Greeks in Albania

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The Greeks in Albania are ethnic Greeks who live in or originate from areas within modern Albania. They form the largest minority group in the country. They are mostly concentrated in the south of the country, in the areas of the northern part of the historical region of Epirus, in parts of Vlorë County,^[3] Gjirokastër, Korçë,^[4] and Berat County.^[5] The area is also known by them as Northern Epirus. Consequently, the Greeks hailing specifically from Southern Albania are also known as Northern Epirotes (Greek: Βορειοηπειρώτες Vorioipirotes, Albanian: Vorioepirot). The Greeks who live in the "minority zones" of Albania are officially recognised by the Albanian government as the Greek National Minority of Albania (Greek: Ελληνική Μειονότητα στην Αλβανία, Elliniki Mionotita stin Alvania; Albanian: Minoriteti Grek në Shqipëri).^[6][7]

In 1913, after the end of five centuries of Ottoman rule, the area was included under the sovereignty of the newly founded Albanian state. The following year, Greeks revolted and declared their independence, and with the following Protocol of Corfu the area was recognised as an autonomous region under nominal Albanian sovereignty. However, this was never implemented.

In the communist era the Greek population suffered from the prohibition of the Greek language if spoken outside the recognised so-called "minority zones" (which have remained after their establishment in the communist era) and even limitations on the official use of its language within those zones.^[8] During the same period many formerly Greek place-names were officially changed to Albanian ones.^[8][9] Greeks from the "minority zones" were also frequently forcibly moved to other parts of the country since they were seen as possible sources of dissent and ethnic tension.^[8] The Communist system did not discriminate the Greek minority based on ethnicity, and overall the minority faced the same issues as the rest of Albania's population under a dictatorship.^[10] A considerable number of Greeks integrated into Albanian society, acquired higher education and positions in the political, intellectual and military elite of the country.^[10] In post-1990 era, these issues, including the emerging subject of private property rights, continue to persist to an extent.^{[citation needed]}

In the 2023 census around 23,485 self-declared as Greek.^[1] Approximately 189,000 people from Albania that migrated to Greece had received special identity cards, which are reserved for ethnic Greeks, although in 2022 this number was down to 13,329 as most of them had by then acquired Greek citizenship and no longer needed the special cards.^[11][12] Apart from ethnic Greeks, many Aromanians and Albanians claim to be Greeks to get the status of homogeneis and later citizenship.^[13]