Albanians in Montenegro
Encyclopedia
Albanians in Montenegro
constitute 4.91% of the county's total population. They mainly live in South-Eastern Montenegro, in the region commonly known as Malesija as well as in the municipality of Ulcinj
.
, Albanians
form the majority of population (70.66% according to 2011 census). A large Albanian community also exists in the Tuzi
area within the Podgorica municipality (making up part of the cultural region known as Malesija). As of 2003, there were a total of 9,296 Albanians in Podgorica municipality, 2,300 of which live in Tuzi (the rest living in the rural area around Tuzi, to the North of Lake Scadar). There is also a significant presence of Albanians in parts of Plav
(2,719 or 19.7%) and Rožaje
(1,008 or 4.44%), as well as in Bar
(3,036 or 7.61%), Hoti, Gruda
, Triesh
, Koja, and Krajina
.
offered in Albanian. Montenegrin Albanian culture in this region is closely related to the culture of Albanians in Albania, and the city of Shkodër
in particular. Their Albanian language dialect is Gheg as of Albanians in Northern Albania
. Predominant religions of Albanians in this region are Roman Catholic and Muslim
.
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
constitute 4.91% of the county's total population. They mainly live in South-Eastern Montenegro, in the region commonly known as Malesija as well as in the municipality of Ulcinj
Ulcinj
Ulcinj is a coastal resort town and municipality in Montenegro. The town of Ulcinj has a population of 10,828 of which the majority are Albanians...
.
Geography
In the municipality of UlcinjUlcinj
Ulcinj is a coastal resort town and municipality in Montenegro. The town of Ulcinj has a population of 10,828 of which the majority are Albanians...
, Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
form the majority of population (70.66% according to 2011 census). A large Albanian community also exists in the Tuzi
Tuzi
Tuzi is a town in the Podgorica municipality, Montenegro, located along a main road between the city of Podgorica and the Albanian border crossing, just a few kilometers north of Lake Skadar. The exact location of Tuzi is...
area within the Podgorica municipality (making up part of the cultural region known as Malesija). As of 2003, there were a total of 9,296 Albanians in Podgorica municipality, 2,300 of which live in Tuzi (the rest living in the rural area around Tuzi, to the North of Lake Scadar). There is also a significant presence of Albanians in parts of Plav
Plav
Plav Plav Plav (Montenegrin, (Albanian: Plav) is a town in north-eastern Montenegro. It has a population of 3,615 (2003 census).Plav is the centre of the municipality (population of 13,805),-Geography:...
(2,719 or 19.7%) and Rožaje
Rožaje
Rožaje , is a town in northeastern Montenegro. It has a population of 9,121 Rožaje is the centre of the municipality, which has a population of 22,693. The municipality is located in the geographical region of Sandžak.-History:The history of Rožaje goes back to 1571 and 1585 when it was first...
(1,008 or 4.44%), as well as in Bar
Bar, Montenegro
Bar is a coastal town in Montenegro. It has a population of 17,727...
(3,036 or 7.61%), Hoti, Gruda
Gruda
Grudë is a region within Malësia in southern Montenegro. Grudë lies just north of Lake Skadar and includes the small city of Tuzi, the major urban center of Malësia.-Religion:...
, Triesh
Triesh
Triesh is one of the seven Albanian tribes of Malësi e Madhe. Today, around 400 descendants of the tribe live in the small but active tribal sub-region. Trieshi, as well as Hot, derive from a single ancestor named Keq Preka...
, Koja, and Krajina
Krajina, Montenegro
Krajina or Kraja is an area in southeastern Montenegro stretching from the southern coast of Lake Skadar to the mountain of Rumija, comprising several villages. It is inhabited mainly by Albanians and Montenegrins, which make up most of population...
.
Religion
According to the 2003 Census, most of the Albanians living in Montenegro are Muslim by faith, but a significant Roman Catholic minority also exists. In 2003, 73.37% of them were Muslim and 26.08% were Roman Catholic.Culture
The government of Montenegro provides Albanian-language education in the local primary and secondary schools. There are also some university-level courses in PodgoricaPodgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
offered in Albanian. Montenegrin Albanian culture in this region is closely related to the culture of Albanians in Albania, and the city of Shkodër
Shkodër
Shkodër , is a city located on Lake of Shkoder in northwestern Albania in the District of Shkodër, of which it is the capital. It is one of the oldest and most historic towns in Albania, as well as an important cultural and economic centre. Shkodër's estimated population is 90,000; if the...
in particular. Their Albanian language dialect is Gheg as of Albanians in Northern Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. Predominant religions of Albanians in this region are Roman Catholic and Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
.
Prominent individuals
- Gjon BuzukuGjon BuzukuGjon Buzuku was an Albanian Catholic clergyman who wrote the first known printed book in Albanian.Gjon Buzuku was born in the village of Ljare in the Bar district, close to Northern Albania , then Ottoman Empire. He probably lived in or near Venice, Italy...
