Voskopojë (Albanian with definite article Voskopoja; Aromanian: Moscopole; Aromanian with definite article Moscopolea; Greek: Μοσχόπολις, Moscopolis or Moschopolis; Serbian: Moskopolje;) is a small village currently in south-eastern Albania. During its history, it used to be a cultural and commercial center of the Aromanians (Vlachs). Albania is a Mediterranean country in southeastern Europe. ... Aromanians (also called: Macedo-Romanians or Vlachs, in Aromanian they call themselves arumâni, armâni or aromâni) are a population living as a minority in Northern Greece, Serbia, the Republic of Macedonia, Albania, and Bulgaria; their number is estimated to about one or two million. ... Vlachs (also called Wlachs, Wallachs, Olahs) are the Romanized population in Central and Eastern Europe, including Romanians, Aromanians, Istro-Romanians and Megleno-Romanians, but since the creation of the Romanian state, this term was mostly used for the Vlachs living south of the Danube river. ...

History

Although located in rather inhospitable place in the mountains between Greece and Albania, the city rose to became the most important center of the Balkan Aromanians. In its glory days (1760s) it had population surpassing 60,000 and was the second city of the Balkans as population and prosperity, surpassed only by Istanbul. Events and Trends King George III ascends the British throne in 1760. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

The city is said to have been inhabited almost exclusively by Vlachs/Aromanians. An 1935 analysis of the family names shows that the majority of the population was indeed Vlachis there were also some Greek, Bulgarians and Albanians merchants, although according to the German historian Johann Thunmann who visited Moscopole and wrote in 1774 a history of the Aromanians, everyone in the city spoke Aromanian and that many also spoke Greek, which was the language used for commercial contracts. 1935 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Toward the end of the 18th century it flourished due to commerce with Germany, Venice and Constantinople and it had various manufacturing plants, around 70 churches, banks, a printing press (the only other press of the Balkans was in Istanbul) and even a university (The New Academy, founded in 1744). A cultural effervescence arose in Moscopole, and many authors published their works in both Greek language (which was the language of culture of the Balkans at the time) and Aromanian language written with Greek alphabet. In 1770, in Moscopole was published the first dictionary of four modern Balkan languages (Greek, Albanian, Vlach/Aromanian and Bulgarian), which is considered of great historical value. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... The Federal Republic of Germany ( German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland) is one of the worlds leading industrialised countries, located in the heart of Europe. ... Venice is known for its waterways and gondolas Gondola. ... Map of Constantinople. ... The Greek language (Greek Ελληνικά, IPA – Hellenic) is an Indo-European language with a documented history of some 3,000 years. ... Aromanian (also known as Macedoromanian, Vlach or Wallachian; in Aromanian: Armâneashti or Vlăheşte) is a language in the eastern group of the Romance languages. ... Technical note: Due to technical limitations, some web browsers may not display some special characters in this article. ... Events March 5 - Boston Massacre: 5 Americans killed by British troops in an event that would help start the American Revolutionary War 5 years later. ... The Greek language (Greek Ελληνικά, IPA – Hellenic) is an Indo-European language with a documented history of some 3,000 years. ... Albanian or Gjuha shqipe is a language spoken by more than six million inhabitants of the western Balkan peninsula (Albania, Serbia and Montenegro, Macedonia, Greece) in south_eastern Europe (Albanians) and by a small number of people in Calabria, southern Italy. ... Aromanian (also known as Macedoromanian, Vlach or Wallachian; in Aromanian: Armâneashti or Vlăheşte) is a language in the eastern group of the Romance languages. ... Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Southern branch of the Slavic languages, along with Macedonian, Serbo-Croatian, and Slovenian. ...

The 1769 sacking and pillaging of the Ottomans was just the first one from a series of attacks, which culminated with the razing of 1788 by the Albanian troops of Ali Pasha. The survivers were thus forced to flee, most of them emigrating to Greece (where they returned to their ancestral occupation of animal husbandry), Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria. Some of the commercial elite moved to Austria-Hungary, especially to the two capitals Vienna and Budapest, but also in Transylvania, where they had an important role in the early National awakening of Romania. 1788 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... This article is about an Albanian pasha. ... Greece, formally called the Hellenic Republic ( Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία), is a country in the southeast of Europe on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula. ... Serbia and Montenegro  -Serbia    - Kosovo and Metohia    - Vojvodina  - Montenegro Official language Serbian 1 Capital Belgrade Area  - Total  - % water 88,361 km² n/a Population  - Total ( 2002) census - without Kosovo  - Density 7. ... Romania (formerly spelled Rumania or Roumania; Romanian: România) is a country in southeastern Europe. ... The Republic of Bulgaria is a republic in the southeast of Europe. ... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... This article is about the city and federal state in Austria. ... See Budapest (band) for the British melancholic post-grunge band. ... Transylvania ( Romanian: Transilvania or Ardeal, Hungarian: Erdély, German: Siebenbürgen, Serbian: Transilvanija, Turkish: Erdel, Slovak: Sedmohradsko or Transylvania, Polish: Siedmiogród) is a historic region that forms the western and the central parts of Romania. ... During the period of Austro-Hungarian rule in Transylvania and Ottoman suzerainty over Wallachia and Moldavia, most Romanians were in the situation of being second-class citizens (or even non-citizens) in their own country. ...

The city never rose to its earlier status and it was destroyed again in 1916 during the partisan warfare of World War I. Of the old city only five Orthodox churches survive and lay in ruin. In 2002, they were listed among the Top 100 Most Endangered Historical Sites (http://www.wmf.org/html/programs/albvos.html) by the World Monuments Fund. 1916 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar) Events January-February January 1 -The first successful blood transfusion using blood that had been stored and cooled. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Today Voskopoja is just a small mountain village in the Albanian District of Korçë. The glorious memories of the lost city of Moscopole still remain an important part in the culture of Vlachs.

Population

• 1750: 45,000
• 1788: 60,000
• 2000: 700

Events March 2 - Small earthquake in London April 4 - Small earthquake in Warrington, England August 23 - Small earthquake in Spalding, England September 30 - Small earthquake in Northampton, England November 16 – Westminster Bridge officially opened Jonas Hanway is the first Englishman to use an umbrella James Gray reveals her sex to... 1788 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Geography

Voskopoja is located at a distance of 21 km from Korçë, in the Mountains of south-eastern Albania, at an altitude of 1160 meters.

References

• Nicolas Trifon, Des Aroumains aux Tsintsares - Destinées Historiques Et Littéraires D’un Peuple Méconnu (http://www.lekti-ecriture.com/contrefeux/article.php3?id_article=121) (in French)
• Românii din Albania - Aromânii (http://www.romanii.ro/romanii_de_langa_noi/ROMANII%20DIN%20ALBANIA.doc) (in Romanian)
• Steliu Lambru, Narrating National Utopia - The Case Moschopolis in the Aromanian National Discourse (http://institutulxenopol.tripod.com/xenopoliana/arhiva/2001/pagini/7.htm) (in English)
• Robert Elsie, [1]  (http://www.elsie.de/pub/download_r/R1997Peyfuss.pdf) (in English)