General Statistics | |
---|---|
Maternal mortality (per 100,000) | 27 (2010) |
Women in parliament | 35.4% [1] (2021) |
Women over 25 with secondary education | 81.8% (2012) |
Women in labour force | 52.0% (2014) [2] |
Gender Inequality Index [3] | |
Value | 0.144 (2021) |
Rank | 39th out of 191 |
Global Gender Gap Index [4] | |
Value | 0.787 (2022) |
Rank | 18th out of 146 |
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Women in society |
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The first women's association in Albania was founded in 1909. [5] Albanian women from the northern Gheg region resided within a conservative [6] and patriarchal society. In such a traditional society, the women had subordinate roles in Gheg communities that believe in "male predominance". This is despite the arrival of democracy and the adoption of a free market economy in Albania, after the period under the communist Party of Labour. [7] Traditional Gheg Albanian culture was based on the 500-year-old Kanun of Lekë Dukagjini, a traditional Gheg code of conduct, where the main role of women was to take care of the children and to take care of the home. [6]
According to a column in The Literary World in 1878, Albanian women were allowed to carry arms. [8]
Edith Durham noted in 1928 that Albanian village women were more conservative in maintaining traditions, such as revenge calling, similar to women in ancient Greece. [9]
Prior to World War II, it was common for some Gheg Albanian women to become "live-in concubines" of men living in mountain areas. [7]
Having daughters is less favoured within the patriarchal society of Gheg Albanians. [7] Due to the giving of greater importance to the desire of having sons than bearing daughters, it is customary that for pregnant Albanian women to be greeted with the phrase "të lindtë një djalë", meaning "May it be a son".[ citation needed ]
The Labs of Labëria were a patriarchal society.[ citation needed ] As among the Montenegrins, women in Labëria were forced to do all the drudge work. [10]
In the past, in family units that did not have patriarchs, unmarried Albanian women could take on the role of the male head of the family by "taking an oath of virginity", a role that would include the right to live like a man, to carry weapons, own property, be able to move freely, dress like men, acquire male names if they wish to do so, assert autonomy, avoid arranged marriages, and be in the company of men while being treated like a man. [6]
The women in central Albania, particularly the women in Elbasan and the nearby regions, are known to cook the sweet tasting ballakume during the Dita e Verës, an annual spring festival celebrated on 14 March. On the other hand, Muslim Albanian women, particularly women from the Islamic Bektashi sect cook pudding known as the ashura from ingredients such as cracked wheat, sugar, dried fruit, crushed nuts, and cinnamon, after the 10th day of matem, a period of fasting. [7]
In the 19th century, Sami Frashëri first voiced the idea of education for women with the argument that if would strengthen society by having educated women to teach their children. In the late 19th century, some urban elite women who had been educated in Western Europe saw a need for more education for women in Albania. In 1891, the first girls' high school was founded in Korçë by Sevasti Qiriazi and Parashqevi Qiriazi and in 1909 they founded the first women's organization in Albania, the Morning Star (Yll’i Mëngesit) with the purpose of raising the rights of women by raising their education level.
