View source for Himarë

{{For|the wrecked passenger steamer|SS Heimara}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}
{{Infobox Albanian settlement
| name                   = Himarë
| other name             = Himara<br />Χειμάρρα
| type                   = m
| flag                   = Himare Flag.png
| emblem                 = Stema e Bashkisë Himarë.svg
| image_skyline          = ALB_20070718_img_1368.jpg
| caption                = The region of Himarë seen from the [[Ceraunian Mountains]]
| map                    = 
| location               =
| county                 = Vlorë
| parts                  =
| settled                =
| incorporated           =
| dissolved              =
| party                  = [[Socialist Party of Albania|PS]] 
| mayor                  = [[Vangjel Tavo]]<ref name="Tavo2024">{{Cite news |last=Sinoruka |first=Fjori |date=5 August 2024 |title=Albania Ruling Party Candidate Wins Himara Local Elections |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2024/08/05/albania-ruling-party-candidate-wins-himara-local-elections/ |work=[[Balkan Insight]]}}</ref>
| council chairman       =
| administrator          = 
| coordinates            = {{coord|40|7|N|19|44|E|type:adm1st_region:AL_dim:100000|display=it}}
| elevation              = 
| area munic             = 571.94
| area rank              =
| population as of       = 2011
| population munic       = 7818
| population unit        = 2822
| population rank        = 
| demonym                = {{langx|sq|Himariot (m), Himariote (f)}}
| postal code            = 9425
| area code              = (0)393
| website                = {{URL|https://himara.gov.al/}}
}}

'''Himarë''' ({{lang-sq-definite|Himara}}; {{langx|el|Χιμάρα}}, ''Chimara'' or Χειμάρρα, ''Cheimarra'') is a [[Municipalities of Albania|municipality]] and region in [[Vlorë County]], southern [[Albania]]. The municipality has a total area of {{cvt|571.94|sqkm|abbr=on}} and consists of the administrative units of Himarë, [[Horë-Vranisht]] and [[Lukovë]].<ref name="AAM">{{cite web |publisher=Albanian Association of Municipalities (AAM) |title=Bashkia Himarë |url=https://aam.org.al/en/bashkia-himare/ |access-date=17 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021102334/https://aam.org.al/en/bashkia-himare/ |archive-date=21 October 2020 |language=sq |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Law 2014">{{cite web |url=https://www.vendime.al/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/137-2014.pdf |title=Law nr. 115/2014 |language=sq |pages=6376 |access-date=25 February 2022}}</ref> It lies between the [[Ceraunian Mountains]] and the [[Albanian Ionian Sea Coast]] and is part of the [[Albanian Riviera]]. The traditionally perceived borders of the Himarë region gradually shrank during the Ottoman period, being reduced to the [[Himarë (town)|town of Himarë]] and the villages of the coastline (Bregdet in Albanian),<ref name=":0">{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|pp=219–220}}</ref> generally including only [[Palasë]], [[Dhërmi]], [[Pilur]], [[Kudhës]], [[Vuno]], [[Iljas]] and [[Qeparo]].<ref name="Clayer2018">{{cite book |author=Nathalie Clayer |date=6 August 2018 |title=Aux origines du nationalisme albanais |publisher=KARTHALA Editions |isbn=978-2-8111-2172-3 |oclc=1049949545 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2M6oDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT98}}</ref>

The coastal region of Himarë is predominantly populated by an ethnic [[Greeks in Albania|Greek]] community.<ref name="Heraclides Kromidha 2023 p. 1-PT176">{{cite book | last=Heraclides | first=A. | last2=Kromidha | first2=Y. | title=Greek-Albanian Entanglements since the Nineteenth Century: A History | publisher=Taylor & Francis | series=Routledge Histories of Central and Eastern Europe | year=2023 | isbn=978-1-000-96375-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9PbREAAAQBAJ&pg=RA1-PT176 | access-date=2024-03-18 | page=1-PT176|quote=The denial of minority status in the Himara area continues to cause tension between the Albanian state and the local population, the great majority of which identifies not as Albanian, but as Greek.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Europa Publications |title=Central and South-Eastern Europe 2004 |volume=5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5J_gAU8c9NIC&pg=PA78 |year=2003 |publisher=Psychology Press |isbn=978-1-85743-186-5 |pages=78–}}</ref><ref name=Hammond1993>Hammond, 1993: [https://books.google.com/books?id=1WwiAQAAIAAJ&q=%22range+in+positions+which+offer+natural+defences+against+the+Liaps%22 p. 405]: "It is one of the several Greek-speaking villages in which the centre is Himare... Liaps"</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Economist Intelligence Unit |title=Country Report: Albania |issue=1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZfoDAQAAIAAJ |year=2001 |publisher=Economist Intelligence Unit |location=Great Britain |page=14 |quote=a Greek-speaking district}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Albania: The state of a nation |format=PDF |url=http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/europe/Albania%205.ashx |access-date=2010-09-02 |work=ICG Balkans Report N°111 |page=15 |quote=The coastal Himara region of Southern Albania has always had a predominantly ethnic Greek population. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100808142347/http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/europe/Albania%205.ashx |archive-date=2010-08-08}}</ref> The local population is bilingual in Greek and Albanian.<ref>''Anthropological journal on European cultures'', v. 3-4, European Centre for Traditional and Regional Cultures, 1994, p. 84</ref> The town of Himarë and the villages of Dhërmi and Palasa, which together account for the bulk of the population of the region, are primarily populated by a Greek population. The villages of Iljas, [[Lukovë]], Kudhës, Pilur and Vuno are inhabited by an [[Albanians|Albanian]] population, while Qeparo is inhabited by both ethnic Albanians and Greeks.<ref name= Kallivretakis/> In the 2011 census, 83% of the inhabitants of the former municipality of Horë-Vranisht declared themselves as Albanians, while the rest failed to provide a reply.<ref name="Census2011"/> In the former Lukovë municipality, the population is predominantly Albanian (94%) with a small Greek minority (6%).<ref name="Kallivretakis2">Kallivretakis, Leonidas (1995). "[http://helios-eie.ekt.gr/EIE/handle/10442/8696 Η ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλβανίας υπό το πρίσμα της ιστορικής γεωγραφίας και δημογραφίας [The Greek Community of Albania in terms of historical geography and demography]." In Nikolakopoulos, Ilias, Kouloubis Theodoros A. & Thanos M. Veremis (eds). ''Ο Ελληνισμός της Αλβανίας [The Greeks of Albania]''. University of Athens. p. 51. "Ε Έλληνες, ΑΧ Αλβανοί Ορθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί, AM Αλβανοί Μουσουλμάνοι, ΤΣ Τσάμηδες, Β Βλάχοι, Μ Μικτός πληθυσμός”; p.53. "LUKOVE ΛΟYKΟBΟ 2076 ΑΧ + αμ (250) + ε (120); NIVICE ΝΙΒΓΓΣΑ 899 ΑΧ + ε (30); SHENVASIL Αϊ ΒΑΣΙΛΗ 1434 ΑΧ + αμ (220) + ε (210); PIQERAS ΠΙΚΙΕΡΑΣ (ΠΙΚΕΡΝΗ) 991 ΑΧ + αμ (100) + ε (50); SASAJ ΣΑΣΑΪ 297 AM; BORSH ΜΠΟΡΣΙ 1243 AM; FTERE ΦΤΕΡΑ 378 AM; ÇORAJ ΤΣΟΡΑΪ 282 ΑΧ (150) + AM (132); QAZIM PALI ΚΙΑΣΙΜ ΠΑΛΙ (νέο) 861 AM + ε (80) + αχ (50)"</ref>

