Ottoman Albania At the beginning of the 20th century, the territory which now forms Albania was divided among the four separate
vilayets () of
Scutari,
Janina,
Manastir, and
Kosovo. This helped mix
Albanians with the surrounding
Greeks,
Serbs, and other groups. The four vilayets were divided into the
sanjaks () of
Scutari,
Durrës,
Ioannina,
Ergiri,
Preveze,
Berat,
Manastir,
Serfiğe,
Dibra,
Elbasan,
Görice,
Üsküp,
Priştine,
İpek,
Prizren, and
Novi Pazar. The sanjaks were in turn further divided into
kazas () at the town level and
nahiyes () at the village level.
Revolutionary Albania Following the successful
War of Independence against the
Ottoman Empire in 1912, the
first Albanian government led by
Ismail Kemal initially retained the former Turkish divisions and offices. This was revised by the "
Canon of Albanian Civil Administration" on 22 November 1913, which created a new three tier system. The primary division was into the 8 prefectures () of
Durrës,
Berat,
Dibër,
Elbasan,
Gjirokastër,
Korcë,
Shkodër, and
Vlorë. Each of these was to be overseen by a prefect. The prefectures were divided into subprefectures (), which were divided into regions or provinces () for local administration. The authority of this provisional government was never recognized by the
Great Powers or the
Republic of Central Albania; never administered territory outside Vlorë, Berat, and
Lushnjë; and was forced to dissolve after the discovery of
its plot to restore some Turkish control to gain more territory and better resist
Serbia.
Principality of Albania (1916) Separately, the
International Control Commission drafted and enacted the
Organic Statute ()Albania's first
constitutionon 10 April 1914. Primarily functioning as a compromise among the
Great Powers of the era, it established the
Principality of Albania as a
constitutional monarchy to be headed by the German prince
Wilhelm Wied and his heirs in
primogeniture. An entire chapter of the Organic Statute was devoted to the administrative division of Albania, explicitly preserving Ottoman names and terms. The primary division was into the 7 sanjaks of
Durrës,
Berat,
Dibër,
Elbasan,
Gjirokastër,
Korçë, and
Shkodër. Each would be administered from its namesake city except Dibër. The former
Ottoman sanjak of Dibra had been divided among other countries and the city of
Debar remained outside the principality's borders. Areas of
Chameria that had been in the former
sanjak of Ioannina were added to Gjirokastër and the kaza of
Leskovik was added to Korçë. Each sanjak was overseen by a
mutasarrif () appointed by the central government and a sanjak council () consisting of five members appointed by lawa secretary, a comptroller, a director of agriculture and trade, a director of public education, and a director of public worksand one member from each of the sanjak's kazas, elected by the local councils and approved by the mutasarrif. The mutasarrif was personally responsible for maintaining public order, controlling the local
gendarmerie and
police directly. He also controlled local budgets in consultation with the council, providing for
public education and inspecting each of the local kazas at least once a year. The sanjaks were again divided into
kaza, each administered by a
kaymakam () and his council (), consisting of three members appointed by lawa secretary, a comptroller, and a director of land taxesand four members appointed by the local councils and approved by the kaymakam. The kaymakam was responsible for the kaza's finances and public services, including issuing passports, and was required to answer to the sanjak's mutasarrif for a number of issues. The kaza was named and administered from the chief town in its district, headquartered at a city hall (). Each municipal council was obliged to hold meetings at the city hall at least once a week. They were administered by a
mudir () and the local council (), consisting of the local secretary and 4 members chosen by public election by the
mukhtars () of the local villages assembled before the mudir. The mudir was responsible for announcing and enacting the central government's laws, carrying out the census, and collecting taxes; the council was charged with ensuring public hygiene, maintaining local water supplies and roads, and overseeing agricultural development and the use of public lands.
Kingdom of Albania Under
King Zog, Albania reformed its internal administration under the "Municipal Organic Law" of 1921 and the "Civil Code" of February 1928. The primary division was into 10
prefectures, each led by a prefect. The secondary division was into subprefectures, of which there were 39 in 1927 and 30 by 1934. The subprefects were nominated by the prefects. The subprefectures were initially divided into 69 provinces, which oversaw local administration through the chiefs of the 2351
villages. In 1953, Law No. 1707 replaced the prefectures with 10 counties divided into 49 districts and 30 localities. In July 1958, the counties were replaced with 26 districts, including a capital district for
Tirana. These districts were divided into 203 localities, which oversaw 39 cities and 2655 villages. Larger cities were further divided into neighborhoods or wards (). In 1967, the localities were replaced by "unified villages" (). By 1968, the 26 districts were divided into 65 cities or urban municipalities (divided into 178 neighborhoods) and 437 unified villages or rural municipalities (divided into 2641 villages). This was largely maintained until the late 1980s. In 1990, the 26 districts were divided into 67 cities (divided into 306 neighborhoods) and 539 unified villages (divided into 2848 villages). The capital Tirana was divided into three regions, each of which was further divided into constituent neighborhoods. == See also ==