Southern Mountain Region (Albania) in the context of "Central Mountain Range (Albania)"

Albania is mostly mountainous, with the first alpine regions forming towards the end of the Jurassic period. During the Cenozoic era, the malformation of the Albanides accelerated, causing the subterranean landscape to take its present form. The average altitude of the country is 714 m (2,343 ft), almost three times that of Europe. Its highest summits are situated in the Albanian Alps and the eastern mountain range, with Korab being the highest peak, at 2,764 m (9,068 ft) above sea level.

The country's geography is unique due to its location and varied relief, with landscapes ranging from mediterranean in the west to a more continental influence in the east and mountainous terrain in the interior and east. This combination of plains, hills and mountains has resulted in a diverse range of geographical features, extending horizontally and vertically. However, this complexity has made regionalization challenging, as different authors have used alternating criteria and methods. In the 1920s, Herbert Louis proposed a scheme that divided Albania into two large regions: Inner Albania and Coastal Albania, each with specific subdivisions. His scheme was widely used until 1964, when it was to be replaced by Pandi Geço's proposed scheme which divided the country into four physiographic regions, listed as follows: Albanian Alps, Central Mountain Region, Southern Mountain Region, Albanian Coastal Lowlands and its hills. By 1990, Geço's scheme was improved through further research and consideration of ecological concerns, recapping all regions into 67 constituent subunits.

Nemërçka (Albanian: Nemërçkë, Greek: Νεμέρτσικα, Δούσκο, Μερόπη, Αεροπός, romanized: Nemértsika, Doúsko, Merópi, Aeropós) is a mountain chain situated along the boundary between Gjirokastër and Përmet municipalities, in southern Albania and northern Greece. Part of the Trebeshinë-Dhëmbel-Nemërçkë mountain range, its highest peak, Maja e Papingut, reaches a height of 2,482 m (8,143 ft), making it the highest peak in the Southern Mountain Region. Other notable peaks include Maja e Gatakut 2,269 m (7,444 ft), Maja e Qesarit 2,253 m (7,392 ft), Maja e Poliçanit 2,138 m (7,014 ft), etc.

The chain extends about 20 km (12 mi) from Qafa e Dhëmbelit in the north to the state border with Greece in the south, stretching at a width of 4–10 km (2.5–6.2 mi).