The Northern Epirus region, located in southern Albania, has been a longstanding focus of contestation between Greece and Albania. Emerging as a diplomatic term in 1912, the region has been shaped by historical, ethnic, and political dynamics, from Ottoman rule through the Balkan Wars, the interwar period, the communist era, and into the contemporary Albanian state. This article traces the historical roots of the Northern Epirus question, examines the role of international actors in shaping the region’s fate, and analyzes the evolving status of the Greek minority. It argues that protection of minority rights is central to regional stability and the normalization of Greek–Albanian relations. Furthermore, the study situates Northern Epirus within broader debates in Balkan history, ethno-nationalism, and minority protection in post-imperial states.

The term “Northern Epirus” (Voreios Ipeiros) emerged as a political and diplomatic designation in the early twentieth century. Its first systematic appearances are recorded in diplomatic documents of 1912, where it was employed to distinguish the northern part of the Ottoman Vilayet of Ioannina—ultimately assigned to the newly established Albanian state—from the southern part, which was incorporated into Greece following the Balkan Wars. As such, Northern Epirus was not a historically fixed territorial entity but rather a product of late Ottoman disintegration and Great Power diplomacy (Meletios 1807). Conventionally, the region is understood to extend between the Genusus (Shkumbi) River to the north and the Corfu–Lesser Prespa axis to the south and east. Within these boundaries lay towns and smaller urban centers with a notable Greek presence, including Gjirokastër, Korçë, Sarandë, and Himara. Until the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, however, these territories were integral parts of the Ottoman Empire, and no internationally recognized borders separated them from the rest of Epirus.

From a longue durée perspective, the region has been characterized by pronounced cultural and demographic layering. In antiquity, several Greek city-states—such as Epidamnos, Chimaira, and Holokainion—were founded along the Adriatic and Ionian coasts. These settlements functioned as important trade hubs connecting the Greek world with Illyrian and wider Balkan populations. At the same time, the hinterland was inhabited by Illyrian populations, a people who left no written records and whom some historians associate with modern Albanians (Hammond 1967). During the medieval period, Greek-speaking populations predominated, and Christianity became the dominant religious affiliation. This configuration was significantly altered following the Ottoman conquest, which introduced Islam and led to substantial conversions over the ensuing centuries. Ottoman rule also restructured administrative divisions and property relations, introducing a complex feudal-like hierarchy that affected both Christian and Muslim communities (Stavrianos 1957). By the early twentieth century, Northern Epirus exhibited a complex social mosaic. Christian and Muslim communities coexisted, while Greek, Albanian, and Vlach (Aromanian) were often spoken concurrently, sometimes within the same household or settlement. This multilingual and multi-religious environment contributed to fluid identity formations, which made national allegiances difficult to determine by modern standards (Kokkolakis 2003). During this period, various ethnological maps were produced by competing national actors in an effort to substantiate territorial claims, yet these representations were frequently methodologically weak and politically motivated. In practical terms, identities in the region remained fluid until the Balkan Wars, with mixed populations constituting a structural feature rather than an anomaly.

The gradual decline of Ottoman authority and the rise of Balkan national movements transformed this fluidity into a source of contestation. Greeks and Albanians increasingly laid claim to the same territory, albeit on different ideological grounds. For the Greek state, Northern Epirus formed part of the broader irredentist project encapsulated in the Megali Idea, which envisaged the incorporation of all historically or ethnically Greek regions, including Epirus as a whole. Conversely, from the late 1870s onward, Albanian-speaking elites advanced demands for the unification of the four Ottoman vilayets inhabited by Albanian-speaking populations—Ioannina (including the whole Epirus), Monastir, Scutari, and Kosovo—a proposal that would effectively grant autonomy, if not independence, to an Albanian political entity (Skendi 1967). This bilateral rivalry was significantly intensified by the intervention of the Great Powers, whose interests were shaped by the region’s geostrategic position along the Adriatic. In particular, Austria-Hungary and Italy emerged as the principal external stakeholders in the years preceding the First World War. Both powers promoted the establishment of a strong Albanian state that could function as a strategic counterweight in the eastern Adriatic and as a satellite within their respective spheres of influence.

From the League of Prizren to the Fall of the Communist Hoxha Regime

In this context, Albanian nationalism developed relatively late compared to other Balkan nations. Until 1878, few intellectuals........

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