Albaniaofficially Republic of Albania, Albanian
ShqiperiaShqipëria, or Republika e ShqiperiseShqipërisë, country
located in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula on the
Strait of Otranto, the southern entrance to the Adriatic Sea. It
encompasses an area of 11,100 square miles (28,748 square
kilometres), with has a maximum length from north to south of
about 210 miles (340 kilometres) and a maximum width of about 95
miles. It is bounded to the northwest by Montenegro, to the
northeast by the Kosovo region of Serbia, to the east by
Macedonia, and to the southeast and south by Greece. To the west
and southwest, Albania is bordered by the Adriatic and Ionian
seas. Albania’s immediate western neighbour, Italy, lies some 50
miles across the Adriatic. The capital city is TiraneTiranë.
Albanians refer to themselves as shqiptare shqiptarë, meaning
“sons of eagles,” and to their country as ShqiperiaShqipëria.
Descended from the ancient Illyrians, they have lived in
relative isolation and obscurity through most of t