The Albanians consider themselves as descendants of the Illyrians, and hence as autochthonous Balkan nation. They are considered to be proud, brave and competitive. These characteristics have made in their long history, often demonstrated.Also, as small nations in general, easy to violate. However, the Albanians in contrast to some of the "blessings" of the industrial society spoiled Europeans very natural, open and warm. With friends and guests to share them if necessary their last piece of bread.
In the hard-to-reach north (northern Albanian Alps), where foreign occupants whether Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, Italian or German special effort had ever exert any control, there were some relics of the old tribal structures and traditions long fort and make some still felt today.
There was also the blood revenge longer than elsewhere.
During the Turkish rule were about 70% of the Albanians to Islam about 20% were Orthodox and Catholics almost 10%. Since 1967 Constitution by any religion prohibited, churches and mosques were warehouses or sports facilities pesos, and some served as museums.
This is now everything has been undone.
What the ethnic composition concerned, it is about 97% of the Albanian population, with the remaining 3% are composed of Greeks, Macedonians, Montenegrinen and Roma.
The country, which before the war, only one million inhabitants, has a high birthrate increase over three and a half million people and one of 38 to 70 years increased life expectancy.
More than three million Albanians living outside Albania, the majority of them (about 2.5 million) in Kosovo, but also in Macedonia and Montenegro. From Byzantine and Ottoman times there are settlements of Albanians in Italy (Arbereshen) and Greece (the so-called Arvanites), as well as in various places of Dalmatia, Bulgaria and Ukraine, but also in Germany.
In the past hundred years, and more recently again, hundreds of thousands emigrated from modest economic reasons. So live large groups of Albanians in Turkey, in some Arab countries, in Australia, the United States and throughout the world scattered.