LE SYMPOSIUM INTERNATIONAL LE LIVRE. LA ROUMANIE. L ...

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of the number of Macedo-romanians was made in the xIx th century. In
1865, Neniţescu speaks about 149,000 and 200,000 of Aromanians settled
in Albania. In 1930, Albanian official statistics admits a number of 40,000
of Macedo-romanians. these are the most accurate official statistics over
the number of Macedo-romanian population that have ever been made, but
in the same way they underestimate the real number of them. In 1932 th.
Capidan mentioned a number of 65,000 of Aromanians and A. Wirt speaks
about the existence of up to 100,000 Albanian Aromanian in 1935. the
next assessment is made in chronological order by Gh. Brătianu in 1940. he
was pointing out 72,000 A romanians in Albania. Albanian official census
conducted in 1955 indicated 4,200 Macedo-romanians, and in 1959 the
Grande dizzionario enciclopedica U.T.E.T, from torino, wrote about the
existence of 10,000 Macedo-romanians. n. Dima thinks that the Albanian
Aromanian figure might be between 10,000 and 20,000 for the year 1975.
in 1984, M.c. Marioţeanu indicated a number between 70,000 and 100,000
people. A figure close to it was given to us in 1988 by n. Saramandu:
60,000–100,000, although the Albanian official statistics based on census
made in 1989 revealed only 20 Macedo-romanians. other considerations,
such as of C.S. timoc in 1995, who gave a number of 500,000 Aromanians
are over-exaggerated.
even the Albanian writers (e.g. Arqile Bërxolli, in 2005) considered
that there were 139,000 Aromanians in Albania or that they represented
3.6% of the Albania’s population. the estimations made by the Aromanian
associations often indicate a number of up to 250,000. Some data published
by Greek authors furnish about 50,000 Macedo-romanians in Albania,
considering them part of Greek ethnicity and they were the so-called Greek
vlahofons.
however, the actual number of Albanian Aromanians is most likely
around 150,000. Because of intense migration processes, both inside Albania
and the emigration of Aromanians in Greece, Italy and other countries, it is
difficult to say exactly how many they were. Another problem is the flexible
and multi-ethnic identity of the Aromanians, and may not be covered even
if all Aromanians would make a very accurate census.
Aromanians form the local population in the (rrethi) districts in southern
Albania, where there is a number of cities with Aromanian population such
as: Kolonja, Korça, pogradec, Vlora, Fier, Durres, elbasan, but after the
recent migrations there are large communities in tirana and Shkoder.
the absolute majority of Albania romanians belong to the branch of
fărşeroţi, which still identify themselves with the ethnonym rămân/rămăn
(remain), thus being the same as Romanian. the missing of the prosthetic