Northern Epirus
Encyclopedia
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| The region of Epirus Epirus The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania... , stretching across Greece and Albania. Legend:
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Northern Epirus is a term used to refer to those parts of the historical region of Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
, in the western Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
, that are part of the modern 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...
. The term is used mostly by Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
and is associated with the existence of a substantial ethnic Greek population in the region. It also has connotations with political claims on the territory on the grounds that it was held by Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and in 1914 was declared
Northern Epirote Declaration of Independence
The Northern Epirote Declaration of Independence occurred on February 28, 1914, in Argyrokastron , against the decision of incorporation of Northern Epirus to the newly established Albanian principality....
an independent state
Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
The Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus was a short-lived, self-governing entity founded on February 28, 1914, in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, by the Greeks living in southern Albania ....
by the local Greeks against annexation to the newly founded Albanian principality. The term is typically rejected by most 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...
for its irredentist
Megali Idea
The Megali Idea was an irredentist concept of Greek nationalism that expressed the goal of establishing a Greek state that would encompass all ethnic Greek-inhabited areas, since large Greek populations after the restoration of Greek independence in 1830 still lived under Ottoman rule.The term...
associations.
The term "Northern Epirus" started to be used by Greeks in 1913, upon the creation of the Albanian State following the Balkan Wars
Balkan Wars
The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe in 1912 and 1913.By the early 20th century, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia, the countries of the Balkan League, had achieved their independence from the Ottoman Empire, but large parts of their ethnic...
, and the incorporation into the latter of territory that was regarded by many Greeks as geographically, historically, culturally, and ethnologically connected to the Greek region of Epirus since antiquity. In the spring of 1914, the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
The Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus was a short-lived, self-governing entity founded on February 28, 1914, in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, by the Greeks living in southern Albania ....
was proclaimed by ethnic Greeks in the territory and recognized by the Albanian government, though it proved short-lived as Albania collapsed with the onset of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Greece held the area between 1914 and 1916, and unsuccessfully tried to annex it in March 1916, however in 1917 it was driven from the area by Italy, who took over most of Albania. The Paris Peace Conference of 1919
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
awarded the area to Greece, however the area reverted to Albanian control in November 1921, following Greece's defeat in the Greco-Turkish War
Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)
The Greco–Turkish War of 1919–1922, known as the Western Front of the Turkish War of Independence in Turkey and the Asia Minor Campaign or the Asia Minor Catastrophe in Greece, was a series of military events occurring during the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after World War I between May...
. During the interwar period, tensions remained high due to the educational issues surrounding the Greek minority in Albania. Following Italy's invasion of Greece
Greco-Italian War
The Greco-Italian War was a conflict between Italy and Greece which lasted from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. It marked the beginning of the Balkans Campaign of World War II...
from the territory of Albania in 1940 and the successful Greek counterattack, the Greek army briefly held Northern Epirus for a six month period until the German invasion of Greece
Battle of Greece
The Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
in 1941.
Tensions remained high during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, as the Greek minority was subjected to repressive measures (along with the rest of the country's population). Although a Greek minority was recognized by the Hoxha regime, this recognition only applied to an "official minority zone" consisting of 99 villages, leaving out important areas of Greek settlement, such as Himara. People outside the official minority zone received no education in the Greek language, which was prohibited in public. The Hoxha regime also diluted the ethnic demographics of the region by relocating Greeks living there and settling in their stead Albanians from other parts of the country. Relations began to improve in the 1980s with Greece's abandonment of any territorial claims over Northern Epirus and the lifting of the official state of war between the two countries. In the post-Cold War era relations have continued to improve though tensions remain over the availability of education in the Greek language outside the official minority zone, property rights, and occasional violent incidents targeting members of the Greek minority.
Geography
In antiquity, the northern border of the historical region of Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
(and of the ancient Greek world) was the Gulf of Oricum, or alternatively, the mouth of the Aoös river, immediately to the north of the Bay of Aulon (modern-day Vlore
Vlorë
Vlorë is one of the biggest towns and the second largest port city of Albania, after Durrës, with a population of about 94,000 . It is the city where the Albanian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed on November 28, 1912...
. To the south, classical Epirus ended at the Ambracian Gulf
Ambracian Gulf
The Ambracian Gulf, also known as the Gulf of Arta or the Gulf of Actium, and in some official documents as the Amvrakikos Gulf , is a gulf of the Ionian Sea in northwestern Greece. About long and wide, it is one of the largest enclosed gulfs in Greece...
, while to the east it was separated from Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
and Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
by the Pindus
Pindus
The Pindus mountain range is located in northern Greece and southern Albania. It is roughly 160 km long, with a maximum elevation of 2637 m . Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and Epirus, the Pindus range is often called the "spine of Greece"...
mountains. The island of Corfu
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
is situated off the coast of Epirus but is not regarded as part of it.
Rather than a clearly defined geographical term, "Northern Epirus" is largely a political and diplomatic term applied to those areas partly populated by ethnic Greeks that were incorporated into the newly-independent Albanian state in 1913. According to the 20th century definition, Northern Epirus stretches from the Ceraunian mountains
Ceraunian Mountains
The Ceraunian Mountains is a coastal mountain range in southwestern Albania. The name is derived from Ancient Greek Κεραύνια ὄρη, meaning "thunder-split peaks"....
north of Himara southward to the Greek border, and from the Ionian coast
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
to Lake Prespa
Lake Prespa
Prespa is the name of two freshwater lakes in southeast Europe, shared by Greece, Albania, and Macedonia. Of the total surface area, belongs to Macedonia, to Greece and to Albania...
. The region defined as Northern Epirus thus stretches further east than classical Epirus, and includes parts of the historical region Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
. Northern Epirus is rugged, characterized by steep limestone ridges that parallel the Ionian coast, with deep valleys between them. The main rivers of the area are: Vjosë/Aoos
Vjosë
Vjosë or Aoös is a river in northwestern Greece and southwestern Albania.Its total length is about , of which the first are in Greece, and the remaining are in Albania. Vjosë is fed by two secondary branches, both in Albania, the Drino river and the Shushicë.Its source is in Greece, specifically...
its tributary the Drino
Drino
The Drin or Drinos is a river in southern Albania and northwestern Greece, tributary of the Vjosë. Its source is in the northwestern part of the Ioannina Prefecture, near the village Delvinaki. It flows initially southwest, then northwest and crosses the Albanian border near Ktismata. It continues...
, the Osum
Osum
The Osum is a river in southern Albania, one of the source rivers of the Seman. Its source is in the southern part of the Korçë District, near the village Vithkuq which rearches at an elevation of . It flows initially south to the Kolonjë District, then west to Çepan, and northwest through...
