Republic of Albania

Republic of Albania Know Your Community- Know Your World

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.

Country Quick FactsFull name: Republic of Albania Population: about 3 million (July 2014)Capital: Tirana Largest city: Tirana Official language: Albanian Major religion: Muslim- 56.7%Life expectancy: male- 75.33, female- 80.86Monetary unit: Albanian Lek Main exports: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicalsGNI per capita: $10,400

Albanian history in briefRecords trace their evolution from the ancient Illyrians Ruled by Romans for 600 years beginning in 229 BCEconomy flourished during the Middle Ages Attacked by many foreign powers Conquered by Ottoman Turks in 1388 and didn'tt gain independence until 1912Occupied by Germany during WWII Became communist Peoples 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

Albanian National History Museum, Tirana, Albania

Language HELLO: Prshndetje GOODBYE: MirupafshimYES: PoNO: JoTHANK YOU: Falemenderit YOURE WELCOME: S'ka prse! PLEASE: Ju lutem I LOVE YOU: T duaHOW ARE YOU: Si je?

Government President: Bujar Nishani Prime Minister: Edi Rama

Edi Rama

Bujar Nishani Parliamentary democracy Voting age: 18 years old

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

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 EuropeAgricultural 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 tradeRich in mineral resources like petroleum

Tirana

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

Anna Maria Haruni From Tirana, Albania University student at American University in BulgariaIn 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

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 heavy32-40 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 groupAnna Maria enjoyed her time in middle school and had lots of fun with the kids she grew up

life of a kid in AlbaniaGame with rocks and a game with buttons, which they would collect for the game; hide and seek; color game Parks dont have things like seesaws or swings; theyre 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

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

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 theyre proud of her legacyGjirokastr 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

Traditional Clothing

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

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 Albanias National Airport is named after Mother Teresa, who was ethnically Albanian, and Albanians are very proud that she shares their heritage

Berat, Albania, UNESCO Site (right)

Albanian Mountains and bunkers (below)

Crowded beach in Durres, Albania (above)

Links https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/print/country/countrypdf_al.pdfhttp://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/europe/al.htmhttp://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/students/maguire/history.html

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