Pukë ( sq-definite, Puka) is a town and municipality in northern

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

. It was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Gjegjan, Pukë, Qelëz, Qerret and Rrapë, that became municipal units. The seat of the municipality is the town Pukë. The total population is 11,069 (2011 census), in a total area of 505.83 km². The population of the former municipality at the 2011 census was 3,607. At 838 metres above sea level, the town is one of the highest in elevation in Albania and a well-known ski area. It is 150 km from Albania's capital,

Tirana Tirana ( , ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in Albania, 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 ov ...

Etymology

The toponym may derive from

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

''via publica'' ("public road") as it was located on an old trade route.

History

The settlement is inhabited by the tribe of Puka, itself one of the "seven tribes of Puka" (). According to tradition, collected by in the mid-19th century, the settlement of Puka had been founded by a Paolo Zenta, who according to Marin Barletius was a relative of Lekë Dukagjini. The region also has its own Kanun, a set of traditional Albanian laws, and is known as () and used mainly in

Northern Albania Northern Albania () is one of the three NUTS-2 regions of Albania, along with Central Albania and Southern Albania (). It consists of the counties of Dibër, Durrës, Kukës, Lezhë and Shkodër. Historically and in ethnography, Northern ...

and

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

. In the 20th century, Pukë was expanded as a military base and a centre of

Catholic education Catholic education may refer to: * Catholic school, primary and secondary education organised by the Roman Catholic Church or affiliated organisations * Catholic higher education, higher education run by the Catholic Church or affiliated organisat ...

. The distinguished Albanian poet

Migjeni Millosh Gjergj Nikolla (; 13 October 191126 August 1938), commonly known by the acronym pen name Migjeni, was an Albanian people, Albanian poet and writer, considered one of the most important of the 20th century. After his death, he was recogni ...

taught in the town from 1936 to 1937. Pukë is surrounded by a 400-hectare (1.5 sq mi)

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

-coated

massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

. As in other parts of Europe, climate change has extended and consolidated the range of the pine processionary moths, who defoliate pines, including in the pinelands of northern Albania.

Economy

Presently one of Albania’s poorest settlements, approximately two-thirds of Puka’s residents live on social welfare and the municipality is in debt. Alongside that many of its inhabitants have emigrated, mostly to Tirana and abroad, notably England. The hotel standing in the town square has been upgraded and now boasts a microbrewery producing Puka Beer, which is a lager in draught form. The local

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club is KF Tërbuni Pukë.

Mayors

Notable people

* Etilda Gjonaj - politician, lawyer, and professor * Altin Lala - former captain of

Albania national football team The Albania national football team () represents Albania in men's international Association football, football. It is governed by the Albanian Football Federation (FSHF), the governing body for football in Albania. It is a member of UEFA in Eur ...

and

Hannover 96 Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96 (), is a German professional association football, football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony. They played in the Bundesliga for a total of 30 years between 19 ...

* Kristjan Sokoli - NFL player * Xhovalin Delia - painter * Fabio Gjonikaj - footballer * Taulant Marku - footballer * Sebino Plaku - footballer * Flavio Prendi - footballer * Ndoc Mark Gega - patriot * Millosh Gjergj Nikolla - teacher, poet and writer

Twin towns – sister cities

Pukë is twinned with: * Signa, Italy

References

Sources

* * Through The Embers of Chaos (2002), Dervla Murphy The author refers to processionary disease in Pukë on a cycle trip through Albania, including a stay in the town, described on page 213

External links

Official websiteHotel Turizem Puka Official WebsitePukë
A Web page dedicated to Pukë and the surrounding area
Puka Tourist Guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Puke Municipalities in Shkodër County Ski areas and resorts in Albania Administrative units of Pukë Towns in Albania