According to abbreviationfinder, Tirana is the capital and most important city of Albania, it was populated since Neolithic times and founded in 1614. Until the end of the 17th century it was the most important city of the Ottoman Empire. In 1920 with the proclamation of the independence of Albania, Tirana was proclaimed the capital city. In 1923 the construction stage of the first buildings and avenues began.
History
Origins
In the first 300 years of its history, small settlements inhabited Tirana, but today the city has become the most populated in the country and the main industrial center. This settlement was founded in the early 17th century, by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman II, located at a crossroads of several caravan routes. He named it Tahran (Tehran) to honor an imperial victory in Persia, and although the place attracted new residents, it remained relatively small throughout the next two centuries of Turkish rule. In 1920, when the city was named the capital of Albania independent, its population did not reach 20,000 residents. Trying to change the fate of the city, King Zog I demolished parts of Tirana, and rebuilt it during the 1920s and 1930s. Despite the renovation, growth remained slow due to a lack of basic services. In the late 1930s, Tirana’s nearly 25,000 residents still had no electricity, running water, or sewerage.
World War II
At the beginning of World War II, Benito Mussolini considered Albania a strategic place to control the Balkans. Failing to convince King Zogu to accept Italian protectorate status, the Italian dictator invaded this country in 1939. Tirana was captured by the troops of the Rome – Berlin – Tokyo Axis, who occupied the city until the Albanian partisans forced their withdrawal. Resistance fighters founded the Communist Party, which soon took control of the country.
Modern
The modern landscape of the city reveals the legacies of the Ottoman Empire and the communist period. Built under Soviet control, the Modernist House of Culture, located in Skanderbeg Square, juxtaposes its style with the beautifully sculpted minaret of the Etehem Bey Mosque. The northern and eastern areas of the city are occupied by the old settlement, and modern stone apartment blocks that sit on tree-lined streets make up Tirana’s new residential areas.
Geography
Tirana is the capital of Albania and the most important city in the country. It is located in the homonymous province, precisely in the valley of the river Ishëm, surrounded by the Kamza mountains, by Mount Dais, by the Erischts hills of Vagarr and Yzberisht to the west and by those of Krrabë and Sauk to the south. Two rivers run through it, the Lana and the Tirana.
Climate
Its climate is Mediterranean with a certain continental influence, as it is located in an interior basin separated from the sea by a smooth mountain line. Its average temperature is 14.8 °, 4.2 ° in January and 23.5 ° in July. The precipitations are abundant, around 1,200 mm. yearly.
Demography
Founded at the beginning of the 18th century by the Turkish general Sulaymán, the city grows vertiginously, and of 31,000 residents. In 1930, in 1970, it had 171,300 residents; in 1955-65 it has experienced a population growth of 49.2%. Its population in 2008 was 616,396 residents. See population of Albania.
Economic development
In addition to administrative and cultural capital, it constitutes the first center of processing industries in the country, with food factories (Ali Kelmendi food combination), textiles (Staline textile combination, which works mainly with wool and cotton), mechanical factories (Enver factories), which are linked to the whole of the country and especially to Durrés (Durazzo), the port of T., and its industrial environment, which supplies part of the necessary equipment to the Elbassan iron and steel complex; Cement factories specialized in the manufacture of fiber cement tubes and precast elements; of shoes, etc. In the five-year plan launched in 1951 the preparation of the industrial infrastructure of Tirana begins, constituting the Leninmicroelectric plant, and exploiting the lignite basin of Krabé, which feeds the city’s industries. It has an airport and is linked by rail to Durazzo, an important port and natural outlet for the capital’s products.
Health
Tirana’s main health institution is the mother teresa hospital (spitali nënë tereza), which is associated with the medical school of the university of tirana. It has 1,456 beds and treats about 12,000 patients a year. Currently, great improvements are being made to its infrastructure and equipment.
Education
The city is home to important educational institutions such as the University of Tirana, the Polytechnic University of Tirana, the Agrarian University, the Academy of Physical Education and Sports, as well as national and international academic research institutions. Other public academic institutions include the Academy of the Arts, the Academy of Sciences, the Military Academy and the Institute of the Interior Ministry. In Tirana, a large number of private academic institutions have been created, such as the university of new york in tirana, the luarasi university, zoja e keshilit te mire, the academy of cinematography and multimedia “marubi”, among many others.
Culture
Tirana’s main cultural centers are the National Theater, the National Opera and Ballet Theater, the National Gallery of Art (Galeria Kombëtare e Arteve), and the Center for Folk Music and Dance. Other cultural activities that take place include performances by the Albanian Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra of works by world-famous composers. The city is host to important cultural events such as the Tirana Biennale and the Tirana Jazz Festival. Tirana has 8 public libraries, one of them the National Library of Albania (Biblioteka Kombëtare), 5 museums and 56 cultural monuments.
Places of interest
The Palace of Culture brings together the National Opera and Ballet Theater and the National Library. It is a fairly modern building that was designed in 1963 where the city market used to be.
The Clock Tower is also a landmark in Tirana, it was created by the wealthiest families in the city in 1821. Then in 1928 the Albanian state bought a German clock and installed it in the tower. Unfortunately, it was damaged during the Second World War although it was later repaired.
In Tirana you will find the University of Tirana, the Institute of Agriculture, the Academy of Sciences and the National Library. Also other places of interest such as the Etehem Bey Mosque, the National Museum of Culture of Albania, the Museum of National History, the Museum of Natural Sciences, the Museum of Archeology, Municipal Gallery, Museum of the stamps and also surrounding castles and fortresses from the city (Pretrela – a medieval castle south of the city, Preza). At the same time there is a zoo, which surprises with the wide offer, or a Botanical Garden with thousands of Albanian vegetation.
Transport
Municipal transport is insured only by buses and taxis. Tirana airport, Nënë Tereza, rebuilt in 2007 known as Rinas airport is the only air gate in Albania. None of the other airports practice international transportation.
