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Konispol ( sq-definite, Konispoli) is the southernmost town in Albania. It sits one kilometer away from the Albanian-Greek border. The settlement is inhabited by
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
Cham Albanians Cham Albanians or Chams ( sq, Çamë; el, Τσάμηδες, ''Tsámidhes''), are a sub-group of Albanians who originally resided in the western part of the region of Epirus in northwestern Greece, an area known among Albanians as Chameria. Th ...
. Konispol is the modern centre of the Cham Albanian community in Albania. The main economic interests of Konispol are
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
and
viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, r ...
. The town is the seat of the southernmost administrative unit in
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
, the Municipality of Konispol ( sq, Bashkia Konispol). It was formed during the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities of Konispol, Markat and Xarrë. The total population is 8,245 (2011 census), in a total area of 226.26 km2. The population of the former Konispol municipality at the 2011 census was 2,123. The former Konispol municipal unit (pre-2015) consisted of the town Konispol and the village Çiflik. The new larger municipality of Konispol contains settlements that are inhabited by Albanians who form the majority of the population,
Aromanians The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...
,
Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, ot ...
and
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
that live in the villages of Xarrë municipal unit.


Name

The name of the settlement ''Konispol'' is derived from ''kon'c'' (коньць) and ''polya'' (поля), Slavic words for ''end'' and ''field'' referring to the end of a field.


History

The area was part of the ancient region of
Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...
and was inhabited by Chaonian Greeks. In 1943, Konispol is noted for being the battleground of a fierce conflict between
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
units, Cham collaborators from the Thesprotia province in Greece of the
Nuri Dino Nuri is a place in modern Sudan on the west side of the Nile, near the Fourth Cataract. Nuri is situated about 15 km north of Sanam, and 10 km from Jebel Barkal. Nuri is the second of three Napatan burial sites and the construction of ...
battalion, and the communist Albanian resistance. On 8 October 8 1943, a meeting of the Albanian and Greek communist resistance groups took place in the town. Apart from recognising that Albanian and Greek minorities existed on either side of the border, due to disagreements between the communist movements, a separate headquarters for the communist resistance units of the Greek minority in Albania was planned. In 1992, 7
caves A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
were discovered just north of the town with findings that dated from the
Upper Paleolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...
age to the
Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...
.


Modern period

Konispol, due to its proximity to the Albanian-Greek borders, is part of the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
's Greece – Albania Neighbourhood Programme for improving the standard of living of the local population by promoting sustainable local development in the cross-border area between the two countries.


