Albanians in Romania
19th century
### 19th century

The Albanian community was strengthened during the [Phanariote epoch](/wiki/Phanariotes "Phanariotes"), when numerous immigrants opened businesses in a large number of cities and towns, and were employed as bodyguards of Wallachian princes and [boyars](/wiki/Boyars "Boyars") (being usually recorded as *Arbănași*, akin to *[Arvanites](/wiki/Arvanites "Arvanites")*, and its variant *Arnăuți*, borrowed from the [Turkish](/wiki/Turkish_language "Turkish language") *[Arnavut](/wiki/Arnaut "Arnaut")*).Giurescu, pp. 267, 272\. In 1820, a survey indicated that there were 90 traders from the [Rumelian](/wiki/Rumelia "Rumelia") town of [Arnaut Kioy](/wiki/Arnaut_Kioy "Arnaut Kioy") present in the Wallachian capital, most of whom were probably Albanians and [Aromanians](/wiki/Aromanians "Aromanians").Giurescu, p. 267\.

The *[Rilindja Kombëtare](/wiki/National_awakening_and_the_birth_of_Albania "National awakening and the birth of Albania")* movement of Albanian [nationalism](/wiki/Nationalism "Nationalism") inside the [Ottoman Empire](/wiki/Ottoman_Empire "Ottoman Empire") was present and prolific in Wallachia, the center of cultural initiatives taken by [Dora d'Istria](/wiki/Dora_d%27Istria "Dora d'Istria"), [Naim Frashëri](/wiki/Naim_Frash%C3%ABri "Naim Frashëri"), [Jani Vreto](/wiki/Jani_Vreto "Jani Vreto"), and [Naum Veqilharxhi](/wiki/Naum_Veqilharxhi "Naum Veqilharxhi") (the latter published the first ever Albanian [primer](/wiki/Textbook "Textbook") in Bucharest, in 1844\). [Aleksandër Stavre Drenova](/wiki/Aleksand%C3%ABr_Stavre_Drenova "Aleksandër Stavre Drenova"), a resident of Bucharest, authored the lyrics of Albania's national anthem, *[Hymni i Flamurit](/wiki/Hymni_i_Flamurit "Hymni i Flamurit")*, which is sung to the tune of "[Pe\-al nostru steag e scris Unire](/wiki/Pe-al_nostru_steag_e_scris_Unire "Pe-al nostru steag e scris Unire")", composed by the Romanian [Ciprian Porumbescu](/wiki/Ciprian_Porumbescu "Ciprian Porumbescu"). At the time, Albanians were present, alongside other Balkan communities, in Bucharest's commercial life, where many worked as street vendors (specializing in the sale of [soft drinks](/wiki/Soft_drinks "Soft drinks") or [confectionery](/wiki/Confectionery "Confectionery") items).Giurescu, pp. 168, 307\.

[thumb\|260px\|The newspaper *Sqipetari*/*Albanezul*, published by the Albanian community (1889\)](/wiki/File:Albanezul-1889.JPG "Albanezul-1889.JPG")
[thumb\|Albanian schoolbook printed in Bucharest in 1887](/wiki/File:Albanian_schoolbook.JPG "Albanian schoolbook.JPG")
Among the new groups of immigrants from various [Balkan](/wiki/Balkans "Balkans") regions to Romania were the families of poets [Victor Eftimiu](/wiki/Victor_Eftimiu "Victor Eftimiu") and [Lasgush Poradeci](/wiki/Lasgush_Poradeci "Lasgush Poradeci"). At the time, the independence movement gathered momentum, and, for a while after 1905, was focused on the activities of [Albert Gjika](/wiki/Albert_Gjika "Albert Gjika"). An Albanian school was opened in 1905 in the city of [Constanța](/wiki/Constan%C8%9Ba "Constanța") — among its pupils was poet Aleksandër Stavre Drenova. In 1912, at a Bucharest meeting headed by [Ismail Qemali](/wiki/Ismail_Qemali "Ismail Qemali") and attended by Drenova, the first resolution regarding [Albania](/wiki/Albania "Albania")'s independence was adopted.

In 1893, the Albanian community in Romania numbered around 30,000 persons. In 1920 almost 20,000 Albanians lived in Bucharest. A new wave of Albanian immigrants, many of them Muslims from [Yugoslavia](/wiki/Kingdom_of_Yugoslavia "Kingdom of Yugoslavia"), followed in the wake of [World War I](/wiki/World_War_I "World War I").[George Grigore](/wiki/George_Grigore "George Grigore"), ["Muslims in Romania"](http://www.isim.nl/files/newsl_3.pdf) , in International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM) Newsletter 3, July 1999, p. 34; retrieved July 16, 2007\. In 1921, the first translation of the *[Qur'an](/wiki/Qur%27an "Qur'an")* into [Albanian](/wiki/Albanian_language "Albanian language") was completed by [Ilo Mitkë Qafëzezi](/wiki/Ilo_Mitk%C3%AB_Qaf%C3%ABzezi "Ilo Mitkë Qafëzezi") and published in the city of [Ploiești](/wiki/Ploie%C8%99ti "Ploiești"). Many Albanians settled in [Transylvania](/wiki/Transylvania "Transylvania"), where they generally established confectionery enterprises.

The community was repressed under the [communist regime](/wiki/Communist_Romania "Communist Romania"), starting in 1953 (when the Albanian cultural association was closed down). Rights lost were regained after the [Romanian Revolution of 1989](/wiki/Romanian_Revolution_of_1989 "Romanian Revolution of 1989"), but the number of people declaring themselves Albanian has decreased dramatically between 1920 and 2002\. Traditionally, members of the community have been included among a special "among others" category in the censuses.

The community gained a seat in the [Chamber of Deputies](/wiki/Chamber_of_Deputies_%28Romania%29 "Chamber of Deputies (Romania)") in 1996 when the [Cultural Union of Albanians of Romania](/wiki/Cultural_Union_of_Albanians_of_Romania "Cultural Union of Albanians of Romania") entered Parliament. In 2000 the community's seat was taken by the [League of Albanians of Romania](/wiki/League_of_Albanians_of_Romania "League of Albanians of Romania"), who have held it since.


How has the role of the Cultural Union of Albanians of Romania changed over time?