Discover the country and culture of Albania.

1. Republic of
Albania
YOUR TOUR GUIDE: Anna Maria Haruni
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2. Albania is Southeastern Europe in a region known as the
Western Balkans. It is bordered by the Adriatic and Ionian Seas
to the west. The terrain is mostly mountains and hills, with small
plains along the coast. It is slightly smaller in area than Maryland.

3. Country Quick Facts
• Full name: Republic of Albania
• Population: about 2.88 million (2019)
• Capital: Tirana
• Largest city: Tirana
• Official language: Albanian
• Major religion: Muslim- 56.7%
• Life expectancy: male- 75.33, female- 80.86
• Monetary unit: Albanian Lek
• Main exports: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles,
chemicals
• GNI per capita: $10,400

4. Albanian history in brief
• Records trace their evolution from the ancient Illyrians
• Ruled by Romans for 600 years beginning in 229 BC
• Economy flourished during the Middle Ages
• Attacked by many foreign powers
• Conquered by Ottoman Turks in 1388 and didn't’t gain independence until
1912
• Occupied by Germany during WWII
• Became communist People’s Republic of Albania in 1941 and very isolated
from the rest of the world
• 1992 became a democratic nation and religion was legalized
• Albanian Rebellion in 1997 due to economy crisis

5. Albanian National History Museum, Tirana, Albania

6. Language
• HELLO: Përshëndetje
• GOODBYE: Mirupafshim
• YES: Po
• NO: Jo
• THANK YOU: Falemenderit
• YOU’RE WELCOME: S'ka përse!
• PLEASE: Ju lutem
• I LOVE YOU: Të dua
• HOW ARE YOU: Si je?

7. Government
• President: Ilir Meta (since
2017)
• Prime Minister: Edi
Rama (since 2013)
• Parliamentary
democracy
• Voting age: 18 years old

8. Current issues
• Human trafficking
• Poverty- especially women and children and those in rural areas
• Low employment
• Corruption
• Political instability
• Exploitation of environment and natural resources
• Illegal drug trade
• Ethnic tensions with neighboring Serbia: Albania recognizes
former region of Serbia, Kosovo, as an independent state

9. Economy
• Still suffering the effects of their
transition from a centralized
economy, during their
isolationist times, to a capitalist
economy
• One of the poorest countries in
Europe
• Agricultural sector is half the
employment but only one-fifth of
the GDP
• Low foreign direct investment
• Currently has candidate status
for the European Union
• Working to improve roads and
railroads for trade
• Rich in mineral resources like
Tirana

10. Currency
• Albanian Lek
• 1 US dollar= 125.40 Albanian Lek (June 2015)

11. Anna Maria Haruni
• From Tirana, Albania
• University student at
American University in
Bulgaria
• In May 2015, she came to
the United States for the
first time to spend her
summer doing work and
travel in Cape Cod and
strengthening her English
language skills
Anna Maria with her
first Barbie doll

12. middle School in Albania as told by anna
maria
• Public schools are better than private ones in Albania
• No buses to get to school because the distances are not far enough, Anna Maria was a
5 minute walk from school
• No lockers- have to carry around all their books and notebooks, which is very heavy
• 32-40 in a class
• Girls take turns cleaning the classroom, pick up trash and put up chairs
• School finishes between 1-2pm
• Go home, eat, watch T.V., and study
• Play in the neighborhood, volleyball or football (soccer)
• Spend most their time in the neighborhood, where everyone knows each other and
grown up with each other, divided by age group
• Anna Maria enjoyed her time in middle school and had lots of fun with the kids she
grew up

13. life of a kid in Albania
• Game with rocks and a game with buttons, which they
would collect for the game; hide and seek; color game
• Parks don’t have things like seesaws or swings; they’re
plain
• No one outside from 2-5pm because its sleeping/nap/rest
time; even grocery stores would close
• Many little girls play with Barbie dolls, make their clothes
or exchange them with friends
• Ice cream when its hot out just like in the US
• Common to see 30 kids outside playing with balls and
ropes in the neighborhood and being very loud

14. High school in Albania
• In 9th grade, students take two
important exams in math and
Albanian literature (all the information
your learned over the 9 years); they
take 2 hours and students are really
nervous about them (they are like
placement tests for high school)
• Take 5-6 subjects in high school and
start getting a GPA
• Two weeks before the big exams they
have a mini-prom for the students
where they dress up and dance; the
students love it!
• Around 9th grade students start
spending a lot of time socializing at
coffee shops

15. National Holidays and
festivals
• Independence Day: November 28th,
most important holiday to
commemorate the end of Ottoman
control
• Mother Teresa Day: October 19th, to
show they’re proud of her legacy
• Gjirokastër National Folklore Festival:
an artistic music festival that takes
place every 5 years and is considered
the most important event in Albanian
culture; promotes the traditional
music, dress, and dance (pictured
right)
• Summer Festival: on March 14th and
commemorates the end of winter and
the rebirth of nature

16. Traditional Clothing
https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=3SKAz5fG7R8

17. Fun facts
• Shqiperia (Albanian in the native language) means “the land of eagles”,
which explains the double-headed eagle on their flag
• There are 750,000 bunkers scattered around Albania that were built to
protect from foreign invaders; they serve as a dark reminder of their 50
years of isolation in the 20th century
• Skanderberg is an Albanian national hero; he fought the Ottomans in the
15th century and there are many statues and places named after him around
the country
• Southern town of Berat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of the
Ottoman influence that remains today
• Tourism on the popular beach resorts on the coast
• Albania’s National Airport is named after Mother Teresa, who was ethnically
Albanian, and Albanians are very proud that she shares their heritage

18. Berat, Albania, UNESCO
Site (right)
Albanian Mountains and
bunkers (below)
Crowded beach in Durres,
Albania (above)

19. Links
• https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-
factbook/geos/print/country/countrypdf_al.pdf
• http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/europ
e/al.htm
• http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/students/maguire/histor
y.html