Albanians - Notable Albanians

Notable Albanians

• Gjon Buzuku – a northern Albanian Catholic cleric born in the 16th century; the author of the first book written and published in Albanian.
• Mit’hat Frashëri- Albanian diplomat, writer and politician. The son of Abdyl Frashëri, one of the most important activists of the Albanian National Awakening in 1908 he participated in the Congress of Manastir
• Lorik Cana- football player
• Rita Ora - singer.
• Ismail Kadare- writer
• Dritëro Agolli Poet, Writer
• Gjekë Marinaj Writer and Literary Critic
• Agim Kaba- Emmy nominated actor and artist.
• Rexhep Qosja- prominent Albanian politician and literary critic.
• Naim Krieziu- football player famous in Italy in 1940s and 1950s.
• Sedefkar Mehmed Agha - architect of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (the "Blue Mosque") in Istanbul.
• Mother Teresa- was a Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta,
• Skanderbeg- as a 15th-century Albanian lord, who as leader of the federation of the League of Lezhë defended the region of Albania against the Ottoman Empire for more than two decades.
• Mohammed Ali Pasha – Viceroy of Egypt and Sudan
• Mirela Manjani- is a retired javelin thrower who represented Greece.
• James Biberi- actor
• Gjon Mili- Albanian-American photographer
• Inva Mula- opera soprano
• Aleksander Moisiu- stage actor.
• Ernesto Sabato (1911–2011) Argentinian writer, painter and physicist of Arbëreshë-Albanian descent. His writings led him to receive many international prizes, including the Legion of Honour (France), the Prix Médicis (Italy) and the Miguel de Cervantes Prize (Spain).
• Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani (1914 – October 2, 1999) was an influential Sunni Islamic scholar of the 20th Century; he specialised in the fields of hadith and fiqh. He was also a prolific writer and speaker.
• Ali Sami Yen 20 May 1886 – 29 July 1951- founder of the Galatasaray Sports Club.