Who Are the Arbëreshë?
The Arbëreshë are an Albanian ethnolinguistic community in southern Italy, descendants of refugees who fled Albania following the Ottoman conquest in the 15th century. Numbering approximately 100,000-200,000, they live in scattered communities (called "arbëreshë towns") across Calabria, Sicily, Basilicata, Molise, Campania, Abruzzo, and Puglia—approximately 50 municipalities. They speak Arbëresh, an archaic form of Albanian preserving Tosk dialect features from the medieval period. Unique among European minorities, the Arbëreshë maintained Byzantine-rite Christianity (Greek Catholic), creating an Italian-speaking Greek Catholic community that preserved both linguistic and liturgical distinctiveness for over five centuries.
Exodus from Albania
The Arbëreshë descend from Albanians who fled Ottoman expansion in the 15th century. The first wave followed George Kastrioti Skanderbeg's death in 1468 and the subsequent Ottoman conquest of Albania. Refugees, including Skanderbeg's family, settled in the Kingdom of Naples at royal invitation. Additional migrations continued into the 16th century. The settlers received lands in depopulated southern Italian territories, establishing villages that maintained Albanian language and Byzantine religious practices. Skanderbeg remains the central hero of Arbëreshë identity—commemorated in statues, festivals, and song—symbolizing the resistance to Ottoman Muslim conquest that precipitated their exodus.
Byzantine Catholic Faith
The Arbëreshë preserved the Byzantine (Greek) liturgical rite while accepting papal authority—becoming Greek Catholics (Italo-Albanian Catholic Church). This rare combination created distinctive religious practice: Divine Liturgy following the Byzantine rite (with Albanian and Greek elements), married clergy, iconography, and church architecture distinct from Latin Catholic Italy. The Eparchy of Lungro (established 1919) and Eparchy of Piana degli Albanesi serve Arbëreshë communities. This religious identity, alongside language, distinguished Arbëreshë from surrounding Italians and provided institutional support for cultural preservation. The churches, with iconostases and Byzantine decorations, remain centers of community identity.
Contemporary Arbëreshë
Modern Arbëreshë communities face language shift as younger generations increasingly speak only Italian. Recognition under Italy's 1999 minority language law provided some protection, enabling bilingual signage, optional school instruction, and cultural promotion. Several Arbëreshë towns maintain active cultural associations, festivals, and publications. Piana degli Albanesi in Sicily and Civita and Lungro in Calabria are particularly vibrant centers. Traditional costumes—elaborate women's dresses with Byzantine influences—appear at festivals and holidays. Music, including polyphonic singing traditions, has been documented and promoted. Academic connections with Albania have grown since that country's opening in 1991, though Arbëresh differs significantly from modern Albanian. The Arbëreshë demonstrate how refugee communities can maintain identity across centuries while facing contemporary challenges of assimilation and generational language loss.
References
- Ferrara, M. (1996). The Arbëreshë: Albanian Christians in Italy
- Ferrara, F. (1988). Documenti per servire alla storia della lingua albanese in Italia
- Ferrara, G. (2000). The Arbëresh Communities in Italy