Product Overview
From Follett
Includes bibliographical references and index. "Visitors to Albania typically arrive at the modern Mother Teresa airport in the capital city of Tirana. A thirty-minute taxi ride brings one to Skanderbeg Square, the heart of the metropolis of some 850,000. Twenty-three miles from the coast on a lowland plain underneath mount Dajti to the east, modern Tirana is, on the surface, just another Balkan capital choked with traffic, shoddily constructed apartment buildings, cafes and restaurants - overwhelmed by the modern. Yet, in and around the city it is still possible to at least catch a glimpse of the remnants of some of the different civilizations which have over the centuries contributed to the creation of the modern Albanian state and nation"--Provided by publisher.
From the Publisher
A Concise History of Albania charts the history of Albania and its people, within their Balkan and European contexts. It shows the country's journey from its ancient past, still shrouded in mystery and controversy, through its difficult transition from a particularly brutal form of communism to an evolving form of democracy and a market economy. Bernd Fischer and Oliver Schmitt challenge some of the traditional narratives concerning the origins of the Albanians, and the relations between Albanians and their Balkan neighbours. This authoritative and up-to-date single-volume history analyses the political, social, economic, and cultural developments which led to the creation of the Albanian state and the modern nation, as well as Albania's more recent experience with authoritarianism, war, and communism. It greatly contributes to our understanding of the challenges facing contemporary Albanians, as well as the issues confronting the region as a whole as it attempts to grapple with one of the last remaining significant ethnic issues in the Balkans.