( Apsos) and the Devoll
Devoll
Devoll may refer to*Devoll District, in the Korçë County of south-eastern Albania.*Devoll Hydro Power Plant, a proposed power plant on the Devoll River, in Albania.*Devoll , in southern Albania....
( Eordaikos). Some of the cities and towns of the region are: Himarë
Himarë
Himarë is a bilingual region and municipality along the Albanian Riviera in southern Albania and part of the District of Vlorë. Apart from the town of Himarë, the region consists of 7 other villages: Dhërmi, Pilur, Kudhës, Qeparo, Vuno, Iljas, and Palasë....
, Sarandë
Sarandë
Sarandë or Saranda is the capital of the District of Sarandë, Albania, and is one of the most important tourist attractions of the Albanian Riviera. It is situated on an open sea gulf of the Ionian Sea in the Mediterranean 2 nautical miles from the Greek island of Corfu. The city of Saranda has a...
, Delvinë
Delvinë
Delvinë is a small town in Vlorë County in southern Albania, 16 km northeast of Saranda. Delvinë is the seat of the Delvinë District. Delvinë has lost over a third of its citizens since 1990, having a population of 4,200 .The city is built on a mountain slope...
, Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër is a city in southern Albania with a population of 43,000. Lying in the historical region of Epirus, it is the capital of both the Gjirokastër District and the larger Gjirokastër County...
, Tepelenë, Përmet
Përmet
Përmet is a town in Albania, capital of Përmet District. The population is 7,717. It is flanked by the Vjosë river, which runs along the Trebeshinë-Dhëmbel-Nemërçkë mountain chain, between Trebeshinë and Dhëmbel mountains, and through the Këlcyra gorge....
, Leskovik
Leskovik
Leskovik is a municipality in the Kolonjë District, Korçë County, southeastern Albania. Leskovik came under Ottoman rule in 15th century and became part of the Sanjak of Ioannina.-Notable people:*Ibrahim Sirri Leskoviku, Albanian politician....
, Ersekë, Korçë
Korçë
Korçë is a city in southeastern Albania and the capital of the Korçë District. It has a population of around 105,000 people , making it the sixth largest city in Albania...
, Bilisht
Bilisht
Bilisht is a city of about 12,000 people. It is the local capital of Devoll District, south-eastern Albania. The city is 9 km from the border with Greece at Kapshticë. The closest Greek town across the border is Krystallopigi in the Florina Prefecture. Bilisht is at about 800–850 meters above...
and the once prosperous town of Moscopole
Moscopole
Moscopole was a cultural and commercial center of the Aromanians, and now a small municipality in Korçë District, modern southeastern Albania. At its peak, in the mid 18th century, it hosted the first printing press in the Balkans outside Istanbul, educational institutions and numerous churches...
.
Mythological foundations and ancient settlements
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Elpenor
In Greek mythology, Elpenor was a comrade of Odysseus.-The story:Elpenor was not especially notable for his intelligence or strength, but he survived the Trojan War, and appears in the Odyssey. He is the youngest man to survive the Laestrygonians...
from Ithaca
Ithaca
Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
, in charge of Locrians
Locrians
The Locrians were an ancient Greek tribe in Greece. The Locrians spoke the Locrian dialect, a Doric-Northwest dialect, which indicates that they may have been relatives of the Dorians. They inhabited the ancient region of Locris in Central Greece....
and Abantes
Abantes
The Abantes were an ancient Ionian tribe. Their home was Euboea.- Origins :Aristotle of Chalcis states that the Abantes were Thracians from Abae in Phokis...
from Evia
Evia
Evia is a Spanish family name.* Edgar de EviaEvia as used in company names:* Evia Oyj, Finnish marketing communication agencyEvia is also an alternate spelling of:* The Greek island Euboea* The town Iŭje in Belarus...
, founded the cities of Orikum
Orikum
Orikum is a municipality in the Vlorë District, Vlorë County, southwestern Albania. It was named after the ancient city Oricum, which was located 4 km west of modern Orikum. The municipality consists of the town Orikum and the villages Dukat Fushë, Dukat, Tragjas and Radhimë...
and Thronium
Thronium
Thronion or Thronium was an ancient Greek city of the Euboian-Lokrians in Epirus. It is believed to lie somewhere to the south of Vlorë, between the Shushicë River and the sea....
on the Bay of Aulon. Amantia
Amantia
Amantia or Abantia was an ancient Greek polis in Epirus. It occupied an important defensive position above the Aoos river valley to the east, and on the road to the coast and the Bay of Vlorë. A Greek temple, the Aphrodite temple, a theatre, and a stadium have also been found in the city...
was believed to have been founded by Abantes from Thronium. Neoptolemos of the Aeacid dynasty, in charge of Myrmidones, founded a settlement which in classical antiquity would become known as Bylliace (near Apollonia
Apollonia, Illyria
Apollonia was an ancient Greek city in Illyria, located on the right bank of the Aous river . Its ruins are situated in the Fier region, near the village of Pojani, in modern-day Albania...
). Aeneas
Aeneas
Aeneas , in Greco-Roman mythology, was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite. His father was the second cousin of King Priam of Troy, making Aeneas Priam's second cousin, once removed. The journey of Aeneas from Troy , which led to the founding a hamlet south of...
and Helenus
Helenus
Helenus was a Trojan soldier and prophet in the Trojan War.In Greek mythology, Helenus was the son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy, and the twin brother of the prophetess Cassandra. He was also called Scamandrios. According to legend, Cassandra, having been given the power of prophecy by...
were believed to have founded Bouthroton (modern-day Butrint
Butrint
Butrint was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in Epirus. In modern times it is an archeological site in Sarandë District, Albania, some 14 kilometres south of Sarandë and close to the Greek border. It was known in antiquity as Βουθρωτόν Bouthroton or Βουθρώτιος Bouthrotios in Ancient Greek...
). Moreover, a son of Helenus
Helenus
Helenus was a Trojan soldier and prophet in the Trojan War.In Greek mythology, Helenus was the son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy, and the twin brother of the prophetess Cassandra. He was also called Scamandrios. According to legend, Cassandra, having been given the power of prophecy by...
named Chaon was believed to be the ancestral leader of the Chaonians
Chaonians
The Chaonians were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Epirus located in the north-west of modern Greece and southern Albania. On their southern frontier lay another Epirote kingdom, that of the Molossians, to their southwest stood the kingdom of the Thesprotians, and to their...
.
Prehistory and Ancient period
The earliest recorded inhabitants of the region (c. 7th century BC) were the Chaonians
Chaonians
The Chaonians were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Epirus located in the north-west of modern Greece and southern Albania. On their southern frontier lay another Epirote kingdom, that of the Molossians, to their southwest stood the kingdom of the Thesprotians, and to their...
