Albanians in Montenegro

Albanians in Montenegro (; ) are an ethnic group in Montenegro of Albanian descent, which constitute 4.91% of Montenegro's total population. They are the largest non-Slavic ethnic group in Montenegro.
Albanians are particularly concentrated in southeastern and eastern Montenegro alongside the border with Albania in the following municipalities including Ulcinj (71% of total population), Tuzi (68%), Gusinje (40%), Plav (19%), Bar (6%), Podgorica (5%) and Rožaje (5%).
The largest Albanian town in Montenegro is Ulcinj, where the headquarters of the Albanian National Council are located.
Geography.
Albanians in Montenegro are concentrated along the Albania-Montenegro border in areas that were incorporated in Montenegro after the Congress of Berlin (1878) and the Balkan Wars (1912-13). Coastally, they live in the Ulcinj (Ulqin) and Bar (Tivar) municipalities which formed part of Venetian Albania. Historical Albanian regions are located in the transboundary mountainous region of Malësia in Tuzi Municipality, south of Montenegrin capital Podgorica. In eastern and northeastern Montenegro, Albanians are concentrated in municipalities of Plav (Plavë) and Gusinje (Gucia) and a smaller community is located in Rožaje Municipality (Rozhajë).
History.
Middle Ages.
In the Middle Ages, Albanians in present-day Montenegro lived in the highlands of Malësia-Brda (both terms mean "highlands"), around Lake Scodra and coastally in the area known as Albania Veneta. Tuzi, a key Albanian settlement today, is mentioned in 1330 in the Dečani chrysobulls as part of the Albanian ("arbanas") "katun" (semi-nomadic pastoral community) of Llesh Tuzi ("Ljesa Tuzi" in the original), in an area stretching southwards from modern Tuzi Municipality along the Lake Skadar to a village near modern Koplik. This katund included many communities that later formed their own separate communities: Reçi and his sons, Matagushi, Bushati and his sons, Pjetër Suma and Pjetër Kuçi, first known ancestor of Kuči. In the 1330 chrysobulls, the Hoti tribe is mentioned for first time in "Hotina Gora" (mountains of Hoti) in the Plav and Gusinje regions on the Lim river basin.
Ottoman.
After the territorial expansion of Montenegro towards the Ottoman territories in 1878, Albanians for the first time became citizens of that country. Albanians that obtained Montenegrin citizenship were Muslims and Catholics, and lived in the cities of Bar and Ulcinj, including their surroundings, in the bank of river Bojana and shore of Lake Skadar, as well as in Zatrijebač.
On October 26, 1851, the Arnaut chieftain Gjonlek from Nikšić was traveling with 200 Arnauts, given the task of defending Ottoman Albanian interests. They were attacked by Montenegrin forces from Gacko. On November 11, 1851, Montenegrin forces numbering 30 crossed the Moraca river and attacked the Albanian Ottoman citadel, under Selim Aga, with 27 men. Five were killed and four wounded while Selim Aga pulled back, wounded, into his house and, and in the next morning, he returned to counter the Montenegrins. The Pasha of Scutari immediately began gathering troops.
In 1877, Nikšić was annexed by the Montenegrins in accordance with the Treaty of Berlin. American author William James Stillman (1828-1901) who traveled in the region at the time writes in his biography of the Montenegrin forces whoo, on the orders of the Prince, began to bomb the Studenica fortress in Nikšić with artillery. Around 20 Albanian nizams were inside the fortress who resisted and when the walls breached, they surrendered and asked Stillman if they were going to be decapitated. An Albanian accompanying Stillman translated his words saying they were not going to be killed in which the Albanians celebrated. Shortly after the treaty, the Montenegrin prince began expelling the Albanians from Nikšić, Žabljak and Kolašin who then fled to Turkey, Kosovo (Pristina) and Macedonia. The Montenegrin forces also robbed the Albanians before the expulsion. After the fall of Nikšić, Prince Nicholas I wrote a poem of the victory.
On January 31, 1879, Montenegrin teacher Shcepan Martinovied informed the government of Cetinje that the Muslims of Nikšić desired a school. The Ottomans had opened schools in Nikšić , among other neighboring regions, in the 17th and 18th century.
