Counties of Albania

Counties (Albanian: qarqe or qarqet), also sometimes known as prefectures (prefekturë), 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 municipalities and 373 communes.

Counties of Albania
CategoryUnitary State
LocationRepublic of Albania
Number12
Populations59,381 (Gjirokastër)–906,166 (Tiranë)
Areas766 km2 (296 sq mi) (Durrës)–3,711 km2 (1,433 sq mi) (Korçë)
Government
Subdivisions

History

Since its Declaration of Independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912, Albania has reorganized its internal administration 21 times. The primary division until the year 2000 was into districts (Albanian: rrethe), whose number, size, and importance varied over time.[1] They were organized into groups comprising 12 counties beginning in 1991.[1]

The current status of the counties[2] is based on the 1998 constitution and was carried out on 31 July 2000.[3] The former districts were abolished entirely and replaced with urban municipalities (bashki) and rural municipalities (komuna), which further oversaw villages (fshatra) in the countryside. This was revised in 2014, so that the 2015 local elections divided the counties into municipalities (bashki) at the regional level and administrative units (njësi administrative) for local government.

List
CountySeatMunicipalitiesNUTS-2AreaPopulation (2020)[4]EmblemGeographic coordinates
Berat BeratBerat, Kuçovë, Poliçan, Skrapar, Ura VajguroreSouthern Region1,798 km2 (694 sq mi)122,003Emblem of Berat County40°44′N 19°59′E
Dibër PeshkopiBulqizë, Dibër, Klos, MatNorthern Region2,586 km2 (998 sq mi)115,857Emblem of Dibër County41°42′N 20°22′E
Durrës DurrësDurrës, Krujë, ShijakNorthern Region766 km2 (296 sq mi)290,697Emblem of Durrës County41°23′N 19°30′E
Elbasan ElbasanBelsh, Cërrik, Elbasan, Gramsh, Librazhd, Peqin, PrrenjasCentral Region3,199 km2 (1,235 sq mi)270,074Emblem of Elbasan County41°6′N 20°8′E
Fier FierDivjakë, Fier, Lushnjë, Mallakastër, Patos, RoskovecSouthern Region1,890 km2 (730 sq mi)289,889Emblem of Fier County44°46′N 19°37′E
Gjirokastër GjirokastërDropull, Gjirokastër, Këlcyrë, Libohovë, Memaliaj, Përmet, TepelenëSouthern Region2,884 km2 (1,114 sq mi)59,381Emblem of Gjirokastër County40°12′N 20°15′E
Korçë KorçëDevoll, Kolonjë, Korçë, Maliq, Pogradec, PustecSouthern Region3,711 km2 (1,433 sq mi)204,831Emblem of Korçë County40°40′N 20°48′E
Kukës KukësHas, Kukës, TropojëNorthern Region2,374 km2 (917 sq mi)75,428Emblem of Kukës County42°7′N 20°25′E
Lezhë LezhëKurbin, Lezhë, MirditëNorthern Region1,620 km2 (630 sq mi)122,700Emblem of Lezhë County41°49′N 19°41′E
Shkodër ShkodërFushë-Arrëz, Malësi e Madhe, Pukë, Shkodër, Vau i DejësNorthern Region3,562 km2 (1,375 sq mi)200,007Emblem of Shkodër County42°6′N 19°37′E
Tirana TiranaKamëz, Kavajë, Rrogozhinë, Tirana, VorëCentral Region1,652 km2 (638 sq mi)906,166Emblem of Tirana County41°6′N 20°8′E
Vlorë VlorëDelvinë, Finiq, Himarë, Konispol, Sarandë, Selenicë, VlorëSouthern Region2,706 km2 (1,045 sq mi)188,922Emblem of Vlorë County40°30′N 19°37′E

See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Counties of Albania.

References
  1. A Brief History of the Administrative-territorial Organization in Albania Archived 2017-06-09 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of State for Local Issues
  2. "Ligji për Vetëqeverisjen Vendore" (PDF). Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  3. "A Brief History of the Administrative-territorial Organization in Albania". reformaterritoriale.al. Archived from the original on 2017-06-09. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
  4. "Popullsia në 1 Janar sipas qarqeve dhe gjinisë 2001 - 2020" (in Albanian). Instituti i Statistikës (INSTAT). Retrieved 22 July 2020.
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