (written before 1527)
*[[Benedict Kuripešić]], ''Travel memoirs'' (written 1530)
*Ottoman sources
**the poet Ahmedi (early 15th century), ed. A. Olesnicki, ''Turski izvori o Kosovskom boju.'', Glasnik skopskog naucnog drustva 14 (1934): 60–2. {{in lang|sr}}
**[[Uruc]], historian
*Greek sources
**[[Laonicus Chalcocondyles]] (late 15th century)
**[[Doukas (historian)|Doukas]] (mid 15th century)
*Later narrations
** {{Cite book|last=Orbini|first=Mauro|author-link=Mauro Orbini|year=1601|title=Il Regno de gli Slavi hoggi corrottamente detti Schiavoni|location=Pesaro|publisher=Apresso Girolamo Concordia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fx3OntcdUkQC}}
** {{Cite book|last=Орбин|first=Мавро|author-link=Mauro Orbini|year=1968|title=Краљевство Словена|location=Београд|publisher=Српска књижевна задруга|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MduZAAAAIAAJ}}
**[[Richard Knolles]], ''The Generall Historie of the Turkes'' (1603)
**Drama ''Milos Obilic'' (1826)
**[[Petar II Petrović-Njegoš]], ''[[The Mountain Wreath]]'' (written 1847)

;Secondary sources
* {{Cite book |last=Chadwick |first=H. Munro |author-link=Hector Munro Chadwick|year=1912|title=The heroic age |series=Cambridge archaeological and ethnological series|location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press|url=https://archive.org/search.php?query=The%20heroic%20age%20Chadwick |page=315 }}
* Ivanova, Radost (1993). "The Problem of the Historical Approach in the Epic Songs of the Kosovo Cycle." ''Études balkaniques'' 4: 111–22.
* Khan, Mujeeb R. (1996) "The 'Other' in the Balkans. Historical constructions of Serbs and 'Turks'." ''Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs'' 16.
* Kostic, Dragutin (1934–1935). "Milos Kopilic-Kobilic-Obilic." ''Revue Internationale des Etudes Balkaniques'' 1–2: 232–54. A study of Miloš Obilić's name.
* [[Rade Mihaljčić|Mihaljcic, Rade]] (1989). ''The Battle of Kosovo''. Belgrade.
* Мирослав Пантић, "Кнез Лазар и косовска битка у старој књижевности Дубровника и Боке Которске", Зборник радова о кнезу Лазару, Београд, 1975

{{Slavic mythology}}
{{Kosovo Myth}}
{{Serbian epic poetry}}
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