Gjirokastër County ( sq, Qarku i Gjirokastrës) is one of the 12

counties of Albania Counties ( sq, or ), also sometimes known as prefectures (), are the first-level administrative subdivisions of Albania, replacing the earlier districts. Since 2000, there have been 12 counties. Since 2015, they have been divided into 61 muni ...

. The total population in 2021 was 58,031, in an area of 2884 km². Its capital is the city

Gjirokastër Gjirokastër (, sq-definite, Gjirokastra) is a city in the Republic of Albania and the seat of Gjirokastër County and Gjirokastër Municipality. It is located in a valley between the Gjerë mountains and the Drino, at 300 metres above sea ...

Administrative divisions

Until 2000, Gjirokastër County was subdivided into three districts:

, Përmet, and

Tepelenë Tepelenë ( sq-definite, Tepelena) is a city and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, in the south of Albania. The town is located on the left bank of the Vjosa River, about three kilometres downstream from its union with the Drino. Until the ...

. Since the 2015 local government reform, the county consists of the following 7 municipalities: Dropull,

, Këlcyrë,

Libohovë Libohovë ( sq-definite, Libohova) is a town and a municipality in southern Albania. It is overlooked by Libohovë Castle and has a main street with views across the Drino valley. Libohovë is at the foot of the Bureto Mountain. The region forms ...

, Memaliaj, Përmet and

. Before 2015, it consisted of the following 32 municipalities: *

Antigonë Antigonë is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Gjirokastër. The population at the 2011 census was 998. The municipal unit is known fo ...

* Ballaban * Buz * Çarshovë *

Cepo Cepo is a municipal administrative units, formerly known as communes in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Gjirokastër. The municipal unit administrative cent ...

Dishnicë Dishnicë is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Këlcyrë Këlcyrë ( sq-definite, Këlcyra) is a town and a municipality in southern ...

* Dropull i Poshtëm *

Dropull i Sipërm Dropull i Sipërm ( el, Άνω Δρόπολη, ''Ano Dropoli'') is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Dropull. The population at the 20 ...

* Frashër *

Fshat Memaliaj Memaliaj Fshat is a village and a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Memaliaj Memaliaj is a town and a municipality in Gjirokastër Cou ...

* Këlcyrë *

Kordhocë Kordhocë is a village in the Gjirokastër County in Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Gjirokastër. It is known for the Kordhocë bridge. Geography Kordhocë is a village just outside Gjirokastër, ...

Krahës Krahës is a village in Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. It formerly functioned as a municipality, but at the 2015 local government reform, it became a subdivision of the municipality Memaliaj Memaliaj is a town and a municipality in Gjirok ...

* Kurvelesh *

Lazarat Lazarat ( sq-definite, Lazarati) is a village in Gjirokastër County, in southern Albania. It is located in the Dropull valley. Formerly functioning as a municipality, as part of the 2015 local government reform, it became a subdivision of the muni ...

Lopës Lopës is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Tepelenë Tepelenë ( sq-definite, Tepelena) is a city and a municipality in Gjirokastë ...

Luftinjë Luftinjë is a village and a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Memaliaj Memaliaj is a town and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, ...

* Lunxhëri * Memaliaj *

Odrie Odrie is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Gjirokastër Gjirokastër (, sq-definite, Gjirokastra) is a city in the Republic of Al ...

* Përmet *

Petran Petran is a village and a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Përmet. The population at the 2011 census was 1,622.

* Picar *

Pogon Pogon may refer to: * Pogon, Albania, a municipality in Gjirokastër District, Gjirokastër County, Albania * Pogoń, a Knight-in-pursuit coat of arms of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Pogoni, a municipality in Ioannina regional unit, Greece * P ...

* Qendër Libohovë *

Qendër Piskovë Qendër Piskovë is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Përmet Përmet (; sq-definite, Permeti) is a city and municipality in Gjirok ...

Qendër Tepelenë Qendër Tepelenë is a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Tepelenë. The population at the 2011 census was 3,179.

Qesarat Qesarat is a village and a former municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Memaliaj Memaliaj is a town and a municipality in Gjirokastër County, s ...

* Sukë *

Zagori Zagori ( el, Ζαγόρι; rup, Zagori), is a region and a municipality in the Pindus mountains in Epirus, in northwestern Greece. The seat of the municipality is the village Asprangeloi. It has an area of some and contains 46 villages known as ...

The municipalities consist of about 270 towns and villages in total. See

Villages of Gjirokastër County The Gjirokastër County in southern Albania is subdivided into 7 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 ...

for a structured list.

Demographics

Its population includes a substantial Greek minority which in several places becomes a majority. According to the last national census from 2011 this county has 72,176 inhabitants. Ethnic groups in the county include

Albanians The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Ser ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

, &

Balkan Egyptians The Ashkali ( sr, Ашкалије, Aškalije), also Hashkali ( sr, Хашкалије, Haškalije), and Balkan Egyptians ( sr, Балкански Египћани, Balkanski Egipćani; sq, Komuniteti i Egjiptianëve të Ballkanit; mk, Ѓуп� ...

. According to the results of the 2011 census, 38.54% of the total population (27,815 people) declared themselves Muslim. There are also some Bektashi Muslims with 8.48% (6,118 people), 7.15% percent consisting of believers without a denomination (22,186 people) and

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...

forming 19.65% of the county's population ( Orthodox (17.43%) (15,295 people), Evangelists (0.08% (59 people) (and

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

s) (2.07%) (1,493 people), while 10,094 (15,16%) did not answer at all.

Demographics history of Permet district

*1904: According to German state archives, in 1904, the district of Premeti had 8,000 inhabitants, all Albanians, divided by 5,000 Muslims and 3,000 Christians. *1913: According to

Mary Edith Durham Edith Durham, (8 December 1863 – 15 November 1944) was a British artist, anthropologist and writer who is best known for her anthropological accounts of life in Albania in the early 20th century. Her advocacy on behalf of the Albanian cause ...

, writing on 3 September 1913, the district of "Premeti" was "purely Albanian". *1918–19: According to ''Greece Before the Conference'' (1919), the ''kaza'' (Ottoman district) of Premeti had 15,138 Muslims, 10,823 Greeks, 888 Others; a total of 26,849. *1921: A 1921 document has the population divided by 12,780 Orthodox and 12,173 Muslims, a total of 25,043. Greek was spoken as a first language in few parts of the district. The northern part of the kaza was inhabited by Muslims.Kondis 1994, p. 42

Notable people

* Ali Pasha of Tepelenë *

Enver Hoxha Enver Halil Hoxha ( , ; 16 October 190811 April 1985) was an Albanians, Albanian communist politician who was the authoritarian ruler of Albania from 1944 until his death in 1985. He was Secretary (title)#First secretary, First Secretary of t ...

* Ismail Kadare * Stath Melani *

Evangelos Zappas Evangelos or Evangelis Zappas ( el, Ευάγγελος or ; ro, Evanghelie Zappa; 23 August 1800 – 19 June 1865) was a Greek patriot, philanthropist and businessman who spent most of his life in Romania. He is recognized today as one of the ...

References

External links