The women's movement in Albania was interrupted by the First World War, but resumed when Albania became an independent nation after the war. The Qiriazi sisters founded the organization Perlindja in Korçë, which published the newspaper Mbleta. In 1920, Marie Çoba founded the local women's organization Gruaja Shqiptare in Shkodër, which was followed by several other local organizations with the same name in Korçë, Vlorë and Tiranë. [11]
In 1920 Urani Rumbo and others founded Lidhja e Gruas (the Women's Union) in Gjirokastër, one of the most important feminist organisations promoting Albanian women's emancipation and right to study. They published a declaration in the newspaper Drita , protesting discrimination against women and social conditions. In 1923 Rumbo was also part of a campaign to allow girls to attend the "boy's" lyceum of Gjirokastër. [12] The Albanian women's movement were supported by educated urban elite women who were inspired by the state feminism of Turkey under Kemal Ataturk. [11]
During the reign of Zog I of Albania (r. 1928-1939), women's rights was protected by the state under the national state organization Gruaja Shiqiptare , which promoted a progressive policy and secured women the right to education and professional life and a ban against the seclusion of women in harems and behind veils; equal inheritance rights, divorce, and a ban against arranged and forced marriages as well as polygamy. [13] However, in practice this progressive policy only concerned the cosmopolitan city elite, and had little effect in the lives of the majority of women in Albania. [13]
Limited women's suffrage was granted in 1920, and women obtained full voting rights in 1945. [14] Under the communist government of Albania, an official ideology of gender equality was promoted [15] and promoted by Union of Albanian Women. In the first democratic election after the fall of communism, the number of women deputies in parliament fell from 75 in the last parliament of communist Albania to 9. [16] In a turbulent period after 1991 the position of women worsened. [17] [18] There is a religious revival among Albanians which in the case of Muslims sometimes means that women are pushed back to the traditional role of mother and housekeeper. [19] As of 2013 women represented 22.9% of the parliament. [1]
The total fertility rate is 1.5 children born per woman (2015 est.), [20] which is below the replacement rate of 2.1. The contraceptive prevalence rate is quite high: 69.3% (2008/09). [20] Most Albanian women start their families in the early and mid-twenties: as of 2011, the average age at first marriage was 23.6 for women and 29.3 for men. [21]
In some rural areas of Albania, marriages are still arranged, and society is strongly patriarchal and traditional, influenced by the traditional set of values of the kanun. [22] The urbanization of Albania is low compared to other European countries: 57.4% of the total population (2015). [20] Although forced marriage is generally disapproved by society, it is a "well known phenomenon in the country, especially in rural and remote areas," and girls and women in these areas are "very often forced into marriages because of [a] patriarchal mentality and poverty". [23]
Abortion in Albania was fully legalized on December 7, 1995. [24] Abortion can be performed on demand until the 12th week of pregnancy. [25] Women must undergo counseling for a week prior to the procedure, and hospitals that perform abortions are not allowed to release information to the public regarding which women they have treated. [25]
During the government of Enver Hoxha, communist Albania had a natalist policy, [25] leading women to have illegal abortions or to induce them on their own. Eventually the country had the second-highest maternal mortality rate in all of Europe, and it was estimated that 50% of all pregnancies ended in an abortion. [25]
During the communist era women entered in paid employment in large numbers. The transition period in Albania has been marked by rapid economic changes and instability. The labour market faces many of the problems that are common to most transition economies, such as loss of jobs in many sectors, that were not sufficiently compensated by emerging new sectors. As of 2011, the employment rate was 51.8% for young women, compared to 65.6% for young men. [26]
As late as 1946, about 85% of the people were illiterate, principally because schools using the Albanian language had been practically non-existent in the country before it became independent in 1912. Until the mid-nineteenth century, the Ottoman rulers had prohibited the use of the Albanian language in schools. [27] The communist regime gave high priority to education, which included the alphabetization of the population, but also the promotion of socialist ideology in schools. [28] As of 2015, the literacy rate of women was only slightly below that of men: 96.9% female compared to 98.4% male. [20]
In recent years, Albania has taken steps to address the issue of violence against women. This included enacting the Law No. 9669/2006 (Law on Measures against Violence in Family Relations) [29] and ratifying the Istanbul Convention. [30]
Albania, officially the Republic of Albania, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is in the Balkans, on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, North Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south. With an area of 28,748 km2 (11,100 sq mi), it has a varied range of climatic, geological, hydrological and morphological conditions. Albania's landscapes range from rugged snow-capped mountains in the Albanian Alps and the Korab, Skanderbeg, Pindus and Ceraunian Mountains, to fertile lowland plains extending from the Adriatic and Ionian seacoasts. Tirana is the capital and largest city in the country, followed by Durrës, Vlorë, and Shkodër.
Korçë is the eighth most populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population of the city is 51,152 and 75,994 of Korçë municipality, in a total area of 806 km2 (311 sq mi). It stands on a plateau some 850 m (2,789 ft) above sea level, surrounded by the Morava Mountains.
Albanian culture or the culture of Albanians is a term that embodies the artistic, culinary, literary, musical, political and social elements that are representative of ethnic Albanians, which implies not just Albanians of the country of Albania but also Albanians of Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro, where ethnic Albanians are a native population. Albanian culture has been considerably shaped by the geography and history of Albania, Kosovo, parts of Montenegro, parts of North Macedonia, and parts of Northern Greece, traditional homeland of Albanians. It grew from that of the Paleo-Balkan cultures, including Proto-Albanian, Illyrian, Thracian, Dacian, with their pagan beliefs and specific way of life in the wooded areas of far Southern Europe. Albanian culture has also been influenced by the Ancient Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans.