Municipality demographics

The municipal seat Konispol, along with the villages of Dishat, Vërvë, Shalës, Markat, Ninat and Janjar are populated by native
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
Cham Albanians Cham Albanians or Chams ( sq, Çamë; el, Τσάμηδες, ''Tsámidhes''), are a sub-group of Albanians who originally resided in the western part of the region of Epirus in northwestern Greece, an area known among Albanians as Chameria. Th ...
. The village of Xarrë is inhabited by an Orthodox Albanian majority, Muslim Albanian Chams (200) that arrived from northern Greece in the 1920s and 1940s, a combined population of
Aromanians The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...
and Greeks (50) and some Romani. Mursi is inhabited by an Orthodox Albanian majority, alongside a few Muslim Albanians and Greeks. pp. 197-198. The first village, Xarrë, contains a mixed population in regard to confession and language. The village is about 15 km from the Albanian-Greek border crossing point (for pedestrians) of Qafë Bota and around 30 km from the district capital, Sarandë. The second community, Mursi, consists of a rather homogeneous population in terms of religious affiliation and language (Christian and Albanian speaking) and is located just 1 km away from Xarrë. The third village, Konispol, around 10 km distant from these villages, is a traditionally Muslim, Albanian speaking settlement and is situated close to the 'green line' with Greece."; p. 210. " In Xarrë the relevant groups were Albanian-speaking Christians, Çam people (or Chams - the Albanian speaking minority settled in northern Greece/Epirus in the 1920s and 1940s), Vlachs (cattle breeders, speaking a Latin-based language), Roma, and some members of the Greek minority." "The small hamlet of Çiflik lies below the hill of Aetos, and it is one hour's walk from there to Murzië, an Albanian speaking village of 700 people" Çiflik is inhabited by Orthodox Albanians, Aromanians, Muslim Albanians and a few Greeks. Shkallë is inhabited by an Aromanian majority, alongside a few Muslim Albanians and Greeks and also contains a few families of Muslim Romani originally from Filiates, Greece who were expelled in 1944–1945.Baltsiotis, Lambros (2015).
Balkan Roma immigrants in Greece: An initial approach to the traits of a migration flow
, ''International Journal of Language, Translation and Intercultural Communication''. 1. (1): 5. " In general terms, it seems that previous ties of any kind with Greece facilitate not only the migration but also a more permanent way of living in the country. This is the case with the Muslim Roma of Filiati in Thesprotia who, following the expulsion of the Muslim Albanian Chams from Greece in 1944-1945, were settled in the village of Shkallë, Sarandë in Albania. The majority of the families, more than fifteen, gradually settled in Greece.
Vrinë is a new village established during the communist period and is populated by Muslim Albanians (400), Orthodox Albanians (318) and Greeks (300).Kallivretakis, Leonidas (1995).
Η ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλβανίας υπό το πρίσμα της ιστορικής γεωγραφίας και δημογραφίας [The Greek Community of Albania in terms of historical geography and demography
" In Nikolakopoulos, Ilias, Kouloubis Theodoros A. & Thanos M. Veremis (eds). ''Ο Ελληνισμός της Αλβανίας [The Greeks of Albania]''. University of Athens. p. 51. "Ε Έλληνες, ΑΧ Αλβανοί Ορθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί, AM Αλβανοί Μουσουλμάνοι, ΤΣ Τσάμηδες, Β Βλάχοι, Μ Μικτός πληθυσμός”; p.52. “KONISPOL ΚΟΝΙΣΠΟΛΗ 2380 ΤΣ; VERVE BEPBA 345 ΤΣ; DISHAT ΝΤΙΣΑΤΙ 317 ΤΣ; SHALES ΣΑλΕΣΙ 1168 ΤΣ; ΝΙΝΑΤ NINATI (ΝΙΝΑΤΕΣ) 547 ΤΣ; MARKAT MAPKATI 748 ΤΣ; JANJAR ΓΙΑΝΑΡΙ 595 ΤΣ; XARRE TZAPA 2085 AX + αμ (200) + ε/β (50); MURSI ΜΟΥΡΣΙ (ΜΟΥΡΤΣΙΑ) 1984 AX + αμ + ε; VRINE BPINA (νέο) 1018 M (400 AM+ 318 ΑΧ+ 300 E); SHKALLE ΣΚΑΛΛΑ 619 Β + αμ + ε; ÇIFLIK ΤΣΙΦΛΙΚΙ 525 Μ (ΑΧ + Β + AM + ε)"


Location

Konispol is: *301 kilometres (118 miles) from Albania's capital city
Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
(Geographically and by road). *1 kilometre (0.6 miles) from the Albanian-Greek border (Geographically). *4 kilometres (3 miles) from Sagiada,
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
(Geographically).


Notable people

* Teme Sejko, admiral *
Hasan Tahsini Khawaja, Hoxhë Hasan Tahsini or simply Hoxha Tahsim (7 April 1811 – 3 July 1881) was an Albanians, Albanian ulama, alim, astronomer, mathematician and philosopher. He was the first rector of Istanbul University and one of the founders o ...
, famed astronomer, mathematician and philosopher; first rector of Istanbul University; prominent 19th century Ottoman scholar * Osman Taka, famous folk music dancer * Muhamet Kyçyku (Çami), a Cham poet who is also considered a poet of the Albanian National Renaissance. * Bilal Xhaferri


References


External links

* Tom J. Winnifrith
''SOUTHERN ALBANIA, NORTHERN EPIRUS: Survey of a Disputed Ethnological Boundary''
{{Authority control Municipalities in Vlorë County Albania–Greece border crossings Administrative units of Konispol Towns in Albania