Northern Albania
Shqipëria Veriore | |
---|---|
Region | |
![]() | |
Country | ![]() |
Area | |
• Total | 10,829 km2 (4,181 sq mi) |
Population (2023)[1] | |
• Total | 837,453 |
• Density | 77/km2 (200/sq mi) |
NUTS code | AL01 |
HDI (2017) | 0.771[2] high · 3rd of 3 |
Northern Albania (Albanian: Shqipëria Veriore) is one of the three NUTS-2 Regions of Albania.[3] This ethnographical territory is sometimes referred to as Ghegeria (Albanian: Gegëria) which also includes parts of the Albanian-inhabited territories of Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.[4]
It consists of the counties of Dibër, Durrës, Kukës, Lezhë and Shkodër.[5] Their combined population is 991,093 as of the 2023 census.[1]
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1989 | 1,041,447 | — |
2001 | 962,081 | −7.6% |
2011 | 831,498 | −13.6% |
2023 | 649,902 | −21.8% |
Source: [6] |
The northeastern mountain regions have substantial reserves of metallic mineral deposits, including chromium, copper, and iron-nickel. In the 1980s Albania was a world leader in chromium production, but output fell precipitously in the early 1990s during the political transition from communism.[7]
The term usually denotes to the northern half of the country inhabited by the Ghegs, who predominantly live in the mountainous north of the Shkumbin river.[citation needed]
...the Ghegs in the north (Ghegeria) and the Tosks in the south (Toskeria)