, one of the main Greek tribes of ancient Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
, and the region was known as Chaonia
Chaonia
Chaonia or Chaon was the name of the northwestern part of Epirus, the homeland of the Greek tribe of the Chaonians. Its main town was called Phoenice. According to Virgil, Chaon was the eponymous ancestor of the Chaonians....
. During the 7th century B.C. Chaonian rule was dominant over the region and their power stretched from the Ionian coast to the region of Korçë
Korçë
Korçë is a city in southeastern Albania and the capital of the Korçë District. It has a population of around 105,000 people , making it the sixth largest city in Albania...
in the east. Important Chaonian settlements in the area included their capital Phoenice
Phoenice
Phoenice or Phoenike was an ancient Greek city in Epirus and capital of the Chaonians. It was also the location of the Treaty of Phoenice which ended the First Macedonian War, as well as one of the wealthiest cities in Epirus until the Roman conquest. During the early Byzantine period, Phoenice...
, the ports of Onchesmos and Chimaera (modern-day Saranda and Himara, respectively), and the port of Bouthroton (modern-day Butrint
Butrint
Butrint was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in Epirus. In modern times it is an archeological site in Sarandë District, Albania, some 14 kilometres south of Sarandë and close to the Greek border. It was known in antiquity as Βουθρωτόν Bouthroton or Βουθρώτιος Bouthrotios in Ancient Greek...
. Tumulus II in Kuc i Zi near modern Korçë is to date to that age (ca. 650 B.C.) and it is claimed that it belonged to Chaonian nobles. The strength of the Chaonians prevented other Greeks from establishing colonies on the Chaonian shore, however, several colonies were established in the 8th-6th centuries BC immediately to the north of the Ceraunian mountains
Ceraunian Mountains
The Ceraunian Mountains is a coastal mountain range in southwestern Albania. The name is derived from Ancient Greek Κεραύνια ὄρη, meaning "thunder-split peaks"....
, the northern limit of Chaonian territory. These include Aulon (modern-day Vlorë
Vlorë
Vlorë is one of the biggest towns and the second largest port city of Albania, after Durrës, with a population of about 94,000 . It is the city where the Albanian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed on November 28, 1912...
), Apollonia, Epidamnus (modern-day Durres
Durrës
Durrës is the second largest city of Albania located on the central Albanian coast, about west of the capital Tirana. It is one of the most ancient and economically important cities of Albania. Durres is situated at one of the narrower points of the Adriatic Sea, opposite the Italian ports of Bari...
, Oricum, Thronion, and Amantia
Amantia
Amantia or Abantia was an ancient Greek polis in Epirus. It occupied an important defensive position above the Aoos river valley to the east, and on the road to the coast and the Bay of Vlorë. A Greek temple, the Aphrodite temple, a theatre, and a stadium have also been found in the city...
.
In 330 BC, the tribes of Epirus were united into a single kingdom under the Aeacid ruler Alcetas II
Alcetas II of Epirus
Alcetas I , king of Epirus, was the son of Tharypus. For a reason, of which we are not informed, he was expelled from his kingdom, and took refuge with Dionysius I of Syracuse, by whom he was reinstated. After his restoration we find him the ally of the Athenians, and of Jason of Pherae, the...
of the Molossians
Molossians
The Molossians were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Epirus since the Mycenaean era. On their northeast frontier they had the Chaonians and to their southern frontier the kingdom of the Thesprotians, to their north were the Illyrians. The Molossians were part of the League of...
, and in 232 B.C. the Epirotes established the "Epirotic League" , with Phoenice
Phoenice
Phoenice or Phoenike was an ancient Greek city in Epirus and capital of the Chaonians. It was also the location of the Treaty of Phoenice which ended the First Macedonian War, as well as one of the wealthiest cities in Epirus until the Roman conquest. During the early Byzantine period, Phoenice...
as one of its centers. The unified state of Epirus was a significant power in the Greek world until the Roman
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
conquest in 167 BC.
Roman and Byzantine period
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In Roman times, the ancient Greek region of Epirus became the province of Epirus vetus ("Old Epirus"), while a new province Epirus Nova ("Epirus Nova") was formed out of parts of Illyria
Illyria
In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
that had become partly Hellenic
Hellenic
Hellenic is a synonym for Greek and may refer to:* Hellenic languages* Hellenic Airlines* Hellenic College, a liberal arts college in Brookline, Massachusetts* Hellenic College of London* Hellenic FC, a football club in South Africa...
or partly Hellenized. The line of division between Epirus Nova and the province of Illyricum
Illyricum (Roman province)
The Roman province of Illyricum or Illyris Romana or Illyris Barbara or Illyria Barbara replaced most of the region of Illyria. It stretched from the Drilon river in modern north Albania to Istria in the west and to the Sava river in the north. Salona functioned as its capital...
was the Drin River
Drin River
The Drin is the longest river in Albania with a total length of . It has two distributaries, one going directly into the Adriatic Sea, the other one into the Bojana River .- Origin :...
in modern 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...
. This line of division also corresponds with the Jirecek line
Jirecek Line
The Jireček Line is an imaginary line through the ancient Balkans that divided the influences of the Latin and Greek languages until the 4th century...
, which divides the Balkans into those areas under Hellenic influence in antiquity, and those under Latin influence.
When the Roman Empire split into East and West, Epirus became part of the East Roman (Byzantine) Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
; the region witnessed the invasions of several nations: Visigoths, Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
, Slavs, Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
, Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
, and various Italian city-states
Italian city-states
The Italian city-states were a political phenomenon of small independent states mostly in the central and northern Italian peninsula between the 10th and 15th centuries....
and dynasties (14th century). However the region’s culture remained closely tied to the centers of the Greek world, and retained its Greek character through the medieval period.
In 1204, the region was part of the Despotate of Epirus
Despotate of Epirus
The Despotate or Principality of Epirus was one of the Byzantine Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire that emerged in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. It claimed to be the legitimate successor of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Empire of Nicaea, and the Empire of Trebizond...
, a successor state of the Byzantine Empire. Despot Michael I
Michael I Komnenos Doukas
Michael I Komnenos Doukas or Comnenus Ducas , often inaccurately called Michael Angelos , was the founder and first ruler of the principality of Epirus from 1205 until his death in 1215.-Life:...
found there strong Greek support in order to facilitate his claims for the Empire’s revival. In 1281, a strong Sicilian force that planned to conquer Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
was repelled in Berat
Berat
Berat is a town located in south-central Albania. As of 2009, the town has an estimated population of around 71,000 people. It is the capital of both the District of Berat and the larger County of Berat...
after a series of combined operations by local Epirotes and Byzantine troops. In 1345, the region was ruled by the Serbs of Stefan Dušan. However, the Serbian rulers retained much of the Byzantine tradition and used Byzantine titles to secure the loyalty of the local population. At the same time Venetians controlled various ports of strategic importance, like Vouthroton, but the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
presence became more and more intense until finally in the middle of the 15th century, the entire area came under Turkish rule.
