Bajram Curri (), formerly known as Kolgecaj, is a town and administrative unit in the municipality of Tropojë, northeastern

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 shares ...

, within the historical ethnographic region of the

Gjakova Highlands The Highlands of Gjakova or Gjakova Highlands ( sq, Malësia e Gjakovës) refers to the mountainous ethnographic region in the eastern Albanian Alps that sits between north-eastern Albania and western Kosovo, serving as the historical centres of ...

. The town is located in a remote and mountainous region of the Albanian Alps, within the

Valbonë Valley Valbonë ( sq-definite, Valbona) is a village in the Kukës County, northern Albania. It is part of the former municipality Margegaj, and situated in the valley of the river Valbonë, south of the mountain Maja e Thatë. At the 2015 local governme ...

, and close to the border with

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

. It is named after

Bajram Curri Bajram Curri (16 January 1862 – 29 March 1925) was an Albanian chieftain, politician and activist who struggled for the independence of Albania, later struggling for Kosovo's incorporation into it following the 1913 Treaty of London. He wa ...

, a national hero who fought for ethnic Albanians, first against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

and later against the Albanian government.

History

Bajram Curri was founded in the year 1957 to serve as the centre of the district of Tropoja. The village was previously known as Kolgecaj. The newly formed city was built based on socialist principles.

Geography

Bajram Curri is located down the valley of the river

Valbonë Valbonë ( sq-definite, Valbona) is a village in the Kukës County, northern Albania. It is part of the former municipality Margegaj, and situated in the valley of the river Valbonë, south of the mountain Maja e Thatë. At the 2015 local governm ...

. It is the main access point by road to the villages of Valbona and Rrogam. Water from the mountains flow into the waters of the Valbonë, the latter being famous for having the clearest river water in Albania. It is an administrative unit and the seat of the municipality of Tropojë.

Climate

Bajram Curri has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

: ''Cfa''). Seeing silent lightning is very common in the summer nights of Bajram Curri.

Economy

The municipality of Tropojë has many agricultural products and is famous for its chestnuts, apples, nuts, grapes, and especially blueberries. Large reserves of platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, palladium, iridium, and osmium have been discovered in Tropojë. Albanian, Italian, and Chinese engineers, working for Albanian Minerals and Bytyci Sh.p.k in Tropojë, suggest the area may have more than 500 million tons of chrome ore and more than two billion tons of olivine in which 5-7 grams of platinum is present per ton. This gigantic body of ore is one of the largest in the world.

Demography

As of the 2011 census, the administrative unit of Bajram Curri had an estimated population of 5,340 of whom 2,717 were men and 2,623 women.

Notable people

Bajram Curr, Tropojë, Albania 2018-05 01

* Sheh Ali Nimani – invented first school in Tropoja in village called Tpla * Sali Berisha – President of Albania from 1992 to 1997 and its

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

from 2005 to 2013 *

Zhaneta Byberi Zhaneta Byberi is an Albanian model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Albania 2014 and represented Albania at the Miss Universe 2014. Early life Political family oppression history Zhaneta Byberi, daughter of Petrit ...

–

Miss Universe Albania Miss Universe Albania is a national beauty pageant in Albania. The pageant was founded as Miss Albania in 2002, until rebranding as Miss Universe Albania in 2006. Since 2021, winners of the competition have competed internationally in Miss Uni ...

2014 * Azem Hajdari – anti-

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

activist *

Besnik Mustafaj Besnik Bajram Mustafaj (born 1958) is an Albanian writer and diplomat. Career Mustafaj is a former Albanian ambassador to France. He became 62nd foreign minister of Albania on 11 September 2005 when the government of Prime Minister Sali Berisha ...

– 62nd

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

Gerhard Progni Gerhard Nik Progni (born 6 November 1986) is an Albanian professional footballer plays as a midfielder for SC Gjilani. A product of FK Partizani Tirana, Progni has played for several clubs in Albania, including Skënderbeu, whom he won one ...

– footballer * Fatime Sokoli – folk singer * Fatmira Breçani – folk singer * Ibrahim Kadri Malaj – intellectual *

Tahir Sinani Tahir Sinani (25 May 1964 – 29 July 2001) was a commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army in Kosovo and the National Liberation Army in Macedonia. During the Kosovo War, he was the commander of the Pashtrik Operational Zone, which comprised area ...

– commander of

Kosovo Liberation Army The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA; , UÇK) was an ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo, the vast majority of which is inhabited by Albanians, from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and Serbia during the ...

(KLA) * Bajram Mal Gjongecaj – intellectual, sports trainer, basketball coach

Notes

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bajram Curri (Town) Towns in Albania Administrative units of Tropojë Former municipalities in Kukës County