Arbër History
A collaborative research initiative documenting the history, languages, and genealogy of Albanian diaspora communities across the Mediterranean world.
Our Mission
Arbër History exists to preserve and make accessible the historical record of Albanian-speaking diaspora communities — the Arvanites of Greece, the Arbëreshë of Italy, the Arbanasi of Croatia, and the Arnaut communities of the former Ottoman world. These communities share a common origin in medieval Albania yet developed distinct identities over five centuries of separation. Our goal is to document that shared heritage and those distinct paths with scholarly rigour and open access.Our Research Philosophy Human history is a history of movement, interaction, and change. Languages evolve, cultures transform, and populations intermingle over time. No single element—whether language, genetics, religion, or tradition—can fully define the identity of a people. Arber History seeks to understand the Arbër world through multiple lines of evidence, including historical documents, archaeology, linguistics, genetics, geography, and cultural heritage. Our goal is not to promote nationalist narratives, but to preserve, document, and better understand a shared human history.
Scholarly rigour
Every claim is sourced. Evidence is graded by confidence level. Uncertainty is acknowledged, not papered over.
Open access
Research belongs to the communities it documents. All data is freely available for non-commercial use.
Community voice
Diaspora community members are partners in this research, not merely its subjects.
Linguistic precision
Names, terms, and texts are rendered in their correct scripts and dialects — Albanian, Greek, Italian, Croatian, Turkish.
What We Document
Surnames & genealogy
Albanian-origin surnames across all four diaspora communities, with etymology, regional distribution, and evidence confidence ratings.
Migration history
The five major waves of Albanian diaspora movement from the 13th to 19th centuries, with primary sources and scholarly context.
Ethnonyms & language
The names given to Albanian-speaking peoples across history — self-designations, exonyms, and their etymological relationships.
Regional geography
The ancestral homelands and diaspora settlement zones, from medieval Albania to the scattered communities of the Mediterranean.
Community profiles
Detailed profiles of each diaspora community: Arvanites, Arbëreshë, Arbanasi, and Arnaut — history, language, religion, and present status.
Claims register
A critical register of historical claims about Albanian diaspora communities, graded by evidence quality.
Methodology
Arbër History uses a four-tier evidence confidence system. Every entry in the surname database, migration record, and community profile is assigned a confidence level based on the quality and quantity of supporting sources.
Multiple independent primary sources. Scholarly consensus. Direct documentary evidence.
Primary sources exist but are limited or partially corroborated. Mainstream scholarly view.
Secondary sources only, or primary sources with significant interpretive dispute.
Oral tradition, family claims, or highly contested scholarly territory. Included for completeness.
Share your family's migration story
Help us build the most complete record of Albanian diaspora migration. Your family's route, surnames, and documents become part of a shared scholarly archive — available to researchers worldwide, with no personal data ever published without your explicit consent.
Contributor
1 / 5Verified contributors may receive limited access to curated surname, village, and migration indexes — and alerts when another approved record may match your family's route.
Project History
Research begins
Initial archival research into Arbëreshë surnames and migration records.
Database v0.1
First structured surname database compiled from Italian, Greek, and Albanian archival sources.
Community partnerships
Formal partnerships established with Arbëreshë cultural associations in Calabria and Sicily.
Master database v1.0
Release of the Master Database v1.0 covering all four diaspora communities with 500+ surname entries.
Web platform launch
Launch of the Arbër Project web platform for open-access research.
Ongoing expansion
Continued expansion of the surname database, migration records, and community profiles.
Languages
Arbër History is committed to multilingual access. The platform is being developed in six languages reflecting the communities it documents.
English
Primary research language
Albanian
Shqip — language of origin
German
Deutsch — major scholarly language
Turkish
Türkçe — Ottoman archival language
Italian
Italiano — Arbëreshë community language
Greek
Ελληνικά — Arvanite community language
Get in Touch
We welcome contributions from researchers, community members, and anyone with knowledge of Albanian diaspora history. If you have archival materials, family records, or scholarly expertise to share, we want to hear from you.
[email protected]Response time is typically 5–10 working days. We read every message.
Start Exploring
Dive into the research — surnames, migrations, ethnonyms, regions, and community profiles.