The music of Albania 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.
Gheg or Geg 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.
Albania is an ethnically homogeneous country, where the overwhelming majority of the population speaks Albanian, which is also the official language. It has two distinct dialects: Tosk, spoken in the south, and Gheg, spoken in the north. However, many Albanians can also speak foreign languages as Italian, Greek, French, German, and English, amongst others, due to the high numbers of Albanian diaspora and Albanian communities throughout the Balkans.
Albanian is an Indo-European language and the only surviving representative of the Albanoid branch, which belongs to the Paleo-Balkan group. Standard Albanian is the official language of Albania and Kosovo, and a co-official language in North Macedonia and Montenegro, as well as a recognized minority language of Italy, Croatia, Romania and Serbia. It is also spoken in Greece and by the Albanian diaspora, which is generally concentrated in the Americas, Europe and Oceania. Albanian is estimated to have as many as 7.5 million native speakers.
The Albanian language is composed of many dialects, divided into two major groups: Gheg and Tosk. The Shkumbin river is roughly the geographical dividing line, with Gheg spoken north of the Shkumbin and Tosk south of it.
The Ghegs are one of two major ethnic subgroups of Albanians.
Parashqevi Qiriazi was an Albanian teacher of the Qiriazi family who dedicated her life to the Albanian alphabet and to the instruction of written Albanian language. She was a woman participant at the Congress of Manastir, which decided the form of the Albanian alphabet, and the founder of the Yll' i Mengjesit, a women's association. Parashqevi was also a participant in the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 as a member of the Albanian-American community. She was the sister of Sevasti Qiriazi, who was the director of the first Albanian School for girls in Korça, opened in 1891.
Gjerasim Qiriazi was an Albanian Protestant preacher, Bible translator and distributor, educator, and activist of the Albanian National Awakening. In the early 1890s he founded the Albanian Evangelical Protestant community and the first Albanian school for girls in Korçë, Albania, then part of the Ottoman Empire.
Gjergj Qiriazi, known as George D. Kyrias, was an Albanian patriot, author, educator, translator, Protestant Bible distributor, organizer of the First Congress of Monastir (1908), and activist of the Albanian National Awakening.
The character of Polish women is shaped by Poland's history, culture, and politics. Poland has a long history of feminist activism, and was one of the first nations in Europe to enact women's suffrage. It is also strongly influenced by the conservative social views of the Catholic Church.
Women in Bulgaria refers to women who live in and are from Bulgaria. Women's position in Bulgarian society has been influenced by a variety of cultures and ideologies, including the Byzantine and Ottoman cultures, Eastern Orthodox Christianity, communist ideology, and contemporary globalized Western values.
Sevasti Qiriazi-Dako was an Albanian patriot, educator, Protestant missionary, author, pioneer of Albanian female education, and activist of the Albanian National Awakening.
Qiriazi family were a prominent Albanian family from Manastir. They were educators, translators, publishers, and public figures of the Albanian National Awakening period. They are remembered for their activities in support of the consolidation of Albanian national awareness. They are also known, especially Gjerasim and Gjergj, for their role as early founders of the Albanian Evangelical Movement.
Koçi Bako was an Albanian Communist activist. An early member of the Communist Group of Korçë, he is the first martyr of the Communist Party of Albania since its creation.
The Abetare is a children's textbook written in the Albanian language. It was created to help teach the basic language to children and young adults throughout Albania and the surrounding region where Albanians live. Abetare has played a significant role in the history of Albanian education and laid the groundwork for literary Albanian which helped raise the national consciousness for future generations. By learning to read and write, young Albanians were introduced to the history and culture of their homeland.
Changes in gender roles in Central and Eastern Europe after the fall of Communism have been an object of historical and sociological study.
Gruaja Shqiptare was a women's organization in Albania, active between 1928 and 1939. It was a state supported women's rights organization with the task of promoting government policy in women's rights.
...founders (1909) of the first Albanian women's association, Yll'i mengjezit (Morning Star)
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: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)In Albania, there were 73 women out of the 250 deputies in the last communist parliament while in the first post-communist parliament the number of women fell to 9.
The religious revival among Muslim Albanians also affected women, as conservative family values gained ground and some women were forced back into the conventional roles of homemaker and mother.
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