Ottoman period
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Himarë
Himarë is a bilingual region and municipality along the Albanian Riviera in southern Albania and part of the District of Vlorë. Apart from the town of Himarë, the region consists of 7 other villages: Dhërmi, Pilur, Kudhës, Qeparo, Vuno, Iljas, and Palasë....
, Droviani, or Moscopole
Moscopole
Moscopole was a cultural and commercial center of the Aromanians, and now a small municipality in Korçë District, modern southeastern Albania. At its peak, in the mid 18th century, it hosted the first printing press in the Balkans outside Istanbul, educational institutions and numerous churches...
. In spite of the Ottoman presence, Christianity prevailed in many areas and became an important reason for preserving the Greek language, which was also the language of trade. According to the Ottoma "Millet" system, religion was the main identifier of ethnicity, and thus all Orthodox Christians (including Aromanians and Orthodox Albanians) were classified as "Greeks", while all Muslims (including Muslim Albanians) were considered "Turks". This view would continue to influence Greek perceptions of the territory for much of the 20th century.
Between the 16th and 19th centuries, inhabitants of the region participated in the Greek Enlightenment
Diafotismos
The Modern Greek Enlightenment was an ideological, philological, linguistic and philosophical movement among 18th century Greeks that translate the ideas and values of European Enlightenment into the Greek world.-Origins:...
. One of the leading figures of that period, the Orthodox missionary Cosmas of Aetolia, traveled and preached extensively in northern Epirus, founding the Acroceraunian school
Acroceraunian School
The Acroceraunian School is a Greek elementary school in the town of Himara, southern Albania. It was founded in 1779 by Cosmas the Aetolian and throughout its history has been associated with the Greek culture of the area...
in Himara in 1770. It is believed that he founded more than 200 Greek schools until his execution by Turkish authorities near Berat. In addition, the first printing press in the Balkans, after that of Constantinople, was founded in Moscopole
Moscopole
Moscopole was a cultural and commercial center of the Aromanians, and now a small municipality in Korçë District, modern southeastern Albania. At its peak, in the mid 18th century, it hosted the first printing press in the Balkans outside Istanbul, educational institutions and numerous churches...
(nicknamed "New Athens") by a local Greek. From the mid-18th century trade in the region was thriving and a great number of educational facilities and institutions were founded throughout the rural regions and the major urban centers as benefactions by several Epirot entrepreneurs. In Korce a special community fund was established that aimed at the fundation of Greek cultural institutions.
During this period a number of uprisings against the Ottoman empire periodically broke out. In the Orlov Revolt
Orlov Revolt
The Orlov Revolt was a precursor to the Greek War of Independence , which saw a Greek uprising in the Peloponnese at the instigation of Count Orlov, commander of the Russian Naval Forces of the Russo-Turkish War...
(1770) several units of Riziotes, Chormovites and Himariotes supported the armed operation. Northern Epirus took also part in the Greek War of Independence
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...
(1821–1830): many locals revolted, organized armed groups and joined the revolution. The most distinguished personalities were the engineer Konstantinos Lagoumitzis
Konstantinos Lagoumitzis
Konstantinos Lagoumitzis was a Greek revolutionary during the War of Greek Independence , famous for his ability to dig underground tunnels during sieges....
from Hormovo and Michail Spyromilios
Michail Spyromilios
Spyromilios or Spyros Milios, was a Greek revolutionary, general and politician.-Early life:He was born in Himara, Northern Epirus, in modern southern Albania, then part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1810 he went to Naples in Italy, where he remained until 1819, studying military theory and learning...
from Himarë. The latter was one of the most active generals of the revolutionaries and participated in several major armed conflicts, such as the Third Siege of Missolonghi, where Lagoumitzis was the defenders' chief engineer. M. Spyromilios also became a prominent political figure after the creation of the modern Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
state and discreetly supported the revolt of his compatriots in Ottoman-occupied Epirus in 1854
Epirus Revolt of 1854
The 1854 revolt in Epirus was one of the most important of a series of Greek uprisings that occurred in the Ottoman-occupied Greek world during that period. When the Crimean War broke out, many Epirote Greeks, with tacit support from the Greek state, revolted against the Ottoman rule...
, during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. Another uprising in 1878
Epirus Revolt of 1878
The 1878 revolt in Epirus was the part of a series of Greek uprisings that occurred in the Ottoman-ruled Greece during the outbreak of the Russo-Turkish War . Although Greek officials individually supported the revolt, the Greek Government, being aware of the international situation in eastern...
, in the Saranda-Delvina region, with the revolutionaries demanding union with Greece, was suppressed by the Ottoman forces, while in 1881, the Treaty of Berlin
Treaty of Berlin
The name Treaty of Berlin is attached to several treaties:* Treaty of Berlin , an alliance between Hanover-Great Britain and Denmark in the Great Northern War* Treaty of Berlin , between Austria and Prussia, signed but not ratified by Russia...
awarded to Greece the southernmost parts of Epirus.
Balkan Wars (1912-1913)
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
(1912–1913) and the Ottoman defeat, the Greek army entered the region. The outcome of the following Peace Treaties of London and of Bucharest, signed at the end of the Second Balkan War
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...
, was unpopular among both Greeks and Albanians, as settlements of the two people existed on both sides of the border: Northern Epirus, already under the control of the Greek army, was awarded to the newly found Albanian State, while the southern part was ceded to Greece.
Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus (1914)
In accordance with the wishes of the local Greek population, the Autonomous Republic of Northern EpirusAutonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
The Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus was a short-lived, self-governing entity founded on February 28, 1914, in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, by the Greeks living in southern Albania ....
, centered in Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër is a city in southern Albania with a population of 43,000. Lying in the historical region of Epirus, it is the capital of both the Gjirokastër District and the larger Gjirokastër County...
on account of the latter's large Greek population, was declared in March 1914 by the pro-Greek party, which was in power in southern Albania at that time. Georgios Christakis-Zografos
Georgios Christakis-Zografos
Georgios Christakis-Zografos was a Greek politician, minister of foreign affairs and president of the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus .-Studies & early career:...
, a distinguished Greek politician from Lunxhëri
Lunxhëri
Lunxhëri is a municipality in the district of Gjirokastër, Gjirokastër County, Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Qestorat, Dhoksat, Këllëz, Mingul, Nokovë, Erind, Gjat, Kakoz, Karjan and Valare....
, took the initiative and became the head of the Republic. In May, autonomy was confirmed with the Protocol of Corfu
Protocol of Corfu
The Protocol of Corfu , signed on May 17, 1914, was an agreement between representatives of the Albanian Government and the Provisional Government of Northern Epirus, which officially recognized the area of Northern Epirus as an autonomous region within the Albanian state...
