Qestorat (Aromanian: Chiãsturat or Chiãsturata) is a community of the former Lunxhëri municipality in the Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Gjirokastër.[1]

Qestorat
Greek Κεστοράτι Chiãsturat
Zographeion college facilities in Qestorat (1881)
Zographeion college facilities in Qestorat (1881)
Qestorat is located in Albania
Qestorat
Qestorat
Coordinates: 40°7′3″N 20°11′59″E / 40.11750°N 20.19972°E / 40.11750; 20.19972
Country Albania
CountyGjirokastër
MunicipalityGjirokastër
Municipal unitLunxhëri
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)

From 1874 to 1891 the village was home to the Greek Zographeion College, educational facilities that included primary and secondary male, female schools and a teacher's academy and operated with the personal costs of the local benefactor Christakis Zografos.[2] Today this institution houses the museum of Lunxhëri.[3]

Name

edit

Its name contains the Albanian suffix -at, widely used to form toponyms from personal names and surnames.[4]

Demographics

edit

In the Ottoman register of 1520 for the Sanjak of Avlona, Qestorat (Isharat)[5] was attested as a village in the timar under the authority of Ali from Damas. The village had a total of 71 households. The anthroponymy attested overwhelmingly belonged to the Albanian onomastic sphere, characterised by personal names such as Bardh, Deda, Gjin,Gjon, Kola, Leka and others.[6]

Today the village of Qestorat is inhabited by an Aromanian majority, with a minority of Orthodox Albanians and Muslim Albanians.[7] The Aromanian presence in Qestorat dates to the communist era.[8][9]

Notable people

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "Law nr. 115/2014" (PDF) (in Albanian). p. 6371. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  2. ^ Sakellariou M. V.. Epirus, 4000 years of Greek history and civilization Ekdotikē Athēnōn, 1997. ISBN 978-960-213-371-2, p. 308
  3. ^ Gilles de Rapper. Better than Muslims, not as Good as Greeks: Emigration as experienced and imagined by the Albanian Christians of Lunxhëri The New Albanian Migration. Brighton-Portland, Sussex Academic Press (2005), p. 15
  4. ^ Dhrimo, Ali (2008). Për shqipen dhe shqiptarët. Për shqipen dhe shqiptarët. Infbotues. p. 425. ISBN 978-99956-720-0-3.
  5. ^ Demiraj, Shaban (2008). "La situation ethnique-linguistique des habitants de Dropulli et de Vurgu au cours des siecles". Studia Albanica. 1. Academy of Sciences of Albania: 83. ISSN 0585-5047.
  6. ^ Duka, Ferit (1990). "La Realite Ethnique De Dropull Dans Les Sources Historiques Du XVI Siecle". Studia Albanica (2): 25–26.
  7. ^ Kallivretakis, Leonidas (1995). "Η ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλβανίας υπό το πρίσμα της ιστορικής γεωγραφίας και δημογραφίας [The Greek Community of Albania in terms of historical geography and demography]." In Nikolakopoulos, Ilias, Kouloubis Theodoros A. & Thanos M. Veremis (eds). Ο Ελληνισμός της Αλβανίας [The Greeks of Albania]. University of Athens. p. 51. "ΑΧ Αλβανοί Ορθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί, AM Αλβανοί Μουσουλμάνοι, Β Βλάχοι"; Αλβανοί Ορθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί"; p.57. "QESTORATI ΚΕΣΤΟΡΑΤΙ 330 Β + αχ/αμ"
  8. ^ Kahl, Thede (1999). Ethnizität und räumliche Verbreitung der Aromunen in Südosteuropa. Universität Münster: Institut für Geographie der Westfälischen Wilhelms. ISBN 3-9803935-7-7. p. 133. R. Rrămăn (Aromunen mit der Eigenbezeichnung Rrămăn = Farscheroten, Arvanitovlachen)"; p. 146. "Qestorat... einige familie R; zu kommunischtischer Zeit angesiedelte aromunische Bevölkerungsgruppen aus südostalbanischen Gebirgen und aus Greichenland."
  9. ^ De Rapper, Gilles (2005). "Better than Muslims, Not as Good as Greeks: Emigration as Experienced and Imagined by the Albanian Christians of Lunxhëri". In King, Russell; Mai, Nicola; Schwandner-Sievers, Stephanie (eds.). The New Albanian Migration. Brighton-Portland: Sussex Academic. ISBN 9781903900789. p. 7.