Area Handbook for Albania. Stephen Peters

sought and received backing from the great powers of Europe, thus forcing the weaker Balkan nations to give up their plans for the annexation of Albanian territory.

      Under the cruel, corrupt, and inefficient Ottoman rule, institutions and capabilities for self-government were not allowed to develop, and the country was ill prepared for statehood when it arrived. Development had hardly begun when World War I brought chaos to the country as the opposing powers used it as a battleground. After the war, as Albania struggled to assert itself as a national entity, the lack of natural resources and a poorly developed economy created a heavy requirement for foreign aid. Excessive reliance on Fascist Italy during the 1920s and 1930s eventually led to annexation by that expansionist power.

      After regaining its independence during World War II, Albania again compromised its sovereignty by excessive reliance on outside powers: first on Yugoslavia, which was heavily involved in the establishment of the Communist Party in Albania, and then on the Soviet Union. Catastrophe was averted in each instance by a split between Communist nations. When Joseph Stalin expelled Yugoslavia from the Communist bloc of nations in 1948, Enver Hoxha switched his allegiance to the Soviet Union and ended his country's economic reliance on Yugoslavia, which had all but incorporated Albania into its federation. For the next several years Albania was a Soviet satellite but, as the rift between the Soviet Union and Communist China widened, Hoxha continually sided with the Chinese and, when the break came in 1961, Albania severed its Soviet ties and became an ally of Communist China.

      The lack of resources and an undeveloped economy, the same economic problems that had plagued newly independent Albania in the 1920s, continued to be problems in 1970, and foreign aid was still a necessity. Communist China provided an undetermined amount of assistance during the 1960s and into 1970 but, from the Albanian point of view, the danger of loss of sovereignty to distant China was much less than it had been during the periods when the country was a client state of nearby Italy, Yugoslavia, and the Soviet Union.

      The lack of easily defended national boundaries was an additional concern in the maintenance of territorial integrity. Although the boundaries originally established in 1913 remained relatively unchanged and were not officially disputed in 1970, they were not considered satisfactory in some sectors. About 1 million Albanians lived in adjacent areas of Yugoslavia, mostly in the Kosovo region, and Albania revealed her dissatisfaction that they were not included within its territory. Neither Albania nor Greece was content with the demarcation along the two most southerly districts of Albania. The lack of sharply defined terrain features in most places along the northern and eastern borders with Yugoslavia and the southeastern and southern delineation between Albania and Greece increased the potential for dispute (see ch. 2, Historical Setting; ch. 3, Physical Environment).

      The topography of the land is generally rugged, and access to inland areas is difficult. Except for the narrow strip of lowlands along the Adriatic coast, the country is made up of mountains and hills, intermittently intersected by streams that flow in a generally westerly or northwesterly direction. Valleys in the hinterland are narrow, and slopes of mountains and hills tend to be steep (see ch. 3, Physical Environment).

      Considering Albania's small area, climatic conditions are quite varied. Along the coastal lowlands Mediterranean-type weather prevails. In the interior there are rapid fluctuations in many areas, but continental influences predominate. Despite annual precipitation ranging from 40 to 100 inches, droughts are common because rainfall is unevenly distributed (see ch. 3, Physical Environment).

      Few places offer good conditions for large-scale settlement. Localities with good soil and a dependable water supply are small and scattered. The coastal lowlands, inundated or desert-like according to the season, are lightly populated. The region generally bounded by Durres, Tirana, Elbasan, and Fier grew most rapidly and had the highest population density in the late 1960s. Inland, the mountain and upland basins offer the best conditions for settlement (see ch. 3, Physical Environment; ch. 4, The People).

      The extensive networks of rivers are of little value for transportation because waterflow fluctuates, currents tend to be violent, and estuaries are heavily sedimented. Road and railroad construction is difficult because of the uneven character of the terrain. Improved land transportation routes are exceedingly limited. Mountain homesteads and villages frequently have only a footpath to connect them with the outside world. The lack of communications routes results in isolation for many areas and helps to place Albania on a byway of international travel (see ch. 3, Physical Environment; ch. 4, The People).

      Remote and isolated areas had a significant influence in shaping Albanian society. During the long period of Turkish rule they provided sanctuaries for the preservation of ethnic identity. After 1912 the people in these areas were the primary residuary for antiquated customs and attitudes. Communist leaders made a major effort in the 1960s to eliminate old customs and other vestiges of the past that detracted from the collectivization and modernization of society. Comments of high officials in early 1970 indicated that their efforts still had not been entirely successful (see ch. 2, Historical Setting; ch. 4, The People).

      The Albanians are descendants of the Illyrians, an Indo-European people who lived in the Balkans in antiquity. Their history before the eleventh century is linked with, and not easily separated from, that of the other Illyrian tribes. The written language did not develop until the fifteenth century, and then for more than four centuries under Turkish rule it was forbidden. Although Albanians distinguished themselves as soldiers under Turkish suzerainty and some held high office in the Ottoman ruling hierarchy, they were little known as a people before the nineteenth century. As members of clans or feudal estates they lived an outmoded life style and were relatively untouched by the forces of industrialization and democratization that changed much of western and southern Europe in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (see ch. 2, Historical Setting).

      For centuries after the death in 1468 of Skanderbeg, the Albanian national hero and symbol of resistance to Turkish rule, many Albanian mountain communities lived unto themselves. Local control rested with pashas and beys, and some became virtually independent of Turkish rule. About two-thirds of the people accepted, or were forcibly converted to, the Muslim faith under the Turks. Since eligibility to participate in political life rested on religious affiliation, some Albanians thus became a part of the ruling hierarchy of the Ottoman Empire, but the masses were indifferent politically. Activities or attitudes that would tend to strengthen nationalism were suppressed. When considered in its entirety the heritage from Ottoman rule contributed almost nothing toward the development of capabilities required for a viable government and a modernized society (see ch. 2, Historical Setting).

      Kinship, customs, and attitudes related to family life, and strong attachments to community and language were strong influences in the preservation of ethnic identity through the many centuries of foreign domination. The Albanians are divided into two major subgroups—the Gegs, who occupy the area north of the Shkumbin River, and the Tosks, who inhabit the territory to the south. Differences in physical appearance persist, but the breakup of clans and moves toward collectivization of society after World War II diminished the most distinguishing feature, their social system. Antiquated customs and blood feuds that were frequently initiated by offenses against women were more prevalent among the Gegs than the Tosks before the Communist takeover (see ch. 4, The People).

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