Albanians are historically the largest ethnic, linguistic and religious minority in Northern Macedonia . According to the latest census of 2002, of the 2,022,547 citizens of the Republic of Macedonia, 509,083 (25.2%) are ethnic Albanians. The Albanian minority lives compactly in rural areas in the northwestern, western, and also some central regions of the country, and also absolutely prevails in two cities of the country. In relative terms, Albanian communities are most significant in the municipalities of Tetovo (70.3% of the total population), Gostivar (66.7%), Debar (58.1%), Struga (56.8%), Kichevo (54.5 %), Kumanovo (25.8%) and Skopje (20.5%) [1] .
History
The Ottoman census of 1467-1468 recorded the presence of only 84 Albanian households in the entire Macedonian province . Until the end of the 18th century, the presence of ethnic Albanians in the territory of modern Northern Macedonia was generally marginal. However, the Ottoman authorities, which pursued a rather successful policy of Islamizing the Albanians, naturally sought to change the ethno-religious balance in the region in favor of Muslims in order to form a solid Muslim area from the Bosphorus to the Adriatic . Ottoman governor of Albanian origin Abdurahman Pasha was the initiator of the ongoing resettlement of Albanian-speaking Muslims further east. Aggressive methods of "cleansing" the population of existing settlements led to the outflow of the Slavic population further and further east. Small groups of Slavs who remained in the Albanian-speaking environment underwent albanization. As a result, by 1931 , the number of Albanians exceeded 70,000 in Northern Macedonia. After the establishment of the state border with Albania, the migration of Albanians ceased, however, the rapid growth of the Albanian population continued as a result of high fertility: the fertility of Albanian women began to decline much later than among the Slavs, but on the other hand, the decline in fertility among Albanians in Northern Macedonia was more rapid. For example, in 2001 , the proportion of Albanians among newborns was approaching 40 percent. But already in 2004 , the proportion of Albanian women in labor dropped to 31.6 percent of the total number of women who gave birth to children this year [2] . Both indicators, however, remain much higher than the share of Albanians in the population of the republic, which means an increase in their share in the future to the above indicators.
On January 15, 2019, a law came into force in Northern Macedonia, according to which the Albanian language became the second official language in the country [3] .
- Number of Albanians in Macedonia
See also
- Shiptars
Notes
- ↑ http://www.stat.gov.mk/pdf/kniga_13.pdf
- ↑ World News
- ↑ Macedonia has become bilingual . Euronews (January 15, 2019). Date of treatment January 15, 2019.