God, honour and money. These are the cornerstones of Albanian society. God, honor and money are also the foundations of the Kanun, an ancient canon of laws that has governed social behaviour in Albania since the 1500s.
The Kanun is a book of laws, written by Lek Dukajini, reflecting traditional values, which governs every aspect of the lives of Albanian people. During communist rule, the Kanun was outlawed: even naming it meant risking severe punishment. Over the years the practitioners of the Kanun slowly withdrew into the northern mountains, the Dukajin, avoiding the advance of the Turks and...