Gjirokaster

Gjirokaster is a city in southern Albania, sitting in a valley between the Gjere Mountains and the Drino River, at an altitude of 300 metres above sea level. Its old town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, described as “a rare example of a well-preserved Ottoman town, built by large estate landowners.” The city overlooks Gjirokaster Castle, where the National Folklore Festival is held every five years. It is the birthplace of former Albanian communist leader Enver Hoxha and writer Ismail Kadare.

The city appears in historical records from as early as 1336 under its Greek name, “Argyrokastro,” as part of the Byzantine Empire. It became part of the Orthodox diocese of “Dryinopolis and Argyrokastro” after the destruction of nearby Adrianopolis. Gjirokaster later became the centre of the principality ruled by Gjon Zenebishi (1373-1417), before falling under Ottoman rule for the following five centuries. The population converted to Islam during the Ottoman period, drawn in from the surrounding countryside, which shifted the city from a majority-Christian to a majority-Muslim population in the early 16th century; by the 19th century, it had become one of the largest Muslim cities in the region. It also became a major religious centre for the Bektashi Sufi order.

It was occupied by the Greek army during the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913, due to the large Greek population living there, and was ultimately incorporated into the newly independent state of Albania in 1913. The Greek population rebelled against this decision, and the short-lived independent Republic of Northern Epirus was eventually established in 1914, with Gjirokaster as its capital. It was finally granted to Albania in 1921. In recent years, the city saw anti-government protests that contributed to the 1997 Albanian civil unrest.

Alongside Muslim and Orthodox Albanians, the city is also home to a large Greek minority. Along with Saranda, Gjirokaster is considered one of the centres of the Greek community in Albania, and the city has a Greek consulate.