Cerje (Albanian definite form: Cerja, Macedonian: Церје) is a village at the southeastern end of Pustec Municipality which is officially recognised as a Macedonian minority zone[1] located in the Korçë County of Albania,[2] near the border with Greece. The village is composed of ethnic Macedonians,[3] which form part of the larger Macedonian minority in Albania.[4]

Cerje
Церје
Cerje is located in Albania
Cerje
Cerje
Coordinates: 40°44′58″N 20°58′32″E / 40.74944°N 20.97556°E / 40.74944; 20.97556
Country Albania
CountyKorçë
MunicipalityPustec
Municipal unitPustec
Population
 (2000)
 • Total
252
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)

History

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In 1900, Vasil Kanchov gathered and compiled statistics on demographics in the area and reported that the village of Cerja (Церя) was inhabited by about 120 Bulgarian Christians.[5] In 1904, following the Ilinden Uprising, Cerje came under the Bulgarian Exarchate.

In 1911, the village was recorded by Georgi Trajčev as a Bulgarian village having six houses and 54 inhabitants.[6]

In 1939, on behalf of 15 Bulgarian houses in Cerje Fote Fotev signed a request by the local Bulgarians to the Bulgarian tsaritsa Giovanna requesting her intervention for the protection of the Bulgarian people in Albania - at that time an Italian protectorate.[7]

Demographics

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According to a 2007 source, Cerje is the least populous village in Pustec Municipality, having only a small amount of elderly residents.[8]

Year Population[9]
1900 120
1926 98
1945 175
1960 250
1969 308
1979 308
1989 297
2000 252

References

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  1. ^ "Macedonians". 19 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Law nr. 115/2014" (PDF) (in Albanian). pp. 6372–6373. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  3. ^ Xhaxho, Manjola (2007). Minority Rights and the Republic of Albania: Missing the Implementation (Thesis). Faculty of Law, Lund University.
  4. ^ "Census 2011 Data: Resident population by ethnic and cultural affiliation". The Institute of Statistics of Republic of Albania. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  5. ^ Vasil Kanchov (1901). Васил Кънчов. „Македония. Етнография и статистика“. София, 1900, стр. 241. (Macedonia: Ethnography and Statistics, p. 242 Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed 13 May 2018 (in Bulgarian)
  6. ^ Трайчев, Георги. Български селища в днешна Албания, в: Отецъ Паисий, 15-31 юли 1929 година, стр. 212.
  7. ^ Елдъров, Светозар. Българите в Албания 1913-1939. Изследване и документи, София, 2000, стр. 324-326.(in Bulgarian)
  8. ^ Бело, Раки. Селищни имена в Мала Преска - Албания, в: Македонски преглед, ХХХ, №3, стр.135.
  9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-11. Retrieved 2008-04-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)