Serbian students Borivoje Llazič and Nevena Zhivančevič who study the Albanian language in Belgrade say that they first heard Albanian from songs.
In an interview for Euronews Albania, they said that their first contact with Albanian was the songs, which, as they said, are heard a lot in Serbia.
"I learned Albanian through songs, in an instant I thought why not study it at the university because I wanted to get to know Albania better, and I didn't want to believe the things I heard. People in Serbia are listening to Albanian music more. In the night clubs in Belgrade, you can hear Albanian singers like Dhurata Dora, Elvana, Noizy", said Nevena.
Borivoje Llazič says that he was not prejudiced that he chose to study the language of the nation with which his country is in conflict.
Borivoje said that he had heard Albanian before the faculty and it sounded very good to him.
"When I finished high school I wanted to study something that is not very popular in Belgrade. I think it's time to live and speak both Albanian and Serbian together", said the student.
He said that he has often been asked why he is studying the Albanian language, when his country is in conflict with Kosovo, but he added that precisely because of this he decided to learn the Albanian language more.
While Nevena Zhivançeviç said that her connection with the Albanian language is very great.
She said that after 3 years of study, she now feels more confident when speaking Albanian and uses every opportunity when she is in Tirana or Pristina to speak Albanian.
"Now I'm not afraid to speak, when I have the opportunity to speak I do it willingly, when I'm in Pristina, Tirana, or even Belgrade I talk to people who know Albanian," she said.
Nevena revealed her strong connection with Tirana, where, as she said, there are people she considers her family.
"In Tirana, I have people I call family. I lost my parents many years ago. These people told me that God delays but never forgets. So you really don't forget that now I have them", confessed the student
The 40th edition of the international seminar on Albanian Language, Literature and Culture was held in Kosovo, at the Faculty of Philology in Pristina. This seminar started on August 15 and will last until the 26th. Students from Serbia were also present at this seminar.