, signed by Albanian and Northern Epiroterepresentatives and approved by the Great Powers. The signing of the Protocol ensured that the region would have its own administration, recognized the rights of the local Greeks and provided self government under nominal Albanian sovereignty.
However, the agreement was never fully implemented, because when World War I broke out in July, Albania collapsed. Although short-lived, the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus left behind a substantial historical record, such as its own postage stamps.
World War I and following peace treaties (1914-1921)
Under an October 1914 agreement among the Allies, Greek forces re-entered Northern Epirus and the Italians seized the Vlore region. Greece officially annexed Northern Epirus in March 1916, but was forced to revoke by the Great Powers. During the war the French Army occupied the area around KorçëKorçë
Korçë is a city in southeastern Albania and the capital of the Korçë District. It has a population of around 105,000 people , making it the sixth largest city in Albania...
in 1916, and established the Republic of Korçë. In 1917 Greece lost control of the rest of Northern Epirus to Italy, who by then had took over most of Albania. The Paris Peace Conference of 1919 awarded the area to Greece after World War I, however, political developments such as the Greek defeat in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-22 and, crucially, Italian, Austrian and German lobbying in favor of Albania resulted in the area being ceded to Albania in November 1921.
Interwar period (1921-1939) - Zog's regime
The Albanian Government, with the country's entrance to the League of NationsLeague of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
(October 1921), made the commitment to respect the social, educational, religious rights of every minority. Questions arose over the size of the Greek minority, with the Albanian government claiming 16,000, and the League of Nations estimating it at 35,000-40,000. In the event, only a limited area in the Districts of Gjirokastër, Sarandë and four villages in Himarë region consisting of 15,000 inhabitants was recognized as a Greek minority zone. The following years, measures were taken to suppress the minority's education. The Albanian state viewed Greek education as a potential threat to its territorial integrity. Greek schools were either closed or forcibly converted to Albanian schools and teachers were expelled from the country. The 360 schools of the pre-World War I period were reduced dramatically in the following years and education in Greek was finally eliminated altogether in 1935:
1926: 78, 1927: 68, 1928: 66, 1929: 60, 1930: 63, 1931: 64, 1932: 43, 1933: 10, 1934: 0
With the intervention of the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
in 1935, a limited number of schools, and only of those inside the officially recognized zone, were reopened.
During this period, the Albanian state led efforts to establish an independent orthodox church
Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania
The Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania is one of the newest autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches. It declared its autocephaly in 1922, and gained recognition from the Patriarch of Constantinople in 1937....
(contrary to the Protocol of Corfu), thereby reducing the influence of Greek language in the country's south. According to a 1923 law, priests who were not Albanian speakers, as well as not of Albanian origin, were excluded from this new autocephalous church.
World War II (1939-1945)
In 1939, Albania became an Italian protectorateProtectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
and was used to facilitate military operations against Greece the following year. The Italian attack, launched at October 28, 1940 was quickly repelled by the Greek forces. The Greek army, although facing a numerically and technologically superior army, counterattacked and in the next month managed to enter Northern Epirus. Northern Epirus thus became the site of the first clear setback for the Axis powers
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
. However, after a six month period of Greek administration, the invasion of Greece by Nazi Germany
Battle of Greece
The Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
followed in April 1941 and Greece capitulated.
Following Greece's surrender, Northern Epirus again became part of the Italian-occupied Albanian protectorate. Many Northern Epirotes formed resistance groups and organizations in the struggle against the occupation forces. In 1942 the Northern Epirote Liberation Organization
Northern Epirus Liberation Front
The Northern Epirus Liberation Front also called Northern Epirote Liberation Organization , was an ethnic Greek resistance group that operated in areas of southern Albania during the Italian and German occupation of Albania...
(EAOVI, also called MAVI) was formed. Some others joined the left-wing Albanian National Liberation Army, in which they formed a separate battalion (named Thanasis Zikos).
During October 1943-April 1944, the Albanian collaborationist organization Balli Kombëtar
Balli Kombëtar
Balli Kombëtar was an Albanian nationalist, anti-communist and anti-monarchy organization established in October 1939. It was led by Ali Këlcyra and Mit’hat Frashëri...
with support of Nazi German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
officers mounted a major offensive in Northern Epirus and fierce fighting occurred between them and the EAOVI. The results were devastating. During this period over 200 Greek populated towns and villages were burned or destroyed, 2,000 Northern Epirotes were killed, 5,000 imprisoned and 2,000 taken hostages to concentration camps. Moreover, 15,000 homes, schools and churches were destroyed. Thirty thousand people had to find refuge in Greece during and after that period, leaving their homeland. When the war ended, a United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
resolution demanded the cession of the region to the Greek state, but according to the following post war international peace treaties it remained part of the Albanian state.
General violations of human and minority rights
After World War II, Albania was governed by a Communist regime led by Enver HoxhaEnver Hoxha
Enver Halil Hoxha was a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary andthe leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania...
, which suppressed the minority (along with the rest of the population) and took measures to disperse it or at least keep it loyal to Albania. Pupils were taught only Albanian history and culture at primary level, the minority zone was reduced from 103 to 99 villages (excluding Himarë), many Greeks were forcibly removed from the minority zones to other parts of the country, thereby losing their fundamental minority rights (as a product of communist population policy, an important and constant element of which was to pre-empt ethnic sources of political dissent). Greek place-names were changed to Albanian ones, and Greeks were forced to change their personal names into Albanian names. Archeological sites of the Ancient Greek and Roman era were also presented as "Illyrian" by the state. The use of the Greek language, prohibited everywhere outside the minority zones, was prohibited for many official purposes within them as well. As a result of these policies, relations with Greece remained extremely tense throughout most of the Cold War. On the other hand, Enver Hoxha favored a few specific members of the minority, offering them prominent positions within the country's system, as part of his "tokenism" policy. However, when the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
asked about giving more rights to the minority, even autonomy, the answer was negative.
Censorship
Strict censorship was introduced in Socialist Albania as early as 1944, while the press remained under tight dictatorial control right up until the end of the Eastern BlocEastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
(1991). In 1945, Laiko Vima
Laiko Vima
Laiko Vima is a bi-weekly newspaper published in Gjirokastër, that serves the local Greek communities in Albania. It was founded in 1945 and was the only newspaper printed in the Greek language during the Socialist People's Republic of Albania.-Background:...
, a propaganda organ of the Party of Labour of Albania, was the only printed media that was allowed to be published in Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
and was accessible only within Gjirokastër District
Gjirokastër District
The District of Gjirokastër is one of the thirty-six districts of Albania. It has a population of 56,720 containing a large Greek minority, and an area of 1,137 km². It is in the south of the country, and its capital is Gjirokastër...
