Tirana County ( sq, Qarku Tiranë, italic=unset), officially the County of Tirana ( sq, Qarku i Tiranës, italic=unset), is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the Central Region of the Republic of Albania. It is the tenth largest by area and the most populous of the twelve counties, with more than 912,000 people within an area of . The county borders on the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

to the west, the counties of Durrës to the northwest, Dibër to the northeast, Elbasan to the east and Fier to the southwest. It is divided into five

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 ...

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 ...

Kamëz Kamëz ( sq-definite, Kamza) is a municipality in Tirana County, Albania. It was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Kamëz and Paskuqan, that became municipal units. The seat of the municipality ...

, Kavajë, Rrogozhinë and

Vorë Vorë ( sq-definite, Vora) is a municipality in Tirana County, central Albania. It was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Bërxullë, Prezë and Vorë, that became municipal units. The seat of th ...

, with all of whom incorporate twenty-nine administrative units.

Geographically Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

, Tirana extends from the high and rugged

Skanderbeg Mountains The Skanderbeg Mountains ( sq, Vargmalet e Skënderbeut or ) are a mountain range in Albania, Southern Europe. Geography Skanderbeg Mountain is located on the border between the district of Kruja and that of Mat with the highest altitude 172 ...

in the east to the flat shores of the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast along the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

. Due to its location and the close proximity to the

, its climate is particularly influenced by a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

with four distinct seasons. Two of the country's fourteen

National Parks A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

are located in the county, with

Dajti Dajti () standing at above sea level, is a mountain and national park on the edge of Tirana, Albania. The Dajti belongs to the Skanderbeg range. In winter, the mountain is often covered with snow and is a popular retreat for the local population ...

in the center and Divjakë-Karavasta in the southwest.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

, Tirana has been populated since

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

times dating back 10,000 to 30,000 years ago. As argued by various archaeologists, the populated places are filled with Ancient Illyrian

toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

, as its precincts are some of the earliest regions in Albania to be inhabited. Nevertheless, the city of Tirana was established as a city centuries later in 1614 during the Ottoman occupation of Albania. The capital of the county is

, which is also the largest city by area and population in Albania. A gamma-world-city, it is the most influential economic and political center of the country.

History

Pre-Albanian Independence

The region, which presently corresponds to the territory of the county of Tirana, has been continuously inhabited since the

some 10,000 to 30,000 years ago, as suggested by evidence from tools excavated near

Mount Dajt Dajti () standing at above sea level, is a mountain and national park on the edge of Tirana, Albania. The Dajti belongs to the Skanderbeg range. In winter, the mountain is often covered with snow and is a popular retreat for the local population ...

's quarry and within the Cave of Pëllumbas. As argued by various archaeologists, Tirana and its suburbs are filled with Illyrian toponyms, as its precincts are some of the earliest inhabited regions in Albania. The Illyrians called the settlement Tërana. The oldest discovery in downtown Tirana was a Roman house, later transformed into an

aisleless church An aisleless church (german: Saalkirche) is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways on either side of the nave and separated fro ...

with a mosaic-floor, dating to the 3rd century A.D., with other remains found near a medieval temple at Shengjin Fountain in the eastern suburbs. A castle possibly called ''Tirkan'' or ''Theranda'', whose remnants are found along Murat Toptani Street, was built by Emperor

Justinian Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...

in 520 A.D. and restored by Ahmed Pasha Toptani in the 18th century. The area had no special importance in

Illyria In classical antiquity, Illyria (; grc, Ἰλλυρία, ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; la, Illyria, ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyr ...

n and classical times. In 1510,

Marin Barleti Marin Barleti ( la, Marinus Barletius, it, Marino Barlezio; – ) was a historian and Catholic priest from Shkodër who was a humanist. He is considered the first Albanian historian because of his 1504 eyewitness account of the 1478 siege of ...

, an Albanian Catholic priest and scholar, in the biography of the Albanian national hero

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 ...

referred to this area as a small village.

Geography

Defined in an area of , Tirana County is located in the Central Region of the Republic of Albania and bordered by the

to the west, the counties of Durrës to the northwest, Dibër to the northeast, Elbasan to the east and Fier to the southwest. The county lies between

latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...

s 41° and 18° N and

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east–west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek letter l ...

s 19° and 56° E. The highest point is Mali me Gropa at above the Adriatic, though the lowest point is the Adriatic Sea at . Tirana County from the shorelines of the

in the west to the mountains of the

system in the east. The flat plain of the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast in the west contains the Myzeqe Plain. To the east lie the hilly, mountainous region of the Skanderbeg Mountains separating the Western Lowlands from the Central Mountain Range. Three rivers traverse the county, including the Erzen River, the Ishëm River and the

Shkumbin River The Shkumbin (; ; la, Genusus, also la, Genessus, label=none or la, Scampis, label=none), also commonly Shkembi, is a river in Southern Europe. It is long and its drainage basin is . Its average discharge is . Etymology It derives from La ...

along the border with Elbasan County.

Climate

The Adriatic Sea and Skanderbeg Mountains have a particular influence to the climate of Tirana County, though it has a

with four distinct seasons. Summers are generally warm and dry, while winters are relatively cool and mild, and rarely very cold. The highest temperature of was recorded in the city of

, whereas the lowest temperature of was recorded in the village of Bixë.

