Albania displays varied climatic, geological, hydrological, and morphological conditions, defined in an area of 28,748 km2 (11,100 sq mi). It possesses significant diversity with the landscape ranging from the snow-capped mountains in the Albanian Alps as well as the Korab, Skanderbeg, Pindus and Ceraunian Mountains to the hot and sunny coasts of the Albanian Adriatic and Ionian Sea along the Mediterranean Sea.
Albania has been inhabited by different civilisations over time, such as the Illyrians, Thracians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, and Ottomans. The Albanians established the autonomous Principality of Arbër in the 12th century. The Kingdom of Albania and Principality of Albania formed between the 13th and 14th centuries. Prior to the Ottoman conquest of Albania in the 15th century, the Albanian resistance to Ottoman expansion into Europe led by Skanderbeg won them acclaim over most of Europe. Albania remained under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries, during which many Albanians (known as Arnauts) attained high-ranking offices in the empire, especially in the Southern Balkans and Egypt. Between the 18th and 19th centuries, cultural developments, widely attributed to Albanians having gathered both spiritual and intellectual strength, conclusively led to the Albanian Renaissance. After the defeat of the Ottomans in the Balkan Wars, the modern nation state of Albania declared independence in 1912.[8] In the 20th century, the Kingdom of Albania was invaded by Italy, which formed Greater Albania before becoming a protectorate of Nazi Germany.[9] Enver Hoxha formed the People's Socialist Republic of Albania after World War II, modeled under the terms of Hoxhaism. The Revolutions of 1991 concluded the fall of communism in Albania and eventually the establishment of the current Republic of Albania.
Albania is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic and a developing country with an upper-middle income economy dominated by the service sector, followed by manufacturing.[10] It went through a process of transition following the end of communism in 1990, from centralised planning to a market-based economy.[11][12][13] Albania provides universal health care and free primary and secondary education to its citizens.[6] Albania is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, UNESCO, NATO, WTO, COE, OSCE, and OIC. It has been an official candidate for membership in the European Union since 2014. It is one of the founding members of the Energy Community, including the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and Union for the Mediterranean.
The term Albania is the medieval Latin name of the country. It may be derived from the Illyrian tribe of Albani (Albanian: Albanët) recorded by Ptolemy, the geographer and astronomer from Alexandria, who drafted a map in 150 AD which shows the city of Albanopolis located northeast of Durrës.[14][15] The term may have a continuation in the name of a medieval settlement called Albanon or Arbanon, although it is not certain that this was the same place.[16] In his history written in the 10th century, the Byzantine historian Michael Attaliates was the first to refer to Albanoi as having taken part in a revolt against Constantinople in 1043 and to the Arbanitai as subjects of the Duke of Dyrrachium.[17] During the Middle Ages, the Albanians called their country Arbëri or Arbëni and referred to themselves as Arbëreshë or Arbëneshë.[18][19]
The remains of Kamenica Tumulus in the county of Korçë.
Founded in the 4th century BC, Scodra was a significant city of the Illyrian tribes of the Ardiaei and Labeates.
Apollonia was an important Ancient Greek colony on the Illyrian coast along the Adriatic Sea and one of the western points of the Via Egnatia route, that connected Rome and Constantinople.
The town of Krujë was the capital of the Principality of Arbanon in the Middle Ages.
A relief of the Scuola degli Albanesi commemorating the Siege of Shkodra. It illustrates Sultan Mehmet II laying siege to the Albanian town of Scutari then part of Venetian Empire.
Ali Pasha Tepelena was a powerful autonomous Ottoman-Albanian ruler, governing over the Pashalik of Yanina.
Naum Veqilharxhi was among the most important figures of the early Albanian Renaissance.
Dora d'Istria was among the main advocates in Europe for the Albanian cause.[67]
Ismail Qemali is regarded as the founding father of the modern Albanian nation.
Zog I was the first and only king of Albania; his reign lasted 11 years (1928–1939).
Enver Hoxha served as Prime Minister and First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania.
A bunker overlooking the Albanian Alps. By 1983, approximately 173,371 concrete bunkers were scattered across the country.[103]
In 1988, the first foreigners were allowed to walk into the car-free Skanderbeg Square in Tirana.
The earthquake of November 2019 was the strongest to hit Albania in more than four decades.[112]
The Albanian Alps are an extension and simultaneously the highest section of the Dinaric Alps.