.
Resettlement policy
Although the Greek minority had some limited rights, during that period a number of Muslim Cham AlbaniansCham Albanians
Cham Albanians, or Chams , are a sub-group of Albanians who originally resided in the coastal region of Epirus in northwestern Greece, an area known among Albanians as Chameria. The Chams have their own peculiar cultural identity, which is a mixture of Albanian and Greek influences as well as many...
, that were expelled from Greece after World War II, were given new homes in the area, diluting the local Greek element. Moreover, during this period a number of new settlements, consisting of Muslim settlers, were created as a buffer zone between the recognized 'minority zone' and regions of unclear ethnic consciousness.
Isolation and labour camps
Stalinist Albania, already increasingly paranoid and isolated after de-StalinizationDe-Stalinization
De-Stalinization refers to the process of eliminating the cult of personality, Stalinist political system and the Gulag labour-camp system created by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Stalin was succeeded by a collective leadership after his death in March 1953...
and the death of Mao Tse Tung (1976), restricted visitors to 6,000 per year, and segregated those few that traveled to Albania. The country was virtually isolated and common penalties for attempts to escape the country, for ethnic Greeks, were execution for the offenders and exile for their families, usually in mining camps
Labor camp
A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons...
in central and northern Albania. The regime maintained twenty-nine prisons and labour camps throughout Albania, that were filled with more than 30,000 "enemies of the state" year after year. It was unofficially reported that a large percentage of the imprisoned were ethnic Greeks.
Prohibition of religion
The state attempted to suppress any religious practice (both public and private), adherence to which was considered "anti-modern" and dangerous to the unity of the Albanian state. The process started in 1949, with the confiscation and nationalization of Orthodox Church property and intensified in 1967 when the authorities conducted a violent campaign to extinguish all religious life in Albania, claiming that it had divided the Albanian nation and kept it mired in backwardness. Student agitators combed the countryside, likewise forcing Albanians and Greeks to quit practicing their faith. All churches, mosques, monasteries and other religious institutions were closed or converted into warehouses, gymnasiums, and workshops. Clergy were imprisoned, and owning an icon became an offense that could be prosecuted under Albanian law. The campaign culminated in an announcement that Albania had become the world's first atheistic state, a feat touted as one of Enver Hoxha's greatest achievements. Christians were prohibited from mentioning Orthodoxy even in their own homes, visit their parents’ graves, light memorial candles or make the sign of the Cross. In this respect, the campaign against religions hit ethnic Greeks disproportionately, since affiliation to the Eastern Orthodox rite has traditionally been a strong component of Greek identity.- See also: Orthodox Autocephalous Church of AlbaniaOrthodox Autocephalous Church of AlbaniaThe Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania is one of the newest autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches. It declared its autocephaly in 1922, and gained recognition from the Patriarch of Constantinople in 1937....
, Religion in communist Albania
1980s thaw
The first serious attempt to improve relations was initiated by Greece in the 1980s, during the government of Andreas PapandreouAndreas Papandreou
Andreas G. Papandreou ; 5 February 1919 – 23 June 1996) was a Greek economist, a socialist politician and a dominant figure in Greek politics. The son of Georgios Papandreou, Andreas was a Harvard-trained academic...
. In 1984, during a speech in Epirus, Papandreou declared that the inviolability of European borders as stipulated in the Helsinki Final Act
Helsinki Accords
thumb|300px|[[Erich Honecker]] and [[Helmut Schmidt]] in Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe held in Helsinki 1975....
of 1975, to which Greece was a signatory, applied to the Greek-Albanian border. The most significant change occurred on 28 August 1987, when the Greek Cabinet lifted the state of war that had been declared since November 1940. At the same time, Papandreou deplored the "miserable condition under which the Greeks in Albania live".
Post-communist period (1991-present)
Beginning in 1990, large number of Albanian citizens, including members of the Greek minority, began seeking refuge in Greece. This exodus turned into a flood by 1991, creating a new reality in Greek-Albanian relations. With the fall of communism in 1991, Orthodox churches were reopened and religious practices were permitted after 35 years of strict prohibition. Moreover, Greek-language education was initially expanded. In 1991 ethnic Greeks shops in the town of Saranda were attacked, and inter-ethnic relations throughout Albania worsened. Greek-Albanian tensions escalated in November 1993 when seven Greek schools were forcibly closed by the Albanian police. A purge of ethnic Greeks in the professions in Albania continued in 1994, with particular emphasis in law and the military. On 10 April 1994, Albania announced that two of its soldiers had been killed in an attack on a military camp in Peshkepi, close to the Greek border. The attack was claimed by the Northern Epirus Liberation Front (MAVI), which had officially disbanded at the end of World War II.Trial of the Omonoia Five
Tensions increased when on 20 May 1994 the Albanian Government took into custody five members of the ethnic Greek advocacy organization OmonoiaOmonoia (organization)
Omonoia is a social, political and cultural organization in Albania that promotes minority rights for the Greek minority in the south of the country....
on the charge of high treason, accusing them of secessionist activities and illegal possession of weapons (a sixth member was added later). Sentences of six to eight years were handed down. The accusations, the manner in which the trial was conducted and its outcome were strongly criticized by Greece as well as international organizations. Greece responded by freezing all EU aid to Albania, sealing its border with Albania, and between August–November 1994, expelling
over 115,000 illegal Albanian immigrants
Albanians in Greece
After the fall of communism throughout Eastern Europe in the late 1980s and early 1990s, a large number of economic refugees and immigrants from Greece's neighboring countries, Albania, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Romania, as well as from more distant countries such as Russia, Ukraine,...
, a figure quoted in the US Department of State Human Rights Report and given to the American authorities by their Greek counterpart. Tensions increased even further when the Albanian government drafted a law requiring the head of the Orthodox Church in Albania be born in Albania, which would force the then head of the church, the Greek Archbishop Anastasios of Albania
Archbishop Anastasios of Albania
Archbishop Dr Anastasios of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania is the Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania and as such the primate and Head of the Holy Synod of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania. He was elected on June 1992...
from his post. In December 1994, however, Greece began to permit limited EU aid to Albania as a gesture of goodwill, while Albania released two of the Omonoia defendants and reduced the sentences of the remaining four. In 1995, the remaining defendants were released on suspended sentences.
