Albania trivia: 46 questions and answers

Tirana. Tirana is the capital and largest city. It was proclaimed the capital in 1920.

The lek. The lek has been Albania's currency since 1926. Euros are often accepted, but the lek is the official currency.

Korab. Korab, 2,764 m, on the border with North Macedonia, is the highest mountain in Albania. Mount Olympus is in Greece.

The Adriatic and the Ionian. The Adriatic and the Ionian seas wash Albania's coast: the Adriatic in the north and centre, the Ionian along the Riviera in the south-west.

True. True. Greece lies to the south. Albania's other land neighbours are Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia.

False. False. Albania borders Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Greece. North Macedonia lies between Albania and Bulgaria.

Vlorë. Vlorë: an assembly led by Ismail Qemali declared independence there, and it became the first capital of the new state.

Skanderbeg. Skanderbeg formed the League of Lezhë in 1444 and resisted the Ottomans for about 25 years, from his stronghold at Krujë.

Durrës. Durrës grew from Epidamnos, which the Romans called Dyrrachium. Today it is Albania's main port.

True. True. The ban lasted until the early 1990s, when places of worship reopened.

False. False. Zog went into exile when Italy invaded in April 1939, and he never returned.

Yogurt beaten with eggs. Yogurt beaten with eggs, butter and flour sets into a golden crust over the lamb. Tavë kosi means 'yogurt casserole'.

Tirana. Tirana and central Albania are the home of fërgesë. A Tirana version uses liver instead of cheese.

Grapes. Grapes: raki rrushi is grape raki. Albanians also make raki from plums, blackberries and mulberries.

A herbal mountain tea. Çaj mali is a herbal mountain tea made from the dried flowers and stems of Sideritis. It has no caffeine.

Trout. Koran is the Ohrid trout, native only to Lake Ohrid, near Pogradec.

True. True. It is based on the Latin American tres leches cake and is usually topped with caramel.

False. False. Ballokume are made for Summer Day, Dita e Verës, on 14 March, above all in Elbasan.

Berat. Berat, on the Osum river, is famous for the many windows of its Ottoman houses climbing the hillside.

Gjirokastër. Gjirokastër is the 'City of Stone'. It is also the birthplace of the writer Ismail Kadare.

True. True. Pogradec is on the south-western shore of Lake Ohrid, near North Macedonia.

Butrint. Butrint, with its Greek theatre, Roman baths and early Christian baptistery, has been on the UNESCO list since 1992.

Krujë Castle. Krujë Castle withstood sieges in 1450, 1466 and 1467. The Skanderbeg Museum stands inside its walls.

20,000. About 20,000 people. It is the largest Roman amphitheatre in the Balkan Peninsula.

False. False. The Blue Eye is an inland spring, the source of the Bistricë river, in the hills near Sarandë.

True. True. Tours are given daily outside prayer times, and shoes come off before the inner room.

True. True. In 2019 UNESCO extended the Ohrid region site, first listed in North Macedonia, to the Albanian part of the lake.

A black double-headed eagle on red. A black double-headed eagle on red: Albanians call their country Shqipëria, often explained as 'Land of the Eagles'.

Skopje. She was born in Skopje. Tirana's international airport is named after her.

Concrete bunkers. Concrete bunkers were built from the 1960s to the 1980s against an invasion that never came, and many still stand.

True. True. Albanian has no close relatives among living languages.

True. True. It had about 654 coffee houses for every 100,000 people, passing Spain.

False. False. Albanian families hid Jewish residents and refugees, and Albania ended the war with more Jews than at the start.

Yes. 'Po' means yes, and 'jo' means no.

False. False. 'Jo' means no. Yes is 'po'.

Left. 'Majtas' means left. Right is 'djathtas' and straight ahead is 'drejt'.

nesër. 'Nesër' means tomorrow. 'Sot' means today.

Faleminderit. Faleminderit means thank you. Mirupafshim is goodbye, tungjatjeta is hello and gëzuar is cheers.

Gëzuar!. Gëzuar! means cheers.

False. False. 'Mirupafshim' means goodbye. Good morning is 'mirëmëngjes'.

Do you speak English?. It means 'Do you speak English?'. 'Nuk kuptoj' means I don't understand.

112. 112 is the emergency number, and it also reaches the police. For an ambulance call 127, and for the fire service 128.

They are counting in 'old lek', worth a tenth of today's lek. They are counting in 'old lek', worth a tenth of today's lek. Many Albanians still count this way, decades after the 1965 change.

False. False. Tipping is not a firm custom. Rounding up the bill is a kind gesture.

True. True. To avoid mix-ups, listen for the words: po means yes and jo means no.

By bus or furgon (minibus). By bus or furgon (minibus): passenger trains are largely suspended.