Gjipe is located on the confluence of the Adriatic and Ionian Sea.
Panorma Bay on the Albanian Riviera in the south has a mediterranean climate.
The Albanian Alps in the north have a subarctic climate.
The golden eagle is the national symbol and animal of Albania.
The common bottlenose dolphin is a frequent visitor to the waters of the Albanian Adriatic and Ionian Sea Coasts.
The Lagoon of Karavasta within the Divjakë-Karavasta National Park is renowned for hosting the rare Dalmatian pelican.
The Prespa National Park in southeastern Albania is part of the European Green Belt and Ohrid-Prespa Biosphere Reserve.
Assisted by the governments of Kosovo and Albania, an official application for the inclusion of the Arbëreshë people in the list of UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage is being prepared.[171]
Albanian soldiers in the Province of Kandahar, Afghanistan.
GPD per capita development of Albanien since 1913
Tirana is the economic hub of the country. It is home to major domestic and foreign companies operating in the country.
Grapes in Berat. Due to the mediterranean climate, wine, olives and citrus fruits are mostly produced in Southern Albania.
The Antea factory in Fushë-Krujë
The Islets of Ksamil in the south of the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast.
Rruga e Kombit connects the Adriatic Sea across the Western Lowlands with the Albanian Alps.
Tirana International Airport is named in honour of the Albanian nun and missionary Mother Teresa.
The University of Arts is the largest higher education institute dedicated to the study of arts.
The Albanian cuisine from the Mediterranean, which is characterised by the use of fruits, vegetables and olive oil, contributes to the good nutrition of the country's population.[239]
Electricity production in Albania from 1980 to 2019.
Lake Koman was formed as a result of the construction of the Koman Hydroelectric Power Station in 1985.
Development of the population of Albania over the last sixty years.
Regions with a traditional presence of ethnic groups other than Albanian.
Distribution of ethnic groups within Albania, as of the 2011 census. Districts coloured grey are those where a majority of people did not declare an ethnicity (the question was optional). The census was criticised and boycotted by minorities in Albania.
Traditional locations of linguistic and religious communities in Albania.
The dialects of the Albanian language in Albania.
One road sign in Albanian and a minority language (Macedonian) and one in Albanian and a foreign language for tourists (English) in Pustec (top) Road sign in Albanian and a minority language (Greek) in Goranxi (bottom)
Religion in Albania as of the 2011 census conducted by the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT).[316]
Islam (58.79%)
Christianity (16.99%)
No Denomination (5.49%)
Irreligion (2.5%)
Unclear (16.24%)
Representatives of the Sunni, Orthodox, Bektashi and Catholic Albanian communities and in Paris. Culturally, religious tolerance is one of the most considerable values of the tradition of the Albanians. It is widely accepted that they generally value a peaceful coexistence among the believers of different religious communities in the country.[330][331] Pope Francis hailed Albania during his official visit in Tirana as model of religious harmony, due to the long tradition of religious coexistence and tolerance.[332]
The double-headed eagle on the walls of the St. Anthony Church.
Butrint has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites since 1992.
The Codices of Berat are eminently important for the global community and the development of ancient biblical, liturgical and hagiographical literature.[352] In 2005, it was inscribed on the UNESCO's Memory of the World Register.
The Fortress of Bashtovë is on the tentative list for inscribing it as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[354]
Bukë misri (cornbread) is a staple on the Albanian table.
Speca të ferguara (roasted peppers) served with pite, a traditional and prominent layered Albanian pie.
The former grounds of the headquarters of Radio Tirana in the capital of Tirana. Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) was initially inaugurated as Radio Tirana in 1938 prior to the World War II.
Albanian iso-polyphony is designated as an UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.[366]
The Albanian Dancer (1835) by French artist Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps; the dancers are depicted wearing the fustanella, the national costume of Albania
An excerpt from the Meshari (The Missal) written by Gjon Buzuku. (1555)
Parashqevi Qiriazi - teacher and feminist (1880–1970)
a(w)l-BAY-nee-ə; Albanian: Shqipëri or Shqipëria),[a] officially the Republic of Albania (Albanian: Republika e Shqipërisë),[b] is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares land borders with Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo[c] to the northeast, North Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south. Tirana is its capital and largest city, followed by Durrës, Vlorë, and Shkodër.