Albanian language

Albanian, also called shqip or gjuha shqipe, is an Indo-European language. It is the only surviving member of the Albanoid branch. Many people speak it, and it is the official language of Albania and Kosovo. It is also an official language in North Macedonia and Montenegro, where many Albanians live.

The language has many speakers, including people in Italy, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, and Greece. There are also many speakers from the Albanian diaspora living in the Americas, Europe, and Oceania. Albanian has two main dialect groups. These are Gheg in the north and Tosk in the south. When spoken in their standard forms, people from both groups can mostly understand each other.

Albanian has a long history. Its earliest written mention was in 1284. It is believed to have developed from an ancient language called Illyrian. This language was spoken in the Balkans before Slavic languages arrived. Today, Standard Albanian is based mainly on the Tosk dialect.

Geographic distribution

Main article: Albanians

The Albanian language is spoken by many people in the Balkans. It is mainly used in countries like Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Greece. Because of moving people and immigration, many Albanian speakers live around the world. The total number is about 7.5 million.

In Europe, Albanian is the official language in Albania and Kosovo. It is also an official language in North Macedonia and Montenegro. It is a minority language in countries such as Croatia, Italy, Romania, and Serbia. In the Americas, many Albanian speakers live in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Canada. Smaller groups exist in Turkey, Egypt, Australia, and New Zealand.

Dialects

Main article: Albanian dialects

The Albanian language has two main dialects: Tosk, spoken in the south, and Gheg, spoken in the north. The Shkumbin River marks the boundary between these two dialects. Standard Albanian is based on the Tosk dialect.

Gheg has four sub-dialects. It is mainly spoken in northern Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, and northwestern North Macedonia. Tosk includes several sub-dialects. Tosk is spoken in southern Albania, parts of North Macedonia, and Greece. The Arbëresh dialect is spoken by descendants of ancient Albanian migrants living in Italy, specifically in Sicily and Calabria.

Orthography

Main articles: Albanian alphabet and Albanian braille

The Albanian language has been written with many different alphabets since the 1500s. Early writing used Italian or Greek spellings. The Tosk dialect used the Greek alphabet, while the Gheg dialect used the Latin script. Some writers also used Ottoman Turkish versions of the Arabic script, Cyrillic, and local alphabets like Elbasan and Vithkuqi.

In 1908, Albanian leaders met at the Congress of Manastir to choose a standard alphabet. They picked the Latin alphabet with extra letters like ⟨ë⟩ and ⟨ç⟩, plus nine special pairs of letters. This became the official way to write Albanian.

Classification

Albanian is part of the Indo-European language family. It is unique and the only surviving language from its group. Albanian is closely related to Greek and Armenian. It belongs to a group called the "Balkan Indo-European" languages, which includes Ancient Greek and Phrygian.

Albanian has two main dialects: Tosk and Gheg Albanian. Scientists study an older form of the language called Old Albanian. This helps us learn how Albanian grew and interacted with other languages in the Balkans.

History

Albanian is an ancient language. It belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is the only surviving language in its branch, which is part of the Paleo-Balkan group. The first known written mention of Albanian appeared in 1284 in Ragusa, now Dubrovnik in Croatia. Over time, Albanian developed into two main dialects: Tosk and Gheg.

The oldest surviving document written in Albanian dates back to 1462. Important early books include Meshari by Gjon Buzuku in 1555 and a Christian teaching book by Lekë Matrënga in 1592. During the time of Ottoman presence in the region, Albanian was not officially recognized as a school language until 1909.

Literary tradition

The Albanian language has a long history in writing. The oldest known Albanian text is the Baptismal Formula from 1462. It was written by Pal Engjëlli, Archbishop of Durrës. It is a short phrase used in religious ceremonies. Another early text is a small list of Albanian phrases with German translations from 1496.

The first whole book in Albanian is called the Meshari. It was written by Gjon Buzuku between 1554 and 1555. The book has religious prayers, rituals, and stories from important holy days. Later, in 1592, the first printed book in another Albanian dialect was published in Rome.

Indo-European features

Main article: Indo-European vocabulary

Albanian has some special features from its ancient roots. For example, some sounds that were different in old Indo-European languages now sound the same in Albanian. Albanian also often drops sounds at the end of words or in the middle when they are not stressed.

The way Albanian uses sounds like "k" and "g" is unique. It does not fit neatly into two main groups of Indo-European languages, making its sound changes interesting to study.

Standard Albanian

Since World War II, standard Albanian in Albania has used the Tosk dialect. Kosovo and other places where Albanian is official started using this form in 1969.

Before that, Albanian writing had three main traditions: Gheg, Tosk, and Arbëreshë. In 1908, a Gheg form from around Elbasan was suggested as a base for a unified language. Later, both Gheg and Tosk kept developing. After World War II, the new government in Albania chose the Tosk dialect for all official uses. This became the standard across Albania, and Kosovo later adopted it too. Today, Albanian is used in schools, and most people in Albania can read and write.

Phonology

See also:

Albanian has seven vowels and 29 consonants. It has special sounds, like th (as in thin) and dh (as in this).

Gheg has longer and nasal vowels that Tosk does not have. In Albanian, stress usually falls on the last syllable. In Gheg, some sounds change in Tosk, like n turning into r.

Albanian has unique sounds, such as a rolled rr, like in Spanish or Armenian. It also has special letters and sounds, like ll, which is a soft l. Sometimes letters are written in different ways due to technical limits, like using ch instead of ç.