Mat District () was one of the 36 districts of Albania, which were dissolved in July 2000 and replaced by 12 newly created counties. It had a population of 61,906 in 2001, and an area of . It was named after the river Mat, which flows through the district. Its capital was the town of

Burrel Burrel (alternate forms ''Burrel'', ''Mat'') is a town in northern Albania, 91 km from Tirana. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision and the seat of the municipality Mat, Albania, Mat. It was the seat of the former Distr ...

. Its territory is now part of Dibër County: the

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

of Mat and Klos.

Administrative divisions

The district consisted of the following

: * Baz *

* Derjan * Gurrë * Klos *

Komsi Komsi is a village and a former municipality in the Dibër County, northern Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It ...

* Lis * Macukull * Rukaj *

Suç Suç is a village and a former municipality in the Dibër County, northern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Klos Klos or KLOS may refer to: * Klos (surname) * Klos, Dibër, a town in eastern A ...

* Ulëz *

Xibër Xibër is a former municipality in the Dibër County, northern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Klos. The population at the 2011 census was 2,660. Demographic history Xibër (''Çipur'') is r ...

History

In ancient times here lived a illyrian tribe named

Pirustae This is a list of ancient tribes in the ancient territory of Illyria ( grc-gre, Ἰλλυρία; la, Illyria). The name ''Illyrians'' seems to be the name of a single Illyrian tribe that was the first to come into contact with the ancient Greek ...

. They were famous for their bravery and they proved this in their wars against the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

together with the

Kingdom of Dardania The Kingdom of Dardania was a polity formed in the central Balkans in the region of Dardania during classical antiquity. It is named after the Dardani, a Paleo-Balkan tribe which formed its population and formed the core of the Dardanian polity. ...

. Mat is believed to be one of the oldest Albanian settlements, probably as old as the 2nd-5th century AD, and historical linguistic studies together with archeological evidence proves that. Some of the oldest settlements in the river Mat include Rubigo( Rubik), Lassius(

Laç Laç (; sq-definite, Laçi) is a town and a former municipality in Lezhë County, northwestern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision and the seat of the municipality Kurbin. It was the administrative center of the f ...

), Stelush, Guri i Bardhë, etc. At the beginning of the 15th century the Lord of Matja was

Gjon Kastrioti Gjon Kastrioti (1375/80 – 4 May 1437), was a member of the Albanian nobility, from the House of Kastrioti, and the father of future Albanian leader Gjergj Kastrioti (better known as Skanderbeg). He governed the territory between the Cape ...

, father of

Skanderbeg , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

. When Skanderbeg began his rebellion against Ottomans he also became the lord of Mat and some other territories as well. A synod of Catholic archdiocese was held in Matja in 1462 by Pal Egnelli known for his baptismal formula.

Notable locals

* Zog of Albania, King of the Albanians * Tarhoncu Ahmed Pasha, Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire

Hereditary Governors

Gallery

References

Districts of Albania Geography of Dibër County {{Dibër-geo-stub