Introduction

Albania (a Wikipedia link) is a country in southeast Europe with a population of about 2.3 million. It is bordered to the north by Montenegro and Kosovo, to the east by North Macedonia, to the south by Greece, and to the west by the Adriatic Sea. The capital and largest city is Tirana.

It has been a secular state since its founding (independence) in 1912, and has achieved a harmony between the major religions of Islam, Catholicism, and orthodox Christianity.

Albania is a secular parliamentary republic in which the state guarantees freedom of belief.

History

Ancient and Medieval Times

• Illyrian roots: Early tribes populated the region before the Roman conquest in the 2nd century BCE.
• Byzantine rule: The region became part of the Byzantine empire.
• Skanderbeg’s resistance: In the 15th century CE, national hero George Kastrioti (Skanderbeg) led a 25-year rebellion against the Ottoman empire.

Ottoman Rule and Independence

• Ottoman control: The Ottoman empire ruled Albania for nearly four decades and introduced Islam to the country.
• Independence (1912): Ismail Qemali declared independence from the Ottoman Empire in Nov 1912.
• World wars: The nation faced foreign occupation and instability during both World Wars. It eventually fell under communist control.

Communist Era (1944–1991)

• Hoxha’s dictatorship: Enver Hoxha ruled during a strict Stalinist regime, isolating the nation from both the Western world and communist allies.
• Total isolation: The government built hundreds of thousands of bunkers and banned all religion.

Modern Era (1991–Present)

• The fall of communism: Student protests and economic collapse ended the communist regime in 1991.
• Democratic transition: The country opened its borders and adopted a free-market economy, thus rebuilding ties with the West.
• Global integration: Albania joined NATO in 2009 and became a candidate for membership into the European Union in 2014. As of 2026 it has not obtained membership.

Albania is an interesting case since all religion was banned in November 1967 and religious institutions were forced to relinquish all churches, mosques, cloisters, and shrines. The ban on religion was lifted in 1990.

Current day

Religion in Albania (a Wikipdia link) is as follows (as of 2023):

• Islam: 50.67%
  • Sunni: 45.86%
  • Bekashism: 4.81%
• Christianity: 16.02%
  • Catholic: 8.39%
  • Orthodox: 7.23%
  • Protestant: 0.4%
• Irreligion: 17.37%
  • Believers without religion: 13.83%
  • Atheist: 3.55%
• Undeclared: 15.92%

In the 2011 Albanian census, 58.8% of the population identified as Muslim.

The Albanian constitution (a Wikipedia link) stipulates that:

• There is no official religion.
• The state is neutral on questions of belief and conscience and guarantees the freedom of their expression in public life.
• The state recognizes the equality of religious communities.
• The state and the religious communities mutually respect the independence of one another and work together for the good of each and all.
• Relations between the state and religious communities are regulated on the basis of agreements entered into between their representatives and the Council of Ministers. These agreements are ratified by the Assembly.
• Religious communities are juridical persons. They have independence in the administration of their properties according to their principles, rules and canons, to the extent that interests of third parties are not infringed.

Issues

Albania is an interesting study into the affect that policy can have, even decades later. The ban on religion was between about 1970 to 1990, and that has led to strong resistance to religion in government to this day. Part of the resistance is to avoid proselytizing in schools, and that’s an excellent objective.

The country is also an interesting exercise in tolerance, considering there is a (just) majority Muslim population. There is no significant religious violence or active hostility in Albania. The country is widely recognized for its strong tradition of peaceful coexistence, mutual respect, and harmony between its Muslim, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox communities.

Other countries with religious intolerance problems could do well to study Albania.

Foreign funding and radicalization

The post-communist opening of borders brought external funding from Gulf states, Turkey, and various Salafi or Wahhabi networks. Concerns persist regarding the influence of radicalized networks and foreign religious agendas clashing with traditional, moderate local practices. State security services actively monitor and prosecute localized recruitment or material support linked to extremist groups.

From Secularism in Albania (a Wikipedia link) come the following two sections:

Religious symbols in schools

The Albanian government in 2011 wanted to pass a new education law that would prohibit religious symbols in the schools. This promoted new debates about the secularity of education and about possible religious discrimination since they could ban the hijab. The government removed the part that would ban religious symbols in the new law after protest from the religious communities.

In a 2011 Ipsos poll in Albania, 53.6% of those who responded “fully supported” a ban on religious symbols in public schools, while 20.7% supported it to “some extent” and 21.5% were opposed.

Religion classes in state schools

The Ministry of Education asserts that public schools in the country are secular and that the law prohibits ideological and religious indoctrination. Religion generally is not taught in public schools but there have been attempts to include religion in education.

In 2012 the religious communities proposed an inclusion of a subject about “Religious culture” in pre-university education and they gained the support the then minister of education, Myqerem Tafaj. This incited strong debates about the nature of subject, with questions regarding whether it was permissible by the constitution and what impact it could have.

In 2016 the government of Edi Rama proposed to have lessons about “History of Religion” which according to the Education Minister, Lindita Nikolla “would not entail religious proselytizing”. A pilot project about this new religious school subject started being implemented in the second semester of 2016-2017 in some schools for 6th and 10th graders.

Secular and atheist groups

There are no prominent secular or atheist groups active in Albania.

Forum

Regarding this forum, remember:

• this is a place to help others, so please be polite,
• that we’re trying to reduce the effects of religion in this society,
• that participants may have been badly affected by religion,
• to respect the privacy of everyone (including yourself),
• the law.

If your motives or actions are otherwise, you will need to find another venue.