127 The Balkans as the Core of European Civilization? Kosta P. Manojlović’s collaboration with the Balkanski institut [Institute for Balkan Studies] in Belgrade (1934–1941) * Ivana Vesić Representations of the Balkans as a cultural and political entity in Western European historical, political, diplomatic and journalistic narratives in the past centuries have for the past two decades occupied a prominent place in the re- search of numerous scholars. The most influential among them were the inve- stigations of Maria Todorova, Božidar Jezernik, Vesna Goldsworthy, David Norris, Milica Bakić Hayden (according to Čolović 2013), and others, whose focus was oriented towards the deconstruction of the so-called “Balkanist dis- course” with the aim of discovering the trajectory of negative stereotypes on the Balkans and Balkan peoples until the most recent times. 1 Although inspired by Edward Said’s insights into the problem of Orientalism as a derogatory dis- course and practice of Western European politicians, scholars, and journalists, these researchers of the phenomenon of “Balkanism” have mostly been unfa- miliar with their historical predecessors who, as early as the 1930s, initiated extensive debate on similar issues in the specific geopolitical circumstances of the time. This group of journalists close to the Yugoslav political elite, suppor- ted by dozens of scholars from Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Romania, Germany, Au- stria, and elsewhere, founded the Institute for Balkan Studies, an entity with the primary objective of launching a broad campaign in both academic and public circles of Balkan and European countries to combat the widespread negative preconceptions of Balkan peoples and culture. 2 * This paper is part of research done on the project Serbian Musical Identities Within Local and Global Frameworks: Traditions, Changes, Challenges (No. 177004), funded by the Ministry of Education, Sci- ence and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia. 1 On the recent establishment of Balkanist discourse in the writings of various scholars and its general scopes and ideological grounding, see Čolović 2013. 2 The idea for the foundation of the Institute for Balkan Studies came from Ratko Parežanin, an ex- perienced journalist, writer and politican, and his politically like-minded collaborator Svetozar Spanaćević. Parežanin was not anonymous in Yugoslav political and public circles owing to his diplo- matic activities in the early 1920s (he was a press attaché in Vienna from 1924 to 1927) as well as his work as a member of the National Assembly (he served as Member of Parliament from the Radikalna stranka [Radical Party], 1927–1929). According to his own testimonies (see Lapčević 2013), he was