Recent years
In recent years relations have significantly improved; Greece and Albania signed a Friendship, Cooperation, Good Neighborliness and Security Agreement on March 21, 1996. Additionally, Greece is Albania's main foreign investor, having invested more than 400 million dollars in Albania, Albania's second largest trading partner, with Greek products accounting for some 21% of Albanian imports, and 12% of Albanian exports coming to Greece, and Albania's fourth largest donor country, having provided aid amounting to 73.8 million euros.Although relations between Albania and Greece have greatly improved in recent years, the Greek minority in Albania continues to suffer discrimination particularly regarding education in the Greek language, property rights of the minority, and violent incidents against the minority by nationalist extremists. Tensions resurfaced during local government elections in Himara in 2000, when a number of incidents of hostility towards the Greek minority took place, as well as with the defacing of signposts written in Greek in the country's south by Albanian nationalist elements, and more recently following the death of Aristotelis Goumas
Death of Aristotelis Goumas
The death of Aristotelis Goumas took place on August 12, 2010, in Himara, Albania, when the motorcycle of 37-year-old ethnic Greek shopkeeper Aristotelis Goumas was hit by a car driven by three Albanian men from Vlore...
. According to diplomatic sources, there has recently been an upsurge in nationalist activity among Albanians targeting the Greek minority, especially following the ruling of the International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
in favor of Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo 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...
's independence.
Demographics
In AlbaniaAlbania
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...
, Greeks are considered a "national minority". There are no reliable statistics on the size of any ethnic minorities
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
in Albania, as the Albanian government does not include them on the census. The Albanian government is not going to conduct an official census on ethnicity. Some commentators allege that this is out of fear that a considerable part of the population will register themselves as Greek.
According to data presented to the 1919 Paris Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
, by the Greek side, the Greek minority numbered 120,000, and the last census to include data on ethnic minorities conducted in 1989 under the communist regime cites only 58,785 Greeks although the total population of Albania had tripled in the meantime. More recent estimations by the Albanian government raise the number to 80,000.
However, the area studied was confined to the southern border, and this estimate is considered to be low. Under this definition, minority status was limited to those who lived in 99 villages in the southern border areas, thereby excluding important concentrations of Greek settlement and making the minority seem smaller than it is. Sources from the Greek minority have claimed that there are up to 400,000 Greeks in Albania, or 12% of the total population at the time (from the "Epirot lobby" of Greeks with family roots in Albania). Most western estimates of the minority's size put it at around 200,000, or ~6% of the population, though a large number, possibly two thirds, has migrated to Greece in recent years.
The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization
Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization
The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization , formed in 11 February 1991, in The Hague, is an international organization of political organisations and governments representing self-proclaimed "indigenous peoples, minorities, and unrecognised or occupied territories". The organization...
estimates the Greek minority at approximately 70,000 people. Other independent sources estimate that the number of Greeks in Northern Epirus is 117,000 (about 3.5% of the total population), a figure close to the estimate provided by The World Factbook (2006)
The World Factbook
The World Factbook is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official paper copy version is available from the National Technical Information Service and the Government Printing Office...
(about 3%). But this number was 8% by the same agency a year before. A 2003 survey conducted by Greek scholars estimate the size of the Greek minority at around 60.000. The total population of Northern Epirus is estimated to be around 577,000 (2002), with main ethnic groups being Albanians, Greeks and Vlachs.
The Northern Epirote issue at present
While violent incidents have declined in recent years, the ethnic Greek minority has pursued grievances with the government regarding electoral zones, Greek-language education, property rights. On the other hand minority representatives complain of the government's unwillingness to recognize the possible existence of ethnic Greek towns outside communist-era 'minority zones'; to utilize Greek on official documents and on public signs in ethnic Greek areas; to ascertain the size of the ethnic Greek population; and to include more ethnic Greeks in public administration. There have been many minor incidents between the Greek population and Albanian authorities over issues such as the alleged involvement of the Greek government in local politics, the raising of the Greek flagFlag of Greece
The flag of Greece , officially recognized by Greece as one of its national symbols, is based on nine equal horizontal stripes of blue alternating with white...
on Albanian territory, and the language taught in state schools of the region; however, these issues have, for the most part, been non-violent.
'Minority zone'
Protests against irregularities in 2011 census
The census of October 2011 will include ethnicity for the first time in post-communist Albania, a long standing demand of the Greek minority and of international organizations. However, Greek representatives already found this procedure unacceptable due to article 20 of the Census law, which was proposed by the nationalist oriented Party for Justice, Integration and UnityParty for Justice, Integration and Unity
The Party for Justice, Integration and Unity is a political party in Albania whose primary aim is promotion of the national issues of Albanians, including Kosovo, Albanians in Macedonia, Montenegro, Presevo valley and especially the Cham issue....
and accepted by the Albanian government. According to this, there is a $1,000 fine for someone who will declare anything other than what was written down on his birth certificate, including certificates from the communist-era where minority status was limited to only 99 villages. Indeed, Omonoia unanimously decided to boycott the census, since it violates the fundamental right of self determination. Moreover, the Greek government called its Albanian counterpart for urgent action, since the right of free self-determination is not being guaranteed under these circumstances.
Minority's representation on local and state politics
The minority's sociopolitical organization from promotion of Greek human rights, OmonoiaOmonoia (organization)
Omonoia is a social, political and cultural organization in Albania that promotes minority rights for the Greek minority in the south of the country....
, founded in January 1991, took an active role on minority issues. Omonoia was banned in the parliamentary elections of March 1991, because it violated the Albanian law which forbade 'formation of parties on a religious, ethnic and regional basis'. This situation resulted in a number of strong protests not only from the Greek side, but also from international organizations. Finally, on behalf of Omonoia, the Unity for Human Rights Party
Unity for Human Rights Party
The Unity for Human Rights Party is a centrist, liberal-inclined party in Albania. Founded in 1992, it represents Albania's minorities and is mainly related to the Greek minority as it is the political continuation of the Democratic Union of the Greek Minority .-Election results:The party usually...
contested at the following elections, a party which represents that Greek minority in the Albanian parliament.
In more recent years, tensions have surrounded the participation of candidates of the Unity for Human Rights Party in Albanian elections. In 2000, the Albanian municipal elections were criticised by international human rights groups for "serious irregularities" reported to have been directed against ethnic Greek candidates and parties. The most recent municipal elections held in February 2007 saw the participation of a number of ethnic Greek candidates, with Vasilis Bolanos
Vasilis Bolanos
Vasil Bollano is the chairman of Omonoia and representative of the Greeks living in Albania.In 2007, Bollano claimed that the Greek community of Albania deserved the same rights as the Albanians in Kosovo. On 21 April 2009, he was initially sentenced to 6 months in prison and a 3800 euro fine, for...
being re-elected mayor of the southern town of Himarë
Himarë
Himarë is a bilingual region and municipality along the Albanian Riviera in southern Albania and part of the District of Vlorë. Apart from the town of Himarë, the region consists of 7 other villages: Dhërmi, Pilur, Kudhës, Qeparo, Vuno, Iljas, and Palasë....
despite the governing and opposition Albanian parties fielding a combined candidate against him. Greek observers have expressed concern at the "non-conformity of procedure" in the conduct of the elections.
