Brataj is a village and a former
municipality
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 ...
in the
Vlorë County
Vlorë County (; sq, Qarku i Vlorës) is one of the 12 counties of the Republic of Albania with the capital in Vlorë. The county spans and has a total population of 187,675 people as of 2021. It borders the counties of Fier and Gjirokastë ...
, southwestern
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 ...
. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality
Selenicë
Selenicë ( rup, Selenitsã "Selițcă") is a municipality in Vlorë County, southwestern Albania. It was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Armen, Brataj, Kotë, Selenicë, Sevaster and Vlla ...
. The population at the 2011 census was 2,849.
The municipal unit consists of the villages Brataj, Lepenicë,
Gjorm, Velçë, Ramicë, Mesaplik,
Matogjin, Bashaj, Vërmik and Malas.
History
In June 1847 Albanian representatives from
Lalëria,
Toskëria,
Labëria and
Çamëria
Chameria ( sq, Çamëria; el, Τσαμουριά, ''Tsamouriá''; tr, Çamlık) is a term used today mostly by Albanians to refer to parts of the coastal region of Epirus in southern Albania and Greece, traditionally associated with the Albani ...
met in the village of Mesaplik reacting to the reforms of the Ottoman Empire (
Tanzimat
The Tanzimat (; ota, تنظيمات, translit=Tanzimāt, lit=Reorganization, ''see'' nizām) was a period of reform in the Ottoman Empire that began with the Gülhane Hatt-ı Şerif in 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 187 ...
).
[La Ligue albanaise de Prizen 1878-1881: discours et exposés tenus à l'occasion de son centenaire Author Zëri i popullit Publisher Académie des sciences de la RPS d'Albanie , Insitut d'historie 1978 p.68] The event known in Albanian as ''Kuvendimi I Mesaplikut'', highlighted that Albanians – Christians or Muslims – are one and undivided, calling on all without exception to go to war against the Ottoman Empire. The assembly also declared that no taxes would be paid, that Albanians would not send any more soldiers to the Ottoman Empire, and that the new administration would not be accepted.
This event led to the
Albanian Revolt of 1847
The Albanian Revolt of 1847 was a 19th-century uprising in southern Albania directed against Ottoman Tanzimat reforms which started in 1839 and were gradually being put in action in the regions of Albania.
Background
The primary aim of the Tanz ...
. In 1943 the Italian forces of the area were defeated in the
Battle of Gjorm by Albanian Partisans and their Colonel Franco Clementi was killed.
Notable people
*
Ahmet Myftar
Ahmet Myftar (also known as Ahmet Myftar Dede, Ahmet Myftari, or Ahmet Myftar Ahmataj) (1916–1980) was the 6th Dedebaba (or Kryegjysh) of the Bektashi Order. , 6th
Dedebaba
The Dedebabate is the leadership of Bektashism. The dedebabas ( sq, kryegjysh) are the spiritual and religious leaders of the Bektashian community. Bektashis do not consider them as divinely appointed leaders. The current and eighth Bektashi debe ...
of the
Bektashi Order
The Bektashi Order; sq, Tarikati Bektashi; tr, Bektaşi or Bektashism is an Islamic Sufi mystic movement originating in the 13th-century. It is named after the Anatolian saint Haji Bektash Wali (d. 1271). The community is currently led by ...
References
Former municipalities in Vlorë County
Administrative units of Selenicë
Villages in Vlorë County
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