- was an Albanian Catholic clergyClergyClergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
man born in LjareKrajina, MontenegroKrajina or Kraja is an area in southeastern Montenegro stretching from the southern coast of Lake Skadar to the mountain of Rumija, comprising several villages. It is inhabited mainly by Albanians and Montenegrins, which make up most of population...
in the 16th century. He was the writer of MeshariMeshariMeshari is the first book written and published in Albanian. The book was written by Gjon Buzuku, a Catholic cleric in 1555. The book contains 188 pages and is written in two columns. Meshari is the translation of the main parts of the Catholic Liturgy into Albanian...
, the first book written in Albanian. - Baca Kurti GjokajBaca KurtiBaca Kurti Gjokaj was an Albanian freedom fighter who distinguished himself as one of the best commanders of Cuna Mula in the Battle of Ržanica....
- Albanian nationalist - Enver GjokajEnver GjokajEnver Leif Gjokaj is an Albanian American film and television actor. He is best known for his co-starring role as Victor in Joss Whedon's science fiction television series Dollhouse.-Early life:...
- Albanian-American actor - Ded Gjo LuliDed Gjo LuliDed Gjo Luli formally known as Dedë Gjon Luli Dedvukaj , was born in Traboin-Hoti . He hails from the tribe of Hot located in the region of Malësia...
(1840–1915) one of the leading nationalists of the Albanian revolt against Turkey in the early 1900s. He is known for starting the revolution for Albanian Independence, along with Luigj GurakuqiLuigj GurakuqiLuigj Gurakuqi was an Albanian writer and politician. He was an important figure of the Albanian National Awakening and was honoured with the People's Hero of Albania medal.- Life :...
, Ismail QemaliIsmail QemaliIsmail Qemal Bej Vlora or commonly Ismail Qemali and in Turkish İsmail Kemal Bey or İsmail Kemal Vlora , was a distinguished leader of the Albanian national movement, founder of the modern Albanian state and its first head of state and government.-Life:He was born in Avlonya to a noble family...
, and Isa BoletiniIsa BoletiniIsa Boletini was an Albanian nationalist figure and guerilla fighter, born in the village of Boletin near Mitroviça, Ottoman Empire...
. - Nikollë NikprelajNikollë NikprelajNikollë Nikprelaj is an Albanian singer from Triesh, in Malësia . Nikprelaj began his professional career in his late teens. He is now the lead singer for the Albanian folk group "Besa Trieshit", which has won first place in concerts and festivals within Montenegro, Kosovo and Albania...
- Albanian singer - Emina CunmulajEmina CunmulajEmina Cunmulaj , is an Albanian-American model.-Biography:Cunmulaj was born in Michigan, United States to Albanian parents, but moved to Montenegro at the age of four in 1988...
- Albanian-American model - Rexhep QosjaRexhep QosjaRexhep Qosja is a prominent Albanian politician and literary critic from the area of Malësia in modern Montenegro....
- prominent Albanian politician and writer (lives in KosovoKosovoKosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
) - Cok Hiri Rudaj- Albanian General Born in Shtoj-Ulqin , Defeated the Montenegrin Army and held the Albanian border until the Albanian government called him back after the Treaty of London was signed in 1915.
See also
- MalësiaMalësiaMalësia or Malësia e Madhe, is a historical geographical region in northern Albania and eastern Montenegro. It consists of an area of land that stretches from the southeast of Podgorica to northern shores of Lake Scutari, and includes much of the Malësi e Madhe District of Albania...
- Malesija, Montenegro
- Greater AlbaniaGreater AlbaniaGreater Albania or Ethnic Albania is an irredentist concept of lands outside the borders of the Republic of Albania that are considered part of a greater national homeland by most Albanians, based on the present-day or historical presence of Albanian populations in those areas...
- MontenegroMontenegroMontenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
- AlbaniansAlbaniansAlbanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
- Albanian LanguageAlbanian languageAlbanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...
- Albanians in KosovoAlbanians in KosovoAlbanians are the largest ethnic group in Kosovo . According to the 1991 Serbian census, boycotted by Albanians, there were 1,596,072 ethnic Albanians in Kosovo or 81.6% of population...
- Albanians in the Republic of MacedoniaAlbanians in the Republic of MacedoniaAlbanians are the largest ethnic minority in the Republic of Macedonia. Of the 2,022,547 citizens of Macedonia, 509,083, or 25%, are Albanian according to the latest national census in 2002. The Albanian minority lives mostly in the north-western part of the country...
- Albanians in Central SerbiaAlbanians in Central SerbiaAccording to the 2002 census, there are 61,647 Albanians in Serbia if the Kosovo Albanians are not counted. Of those, 59,952 lived in former Central Serbia, mostly in the Preševo Valley, at the far south of Serbia near the border with Kosovo...