In 2004, there were five ethnic Greek members in the Albanian Parliament, and two ministers in the Albanian cabinet. Politicians from the Greek minority have also become MPs for other parties, as Spiro Ksera and Kosta Barka for DPA; and Anastas Angjeli, Vangjel Tavo for SPA.
Land distribution and property in post-communist Albania
The return to Albania of ethnic Greeks that were expelled during the past regime seemed possible after 1991. However, the return of their confiscated properties is even now impossible, due to Albanian's inability to compensate the present owners. Moreover, the full return of the Orthodox Church property also seems impossible for the same reasons.Education
Greek education in the region was thriving during the late Ottoman period (18th-19th centuries). When the First World War broke out in 1914, 360 Greek language schools were functioning in Northern Epirus (as well as in ElbasanElbasan
Elbasan is a city in central Albania. It is located on the Shkumbin River in the District of Elbasan and the County of Elbasan, at...
, Berat
Berat
Berat is a town located in south-central Albania. As of 2009, the town has an estimated population of around 71,000 people. It is the capital of both the District of Berat and the larger County of Berat...
, Tirana
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
) with 23,000 students. During the following decades the majority of Greek schools were closed and Greek education was prohibited in most districts. In the post-communist period (after 1991), the reopening of schools was one of the major objectives of the minority. In April 2005 a bilingual Greek-Albanian school in Korca, and after many years of efforts, a private Greek school was opened in the Himara municipality in spring of 2006.
Albania
In Albanian bibliography it is widely claimed that the Greek minority as it currently exists was the result of population movements under the Ottoman empire, and the great majority of the Greeks arrived in modern Albania as indentured labourers in the time of the Ottoman beys denying any link with local ancient Greek presence.In 1994 the Albanian authorities admitted for the first time that Greek minority members exist not only in the designated 'minority zones' but all over Albania.
Greece
In 1991, the Greek Prime Minister Konstantinos Mitsotakis specified that the issue, according the Greek minority in Albania, focuses on 6 major topics that the post-communist Albanian government should deal with:- The return of the confiscated property of the Orthodox Church and the freedom of religious practice.
- Functioning of Greek language schools (both public and private) in all the areas that Greek populations are concentrated.
- The Greek minority should be allowed to found cultural, religious, educational and social organizations.
- Illegal dismissals of members of the Greek minority from the country’s public sector should be stopped and same rights for admission should be granted (on every level) for every citizen.
- The Greek families that left Albania during the communist regime (1945–1991), should be encouraged to return to Albania and acquire their lost properties.
- The Albanian government should take the initiative to conduct a census on ethnological basis and give its citizens the right to choose without limitations their ethnicity.
Incidents
- In April 1994, Albania announced that unknown individuals attacked a military camp near the Greek-Albanian border (Peshkëpi incidentPeshkëpi incidentThe Peshkëpi incident was the killing of 2 Albanian army officers on 10 April, 1992 at 02:40 AM. Eight men, later identified as members of the Northern Epirus Liberation Front, a terrorist paramilitary organization, were involved in an attack on an Albanian army barracks in Peshkëpi, Dropull,...
), with two soldiers killed. Responsibility for the attack was taken by MAVINorthern Epirus Liberation FrontThe Northern Epirus Liberation Front also called Northern Epirote Liberation Organization , was an ethnic Greek resistance group that operated in areas of southern Albania during the Italian and German occupation of Albania...
(Northern Epirus Liberation Front), which officially ceased to exist since the end of World War II. This incident triggered a serious crisis between Albanian-Greek relations.
- The house of Himara's ethnic Greek mayor, Vasil Bollano, has been the target of a bomb attack twice, in 2004 and again in May 2010.
- On August 12, 2010, ethnic tensions soared after ethnic Greek shopkeeper Aristotelis Goumas was killedDeath of Aristotelis GoumasThe death of Aristotelis Goumas took place on August 12, 2010, in Himara, Albania, when the motorcycle of 37-year-old ethnic Greek shopkeeper Aristotelis Goumas was hit by a car driven by three Albanian men from Vlore...
when his motorcycle was hit by a car driven by three Albanian youths with whom Goumas allegedly had an altercation when they demanded that he not speak Greek to them in his store. Outraged locals blocked the main highway between VloreVlorëVlorë is one of the biggest towns and the second largest port city of Albania, after Durrës, with a population of about 94,000 . It is the city where the Albanian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed on November 28, 1912...
and Saranda and demanded reform and increased local Himariote representation in the local police force. The incident was condemned by both the Greek and Albanian governments and three suspects are currently in custody awaiting trial.
See also
- Autonomous Republic of Northern EpirusAutonomous Republic of Northern EpirusThe Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus was a short-lived, self-governing entity founded on February 28, 1914, in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, by the Greeks living in southern Albania ....
- Protocol of CorfuProtocol of CorfuThe Protocol of Corfu , signed on May 17, 1914, was an agreement between representatives of the Albanian Government and the Provisional Government of Northern Epirus, which officially recognized the area of Northern Epirus as an autonomous region within the Albanian state...
- AlbanisationAlbanisationAlbanisation is a term used to describe a linguistic or cultural assimilation to the Albanian language and Albanian culture.- In Kosovo :The term is used in reference to Kosovo....
- ChameriaChameriaChameria is a term used today mostly by Albanians for parts of the coastal region of Epirus in southern Albania and northwestern Greece It was also used by Greeks till the mid of 20th century and is frequently found in Greek literature. Today it is obsolete in Greek, surviving mainly in Greek folk...
- EpirusEpirusThe name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
- Northern Epirotes
- Postage stamps and postal history of Northern Epirus
- List of Greek countries and regions
External links
- Ethnographic map of Albania and neighbors, showing concentration of Greeks in Northern Epirus
- UNPOUnrepresented Nations and Peoples OrganizationThe Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization , formed in 11 February 1991, in The Hague, is an international organization of political organisations and governments representing self-proclaimed "indigenous peoples, minorities, and unrecognised or occupied territories". The organization...
profile of the Greek minority in Albania - Albania: the Greek minority by Human Rights WatchHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
- Assessment for Greeks in Albania by the Minorities at Risk (MAR) Project
- Greeks of Albania and Albanians in Greece by the Greek Helsinki Monitor
- Southern Albania, Northern Epirus: Survey of a Disputed Ethnological Boundary by Tom J. Winnifrith
- Research Foundation on Northern Epirus (I.B.E.)
- Northern Epirus: Hellenism Through Time
- Northern Epirot Youth
- Northern Epirus News Agency
- The Government of Epirus in Exile
- Unofficial Flag
