Perëndi is an Albanian noun for God, deity, sky and heaven. It is used capitalized to refer to the Supreme Being, and uncapitalized for "deity", "sky" and "heaven".
Shurdh is a weather and storm god in Albanian pagan mythology, who causes hailstorms and throws thunder and lightning. Shurdh was worshiped in northern Albania until recent times.
Djall or Dreq is the personification of evil in Albanian mythology and folklore. The name is used also for a demon of fire.
I Verbti is an Albanian adjectival noun meaning "the blind one", which was used in northern Albanian folk beliefs to refer to the god of fire and wind in the Zadrima region, and to the thunderstorm god in Dukagjin and the Malësia e Vogël; in Shala the thunderstorm god was referred to as Rmoria. These beliefs survived in northern Albania until recent times.
A shtriga is a vampiric witch in Albanian mythology and folklore that sucks the blood of infants at night while they sleep, and then transform themselves into a flying insect. Only the shtriga herself could cure those she had drained. The shtriga is often pictured as a woman with a hateful stare and a horribly disfigured face. They usually live in hidden places in the forest and have supernatural powers. The term shtriga is used also with the common meaning of "witch", referring to a bad and ugly old woman who casts evil spells upon people. The male noun for shtriga is shtrigu or shtrigan.
The kulshedra or kuçedra is a water, storm, fire and chthonic demon in Albanian mythology and folklore, usually described as a huge multi-headed female serpentine dragon. The kulshedra is believed to spit fire, cause drought, storms, flooding, earthquakes and other natural disasters against mankind. In Albanian mythology she is usually fought and defeated by a drangue, a semi-human winged divine hero and protector of mankind. One of her greatest fights was against the daughter of the Sun diety and the Moon diety(Vajza e hënës dhe e djellit)who tried to protect her loved one by using her powers.Heavy thunderstorms are thought to be the result of most of their battles.Others include earthquakes,volcanic eruptions and cyclones.
Albanian folk beliefs and mythological stories comprise the beliefs expressed in the customs, rituals, myths, legends and tales of the Albanian people. The elements of Albanian mythology are of ancient Paleo-Balkanic origin and almost all of them are pagan. Albanian folklore evolved over the centuries in a relatively isolated tribal culture and society. Albanian folk tales and legends have been orally transmitted down the generations and are still very much alive in the mountainous regions of Albania, Kosovo, western North Macedonia, Montenegro and South Serbia and among the Arbëreshë in Italy and the Arvanites in Greece.
Dita e Verës or Verëza is an Albanian spring festival and pagan holiday celebrated in Albania on March 14 of the Gregorian calendar. In the old Albanian calendar, Verëza corresponds to the first three days of the new year and marks the end of the winter season and the beginning of the summer season on the spring equinox. Dita e Verës has its roots in traditional Albanian, Greek and Roman religions.
Pashtrik or Pashtrikë or Paštrik, is a mountain located in Kosovo and Albania. Its highest peak is located on their mutual border. It is 1,986 m (6,516 ft) high. The White Drin river passes along by it. Mount Pashtrik is the site of annual pilgrimages of residents from Has region of Prizren and Gjakova in Kosovo and from the border area of Albania.
Tomorr is a mountain chain in the region of Berat and Skrapar, in Albania. It reaches an elevation of 2,416 metres (7,927 ft) above sea level at the Çuka e Partizanit, which is the highest peak in central Albania.
The drangùe is a semi-human winged divine hero in Albanian mythology and folklore, associated with weather and storms. Babies destined to become drangue are born with their heads covered in caul and with two or sometimes four wings under their arms. The drangue hold supernatural powers, especially in the wings and arms. A drangùe is made invulnerable by the singular conjunction produced at his birth, and can die only if this conjunction is repeated once again. The main goal of the drangue is to fight the kulshedra in legendary battles. He uses meteoric stones, lightning-swords, thunderbolts, piles of trees and rocks to defeat the kulshedra and to protect mankind from storms, fire, floods and other natural disasters caused by her destructive power. Heavy thunderstorms are thought to be the result of their battles. The drangue and their myth are extensively and accurately portrayed in the Albanian folk tale "The Boy who was Brother to the Drague".
The Kângë Kreshnikësh are the traditional songs of the heroic legendary cycle of Albanian epic poetry. They are the product of Albanian culture and folklore orally transmitted down the generations by the Albanian rhapsodes (lahutarë) who perform them singing to the accompaniment of the lahutë. The Albanian traditional singing of epic verse from memory is one of the last survivors of its kind in modern Europe, and the last survivor of the Balkan traditions. The poems of the cycle belong to the heroic genre, reflecting the legends that portray and glorify the heroic deeds of the warriors of indefinable old times. The epic poetry about past warriors is an Indo-European tradition shared with South Slavs, but also with other heroic cultures such as those of early Greece, classical India, early medieval England and medieval Germany.
*En or *Enji is a reconstructed name of the fire god in the Albanian pagan mythology, which has continued to be used in the Albanian language to refer to Thursday.
The lubia or ljubi is a water and storm demon in Albanian mythology and folklore, usually depicted as a huge multi-headed female serpentine dragon similar to the kulshedra. In Southern Albanian beliefs, she is a storm deity. She is also referred to as ‘mother lubia’.She is known for her disturbingly huge appetite and eerie personality. Both of which characteristics are based off the fierce impression the sea gives you on stormy weather. The native people used hyperbole and made a vile creature out of the bad weather conditions.
Stihi is a fire-breathing storm demon in Albanian mythology and folklore, similar to the kulshedra.
Zojz is a sky and lightning god in Albanian pagan mythology. Regarded as the chief god and the highest of all gods, traces of his worship survived in northern Albania until the early 20th century, and in some forms still continue today.
The Vitore is a household divine serpent in Albanian mythology and folklore, associated with human destiny, good fortune and the souls of the ancestors. In folk beliefs the household serpent is strongly related to the cult of the hearth (vatër) and it is especially considered the guardian of the family and the house.
E Bukura e Detit is a character in Albanian mythology and folklore, depicted in some traditions as a sea-fairy / nymph, and in other traditions as a sea goddess, the counterpart of e Bukura e Dheut and i Bukuri i Qiellit. In some Albanian traditions she is regarded as the sister of e Bukura e Dheut.
Nëna e Diellit is a mother goddess in Albanian folk beliefs. A sacred ritual called "the funeral of the Sun's Mother" was very widespread in southeastern Albania until the 20th century. She has been described by scholars as a heaven goddess and a goddess of agriculture, livestock, and earth fertility, as suggested by the sacred ritual dedicated to her. Nëna e Diellit also features as a deity in Albanian folk tales. Nëna e Diellit represents a manifestation of the personification of the Sun in Albanian mythology.
Zonja e Dheut is the Albanian name for the Earth Goddess. In Albanian folk beliefs, earth is the object of a special cult, important oaths, and curse formulas. The Earth Mother Goddess or Great Mother is simply referred to as Dheu "The Earth" in Albanian, and traces of her worship have been preserved in Albanian tradition. The Albanian noun Toka "The Earth" is also used to refer to the living Earth.
