Northern Epirotes - Northern Epirus

Northern Epirus

The Greek minority in Albania is concentrated in the south of the country, along the border with Greece, an area referred to by Greek as "Northern Epirus". The largest concentration is in the districts of Sarandë, Gjirokastër (especially in the area of Dropull), Delvinë, and in Himara (part of the district of Vlorë). Smaller groups can be found in the districts of Kolonjë, Përmet and Korçë. In addition, Greeks communities are found in all the large cities of Albania, including the capital Tiranë, Fier, Durrës, Elbasan, and Shkodër. In more recent times, the numbers of the minority have dwindled. According to an estimate in 2005 more than 80% have migrated to Greece. However, in more recent years the majority of emigrants holding Albanian citizenship in general dropped and many of them eventually returned from Greece to Albania. As a result in regions such as Himara, part of the ethnic Greek communities that initially moved to Greece have returned.