Albanian culture in the context of "Vatër"

The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, and they also live in the neighboring countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Greece, and Serbia, as well as in Italy, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Albanians also constitute a large diaspora with several communities established across Europe and the other continents.

The language of the Albanians is an Indo-European language and the only surviving representative of the Albanoid branch, which belongs to the Paleo-Balkan group. Albanians have a western Paleo-Balkanic origin, and, for geographic and historical reasons, most scholars maintain that they descend at least partially from the Illyrians, but the question of which other Paleo-Balkan group(s) contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Albanians is still a subject of academic debate.

Cham Albanians or Chams (also spelled Çam Albanians or Çams; Albanian: Çamët; Greek: Τσάμηδες, romanized: Tsámides), are a subgroup of Albanians who originally resided in a region along the coast of the Ionian Sea in southwestern Albania and northwestern Greece, an area known among Albanians as Chameria. The Chams have their own particular cultural identity within Albanian subgroups. A number of Chams contributed to the Albanian national identity and played an important role in starting the renaissance of the Albanian culture in the 19th century. The Chams speak their own dialect of the Albanian language, the Cham Albanian dialect, which is a Southern Tosk Albanian dialect and one of the two most conservative ones; the other being Arvanitika.

During the late 1930s Chams suffered from intimidation and persecution under the dictatorship of General Metaxas. Following the Italian occupation of Albania in 1939, the Chams became a prominent propaganda tool for the Italians and irredentist elements among them became more vocal. As a result, on the eve of the Greco-Italian War, Greek authorities deported the adult male Cham population to internment camps. After the occupation of Greece, parts of the Muslim Cham population collaborated with Italian and German forces. This fueled resentment among the local Greek population and in the aftermath of World War II, the entire Muslim Cham population were forcefully expelled to Albania.

The Albanians are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, and they also live in the neighboring countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Greece, and Serbia, as well as in Italy, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Albanians also constitute a large diaspora with several communities established across Europe and other continents.

The language of the Albanians is an Indo-European language and the only surviving representative of the Albanoid branch, which belongs to the Paleo-Balkan group. Albanians have a western Paleo-Balkanic origin, and, for geographic and historical reasons, most scholars maintain that they descend at least partially from the Illyrians, but the question of which other Paleo-Balkan group(s) contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Albanians is still a subject of academic debate.

Muslim Romani people are Romani people who profess Islam. Most Muslim Romani people are cultural or nominal Muslims. They primarily live in the Balkans, though they are dispersed across Europe. Significant minority communities can be found in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia. They are also notably present in Crimea, Croatia (where 45% of the country's Romani population is Muslim), Romania, Serbia and Slovenia. Xoroxane is a Romani term of Turkish origin used to refer to Muslim Roma.

Islam among Romani people is historically associated with their time spent within the Ottoman Empire and, to a lesser degree, under early caliphates. The majority of Muslim Romanies in the former Yugoslavia speak Balkan Romani and South Slavic languages, while many speak only the language from the host country's like the Albanized Muslim Roma in Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia, known as Khorakhan Shiptari. They speak only the Albanian language and have fully adopted the Albanian culture. In Šuto Orizari (Shutka), North Macedonia, they have their own mosque and Romani Imam and use the Quran in the Romani language.

The music of Albania (Albanian: Muzika Shqiptare) is associated with the country of Albania and Albanian communities. Music has a long tradition in the country and is known for its regional diversity, from the Ghegs in the North to the Tosks in the South. It is an integral part of the national identity, strongly influenced by the country's long and turbulent history, which forced Albanians to protect their culture from their overlords by living in rural and remote mountains.

Albanian popular music often incorporates the country's folk music. Albanian folk music includes monophonic and polyphonic styles, responses, choral, instrumental and vocal music. Each region has a unique musical tradition that reflects its history, language and culture. Polyphonic singing and song forms are primarily found in South Albania, while in the North they are predominantly monophonic. Albanian iso-polyphony has been declared an UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The Gjirokastër National Folklore Festival, held every five years in Gjirokastër, is an important venue exhibiting traditional Albanian music.

In traditional Albanian culture, Gjakmarrja (English: "blood-taking", i.e. "blood feud") or hakmarrja ("revenge") is the social obligation to kill an offender or a member of their family in order to salvage one's honor. This practice is generally seen as in line with the social code known as the Canon of Lekë Dukagjini (Kanuni i Lekë Dukagjinit) or simply the Kanun (consisting of 12 books and 1,262 articles). The code was originally a "non-religious code that was used by Muslims and Christians alike."

Protecting one's honor is an essential component of Albanian culture because it is the core of social respectability. Honor is held in very high regard because it carries over generations. Legacies and history are carried in the family names of Albanians and must be held in high priority, even at the cost of one's life. Therefore, when a personal attack of a formidable magnitude is unleashed on a member of any family, an equal punishment is to be expected by the laws of the Kanun. Some of the actions that initiate gjakmarrja include "killing a guest while he was under the protection of the owner of the house, violation of private house, failure to pay a debt, kidnapping or the seduction or rape of a woman." This often extends many generations if the debt is not paid. Those who choose not to pay with the lives of their family members live in shame and seclusion for the rest of their lives, imprisoned in their homes.

Albanology, also known as Albanian studies, is an interdisciplinary branch of the humanities that addresses the language, costume, literature, art, culture and history of Albanians. Within the studies the scientific methods of literature, linguistics, archeology, history and culture are used. However the Albanian language is the main point of research of the studies.

Albania was an Albanian periodical published by Faik Konica, one of the most important figures of Albanian culture in the early decades of the twentieth century. Albania was published from 1896–7 to 1910 and is widely regarded as the most important Albanian periodical in the beginning of the 20th century and one of the most important Albanian periodicals to have existed until the end of World War II.