In 1879, Zenel Ahmet Demushi of the Geghyseni tribe, fought with 40 members of the family against Montenegrin forces led by Marko Miljanov in Nikšić . The conflict intensified in 1880 when the Albanian irregulars fought under Ali Pash Gucia against the Montenegrin forces led by the brother of Marko Milajnov, Teodor Miljanov, the battle lasting five hours, according to letters written by two local Albanians from Shkodër who participated in the battle. 
In 1899, the government in Montenegro arrested Albanians in Nikšić and Danilovgrad out of fear that the Malesori would attack the Young Turks in the region, and the captives were held for more than six months in prison.
20th century.
After the Balkan Wars, new territories inhabited by Albanians became part of Montenegro. Montenegro then gained a part of Malesija, respectively Hoti and Gruda, with Tuzi as center, Plav, Gusinje, Rugovo, Peja and Gjakova. During World War I, Albanian immigrants from Nikšić who had been expelled to Cetinje sent a letter to Isa Boletini saying that they risked starving if he did not send them money for food.
With the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes after World War I, Albanians in Montenegro became discriminated. The position would improve somewhat in Tito's Yugoslavia. In the mid-twentieth century, 20,000 Albanians lived in Montenegro and their number would grow by the end of the century. By the end of the 20th century the number of Albanians began to fall as a result of immigration.
Modern period.
On 26 November 2019, an earthquake struck Albania. In Montenegro, Albanians from Ulcinj were involved in a major relief effort sending items such as food, blankets, diapers and baby milk through a local humanitarian organisation "Amaneti" and in Tuzi through fundraising efforts.
Demographics.
Albanians in Montenegro are settled in the southeastern and eastern parts of the country. Ulcinj Municipality, consisting Ulcinj (Albanian: Ulqin) with the surroundings and Ana e Malit region, along with the newly-formed Tuzi Municipality, are the only municipalities where Albanians are the majority (71% and 68% of the populations respectively). A large number of Albanians also live in the following regions: Bar (Tivar) and Skadarska Krajina (Krajë) in Bar Municipality (2,515 Albanians or 6% of the population), Plav (Plavë) and Gusinje (Guci) in Plav Municipality (2,475 or 19%) and Rožaje (Rozhajë) in Rožaje Municipality (1,158 or 5%).
The largest Albanian settlement is Ulcinj, followed by Tuzi.
Municipalities with an Albanian majority.
Of the 24 municipalities in the country, 2 have an ethnic Albanian majority.
Anthropology.
The Albanians in Montenegro are Ghegs.
Tribes.
There are four Malësor Albanian tribes in Montenegro: Hoti, Gruda, Zatrijebač and Kučka krajina.
Culture.
Montenegrin Albanian culture in this region is closely related to the culture of Albanians in Albania, and the city of Shkodër in particular. Their Albanian language dialect is Gheg as of Albanians in Northern Albania.
Religion.
According to the 2003 census, 73.37% of Albanians living in Montenegro were Muslim and 26.08% were Roman Catholic. The religious life of Muslim Albanians is organized by the Islamic Community of Montenegro, comprising not only Albanians, but also other Muslim minorities in Montenegro. Catholic Albanians, generally living in Malesija, Šestani and some in the Bar and Ulcinj municipalities, are members of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bar, whose members are mainly Albanians, but which also includes a small number of Slavs. The current archbishop, Zef Gashi, is an ethnic Albanian.
Language.
Albanians in Montenegro speak the Gheg Albanian dialect, namely the northwestern variant, while according to the 2011 Census, there are 32,671 native speakers of the Albanian language (or 5.27% of the population).
According to Article 13 of the Constitution of Montenegro, Albanian language (alongside Serbian, Bosnian and Croatian) is a language in official use, officially recognized as minority language.
Education.
The government of Montenegro provides Albanian-language education in the local primary and secondary schools. There is one department in the University of Montenegro, located in Podgorica, offered in Albanian, namely teacher education
Politics.
The first political party created by Albanians in this country is the Democratic League in Montenegro, founded by Mehmet Bardhi in 1990. Most Albanians support the country's integration into the EU: during the 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, in Ulcinj Municipality, where Albanians at that time accounted over 72% of the population, 88.50% of voters voted for an independent Montenegro. Overall, the vote of the Albanian minority secured the country's secession from Serbia and Montenegro.
In 2008, the Albanian National Council (Albanian: "Këshilli Kombëtar i Shqiptarëve", abb. KKSH) was established to represent the political interests of the Albanian community. The current chairman of the KKSH is Genci Nimanbegu.