Shkumbin River in the context of "Gheg Albanian"

Gheg (Gheg Albanian: gegnisht, Standard Albanian: gegërisht) is one of the two major varieties of Albanian, the other being Tosk. The geographic dividing line between the two varieties is the Shkumbin River, which winds its way through central Albania. Gheg is spoken in northern and central Albania, Kosovo, northwestern North Macedonia, southeastern Montenegro and southern Serbia by the Albanian dialectal subgroup known as Ghegs.

Gheg does not have any official status as a written language in any country. Publications in Kosovo and North Macedonia are in Standard Albanian, which is based on Tosk. However, some authors continue to write in Gheg.

The Albanians of Kosovo (Albanian: Shqiptarët e Kosovës, pronounced [ʃcipˈtaɾət ɛ kɔˈsɔvəs]), also commonly called Kosovo Albanians or Kosovan Albanians, also commonly referred in the Albanian language as simply Kosovars (Albanian: Kosovarët), constitute the largest ethnic group in Kosovo. Kosovo Albanians belong to the Gheg dialectal sub-group of ethnic Albanians, because they speak Gheg Albanian, more specifically the Northwestern and Northeastern Gheg variants. Other Ghegs live in Albania (north of the Shkumbin river), southern and eastern Montenegro, in southern Serbia, and in western parts of North Macedonia.

According to the 2024 national census by the Kosovo Agency of Statistics, Albanians comprise 91.8% of the population in Kosovo.

The Ghegs (also spelled Gegs; Albanian: Gegët) are one of the two main dialectal subgroups of Albanians, alongside the Tosks. These groups are distinguished by their linguistic characteristics.

The Ghegs live in Albania (north of the Shkumbin river), Kosovo, North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro. The Ghegs speak Gheg Albanian, one of the two main dialects of Albanian language. The social organization of the Ghegs was traditionally tribal, with several distinct tribal groups of Ghegs.