How easy is it to speak English in Albania? What are Albanians like and when are shops closed in Albania?

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Language

Albanian is one of the oldest languages in Europe and forms a separate branch within the Indo-European languages. It shares common grammatical elements with Romanian. The Albanian alphabet has 36 letters. It is written in the Latin alphabet.

Albanian is a unique language within Europe, unlike any other language in its spoken or written form.

Albanians do not speak much English, only the younger generation knows English. You will have the best chance of getting along with a knowledge of Italian, as a huge number of Albanians work in Italy.

However, even if you don't speak English, you can always get along "with your hands". Albanians try hard and are friendly to tourists. They understand that it is very difficult to learn Albanian.

Mini-lingual:

• Hello - Përshëndetje
• Good morning (until about 11 a.m.) - Mirëmengjesi
• Good afternoon (until 4 or 5 pm) - Mirëdita
• Good evening - Mirëmbrëma
• Goodbye - Mirupafshim
• Thank you - Faleminderit
• Please - Julutem
• Excuse me - Mefalni
• Cheers - Gëzuar!
• Beer - Birrë
• Yes - Po
• No - Yes

People

Albania has about 2 700 000 inhabitants. Most of them are ethnic Albanians.

There are several minority groups in the country, but the numbers of people who claim membership of these groups are not known exactly. The largest minority group is Greek, followed by Arumans (Vlachs), Roma, Egyptians and Slavs (Macedonians, Montenegrins, Serbs).

Precise data on religion are also unknown, according to a 2011 survey (in which this was optional) 59% of the population adhere to Islam (of which about 2% are Bektashists, which was abolished in Turkey in 1925 and is now the headquarters of the order in Albania), 10% are Catholics and 7% are Orthodox Christians.

Holidays

In tourist areas, most shops are open until midnight. Outside the seaside resorts, the standard opening hours of services and small shops are until 7pm and supermarkets until 11pm.

Shops and restaurants remain open on Sundays and public holidays.

Public holidays

Banks and government offices are closed on public holidays, but shops, money changers and other private businesses may be open - it also depends on the town, e.g. in the Catholic town of Skadar most shops will be closed on Christmas Day.

• 1 January - New Year
• 2 January - New Year
• 14 March - Summer Day, celebrating the arrival of spring
• 22 March - Nevruz, celebration of the birth of Caliph Ali
• Moving date in spring - Easter Sunday
• Movable date - Eid-al-Fitr, the feast after the end of Ramadan
• 1 May - Labour Day
• Movable date in spring - Orthodox Easter
• 10th day of the last month of the Islamic calendar - Eid al-Adha
• 5 September - Mother Teresa Day
• 22 November - Alphabet Day
• 28 November - Independence Day
• 29 November - Liberation Day
• 8 December - National Youth Day
• 25 December - Christmas

History in a nutshell

The Illyrian culture has been present in Albania since the Iron Age. After the defeat of the Illyrian tribe of the Ardiaeans, the territory of Albania came under Roman rule, and in the 5th century it became part of the Byzantine Empire.

In the 15th century, the country came under Turkish rule, with which Islam was introduced into Albania, which Albanians began to adopt on a large scale, mainly because, as Muslims, they did not have to pay taxes and could also avoid the compulsory levies of one of the sons of the Ottoman Empire. It was not until 1912, when independence was declared in Vlorë, that the country emerged from Turkish rule.

After the Second World War, communism reigned and Enver Hoxha became the country's leader. The country initially maintained good relations with neighbouring Yugoslavia, but after establishing contacts with the USSR, Albania ended all cooperation with Yugoslavia. At a time when relations between China and the USSR deteriorated, Albania sided with the Chinese and gradually relations with the USSR cooled.

Under the influence of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, Albania banned the practice of religion in 1967 and declared itself the world's first atheist state, severely persecuting believers, and churches and mosques were demolished or converted into warehouses, shops or gymnasiums during this time.

After 1976, even China lost interest in Albania and the country fell into total isolation. Fearing military intervention from both the West and the East, hundreds of thousands of bunkers were built in the country - most of which can still be found in Albania today.

After the death of Enver Hoxha in 1985, tensions grew in the country and Ramiz Alia, who succeeded Hoxha in office, slowly allowed for some reforms, but these were not enough for the Albanians. The first free elections were held in 1991 and Ramiz Alia resigned in 1992 after the Democratic Party of Albania won the elections.

Culture

Albanians can be divided into two groups: the north is predominantly Ghegs, the south Tosks. Linguistic, religious and cultural differences can be found between these groups.

An interesting feature of the northern hill tribes is the phenomenon of blood feuds, which has persisted to this day - in Skadar or Tirana there are even gated neighbourhoods or residential blocks inhabited by people who have fled their villages in fear of blood feuds, and no outsiders are allowed to enter these neighbourhoods.

Tourism

Tourists in Albania are mainly attracted by the sea (Drac, Sarandë), the mountains (especially the Albanian Alps in the north of the country) and the archaeological sites (Butrint in the south of the country).

The tourist infrastructure is still developing, there is plenty of accommodation, restaurants and ATMs in the most visited places, and most of these places are already connected by good roads.