Miro Kosta Strati or more commonly known as "Miro Tërbaçe" was a semi-legendary

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 ...

hero who slew the local

Sanjak of Avlona The Sanjak of Avlona (, ; sometimes referred to as the Sanjak of Berat because of its county town) was one of the sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire whose county town was Berat in Albania. It was established in 1466, after the construction of the El ...

out of

revenge Revenge is defined as committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Vengeful forms of justice, such as primitive justice or retributive justice, are often differentiated from more fo ...

for the death of her brother.

The Legend

According to accounts, Miro Strati was born in the village of

Tërbaç Tërbaç is a village in Hore-Vranisht municipal area, Himarë and it is in Vlorë County, in southwestern Albania. It is located on the face of mount Çika and it is close to the river of Shushicë. Tërbaç is nearby the villages of Brataj, Vrani ...

, Albania in the middle 1700s. Her father Kostë Strati was allegedly murdered secretly by Ottoman spies. While her brother Skëndo was murdered by the Turkish authorities. Thus, the woman swore to get revenge, and rode to

Vlorë Vlorë ( ; ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, third most populous city of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surr ...

under the guise of a man. She did not find the Sanjak there, and instead ventured north to

Mallakastër Mallakastër ( sq-definite, Mallakastra) is a region and a municipality in Fier County, southwestern Albania. It was created in 2015 by the merger of the present municipalities Aranitas, Ballsh, Fratar, Greshicë, Hekal, Kutë, Ngraçan, Q ...

, where the Sanjak had his mansion. The guards were able to open the gates to let her in, and she murdered the Sanjak in 1764. After which, she swiftly returned to

Labëria Labëria is a historic region that is roughly situated in southwestern Albania. Its inhabitants are known as Labs (referred to as , pl. ''Lebër'', also dial. sing. ''Lap'') and its boundaries reach from Vlorë to Himara in the south, to the Gr ...

. Villagers in the local area still sing her ballad: ''E shkreta Miro Tërbaçe,'' ''Moj e rritura bonjake,'' ''me lakëra burdullake.'' ''nëpër dyer të Tërbaçe;'' ''Ike, te berberi vajte:'' ''“O berber, ore vëllamë,'' ''premi çepetë si djalë,'' ''se do vë dyfek e kamë,'' ''do marr hakë për babanë,'' ''për baban’ e për vëllanë!'' ''dhe për kushurin’ e parë,'' ''për të gjithë shqipëtarë.'' ''Qëllove mbi pashallarë,'' ''Tërbaçit se ç’i le namë!…''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miro Terbace Albanian mythology

The Legend

See also

References