Protected areas

The Ministry of Tourism and Environment administers a number of natural sites and protected areas in Tirana County. In conjunction with numerous national natural sites and areas, the National Agency of Protected Areas also manages the

Dajti National Park Dajti Mountain National Park ( sq, Parku Kombëtar "Mali i Dajtit") is a national park established in 1966 in central Albania, spanning an area of since 2006. The park is east of the Adriatic Sea and east of Tirana. The area is under shared j ...

Divjakë-Karavasta National Park The Divjakë-Karavasta National Park ( sq, Parku Kombëtar Divjakë-Karavasta) is a national park in western Albania, sprawling across the Myzeqe, Myzeqe Plain in the direct proximity to the Adriatic Sea. The park spans a territory of containing ...

and the

Mali me Gropa-Bizë-Martanesh Protected Landscape The Mali me Gropa-Bizë-Martanesh Protected Landscape ( sq, Peizazhin e Mbrojtur Mali me Gropa-Bizë-Martanesh) is a protected landscape in central Albania adjacent with the border with Dajti National Park. It covers a surface area of . It is sit ...

Demography

Tirana County is the most populous and densely populated county of the Republic of Albania, with an increasing number of population. Its center of population is located across the Plain of Tirana, in the

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...

. The Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) estimated the county's population in 2021 at 912,190, constituting to 32% of Albania's population. Tirana County has experienced a generally high rate of population increase since the late twentieth century in part due to the fall of communism. Internal migration has been a significant factor in its population growth, especially from Berat, Dibër and

Kukës Kukës ( sq-definite, Kukësi) is a city in the Republic of Albania. The city is the capital of the surrounding municipality of Kukës and county of Kukës, one of 12 constituent counties of the republic. It spans and had a total population of 16 ...

. Nonetheless, the most densely populated areas are positioned in the flat western half, and the region around the relatively small corridor of the city of Tirana, thus the lowest densities are located in the mountainous eastern half. As of the 2011 Census, in terms of ethnicity, Tirana County was 84.1%

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

, 0.35% Greek, 0.32%

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 ...

, 0.11% Aromanian, 0.11%

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

, 0.07%

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North M ...

and 0.01% Montenegrin. By language, 99.40% spoke

as a first language. Other spoken languages were Greek (0.12%),

(0.12%),

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

(0.06%),

(0.05%), Italian (0.03%) and Aromanian (0.02%). By religion, there were 466,760 (62.29%)

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 ...

s, 39,745 (5.30%)

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 lette ...

s, 37,890 (5.06%)

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

, 19,909 (2.66%) Bektashis, 1,783 (0.24%)

Evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...

s, 797 (0.11%) other

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'' (Χρι ...

, 29,579 (3.95%) believers without denomination and 270 (0.04%) of other religions. Nonetheless, 20,558 people (2.74%) were

irreligious Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and ant ...

while 113,844 (15.19%) did not declare their religion.

Settlements

Tirana County is overwhelmingly urban, with more than 70% of its population concentrated in cities, towns, and suburbs. There are five incorporated

(''bashkia'') and 29 administrative units (''njësi administrative'') in the county. The majority of its population lives in the capital city of

. As of the 2011 Census, the population of the unit stands at 418,495 with the adjacent municipality of Tirana having a population of 557,422 simultaneously constituting the largest

in Albania. Other units with a population over 10,000 include

, Kashar,

Paskuqan Paskuqan is a city and a former municipality in the Tirana County, central Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It ...

, Farkë, Kavajë, Dajt and

Economy

Transport

Development and maintenance of

transportation in Albania Transport in Albania consists of transport by Land transport, land, Water transportation, water and Air transport, air, which are predominantly under the supervision of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy (Albania), Ministry of Infrastruct ...

are within the functions of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy in

. Other entities, such as the Albanian Aviation Authority (AAC) and

Albanian Road Authority The Albanian Road Authority () or ''(ARrSh)'', is an independent, public institution in Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeast ...

(ARRSH), provide the same service for the air and land transportation of the country. Tirana County is served by Nënë Tereza International Airport located in the village of Rinas. It is named in honour of the

nun and missionary,

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...

, and offers connections to numerous destinations in different countries across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. The airport carried more than 3.3 million passengers in 2019 and serves as the principal hub for the country's flag carrier, Air Albania. The county is connected by a well developed system of expressways and motorways. The main west–east corridor is Rruga Shtetërore 2 (SH2), which connects the country's capital Tirana with the country's second largest city Durrës in Durrës County. The north-south corridor is Rruga Shtetërore 3 (SH3), which is currently being transformed into the Autostrada 3 (A3), covering the distance between Tirana and the country's fourth largest city Elbasan in Elbasan County. Rruga Shtetërore 4 (SH4) passes through Kavajë in the west from north to south linking Durrës with

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 with ...

. However, after its completion, the Arbër Highway will connect the county with Dibër County and

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

Tourism

The contribution of tourism to the economy of Tirana has significantly increased over the past years. Tourism in Tirana relies intensively on its natural environment, diversified cultural life and its abundance of religious and historical landmarks. The

government of Albania Albania is a Unitary state, unitary Parliamentary system, parliamentary Republic, constitutional republic, where the President of Albania is the head of state and the Prime Minister of Albania the head of government in a multi-party system. The e ...

maintains a series of popular protected areas within the territory including,