==Geography==
The Himarë region is a strip approximately 20&nbsp;km long by 5&nbsp;km wide, covering a total of 132.13&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>,<ref>{{cite report |author=Sulejman Sulçe |date=May 2014 |title=Himara Transfer Station and Associated Structures – Environmental Impact Assessment |url=https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/273251468194632877/pdf/E11410V90P086800Box385220B00PUBLIC0.pdf |publisher=Ministry of Urban Development and Tourism (Republic of Albania) |page=34 |docket=E1141 V9 |access-date=2021-08-04 |quote=Territory of Himarë Municipality is 13,213 ha (132 km<sup>2</sup> is Himarë Municipality area in the band of the width 5 km) for more than 1/3 the entire band of 5 km of the region (the largest part of all administrative units in the study area).}}</ref> and bounded by the 2000-metre-high [[Ceraunian mountains]] to the northeast and the [[Ionian Sea]] to the southwest. There are long pebbled beaches and the few hills close to the sea are terraced and planted with olive and citrus trees.<ref name=Municipality>[https://www.scribd.com/doc/8203799/Himara-Turistic-Guide-English-Version Tourist Guide of Himarë]. Bashkia e Himares. In the intro, written by Vasilis Bolanos, the then-mayor.</ref> The traditionally perceived borders of the Himarë region gradually shrank during the Ottoman period, being reduced only to the town of [[Himarë (town)|Himarë]] and the villages on the coastline (''Bregdet'' in Albanian).<ref name=":0" />

== History ==
=== Antiquity ===
[[File:Ancient Regions Mainland Greece-es.svg|right|thumb|250px|In antiquity the region of Himarë was part of the territory of the [[Chaonians]].]]
In antiquity the region was inhabited by the Greek tribe of the [[Chaonians]].<ref name=Hammond>{{cite book |first=NGL |last=Hammond |title=Philip of Macedon |publisher=Duckworth |location=London, UK |year=1994}} "Epirus was a land of milk and animal products...The social unit was a small tribe, consisting of several nomadic or semi-nomadic groups, and these tribes, of which more than seventy names are known, coalesced into large tribal coalitions, three in number: Thesprotians, Molossians and Chaonians...We know from the discovery of inscriptions that these tribes were speaking the Greek language (in a West-Greek dialect)"</ref> The Chaonians were one of the three principal Greek-speaking tribes of Epirus, along with the [[Thesprotians]] and the [[Molossians]].<ref>Hecataeus of Miletus, ''Fr.103''</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://classics.mit.edu/Plutarch/pyrrhus.html |title=The Internet Classics Archive &#124; Pyrrhus by Plutarch |website=classics.mit.edu}}</ref> The town of Himarë is believed to have been founded as ''Chimaira''<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%23114033 Chimaira], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', at Perseus</ref> (Χίμαιρα)<ref name=Hansen>An Inventory of Archaic and Classical Poleis: An Investigation Conducted by The Copenhagen Polis Centre for the Danish National Research Foundation by Mogens Herman Hansen, 2005, p. 340</ref> by the Chaonians as a trading outpost on the Chaonian shore. However, another theory suggests that it comes from [[Greek language|Greek]] ''χείμαρρος'' (''cheimarros''), meaning "torrent".<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%23113535 Cheimarros], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', at Perseus</ref> An oracular lamella from the Οracle of [[Dodona]], dated to the first half of the 4th century BCE and written in the Doric Greek dialect, has the inscription {{lang|grc-x-doric|"περὶ τᾶς οἰκήσιος τᾶς ἐγ Χεμαρίων πότερον αὐτεῖ οἰκέωντι;"}},<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lamelles Oraculaires 131 - PHI Greek Inscriptions |url=https://epigraphy.packhum.org/text/304704 |access-date=2021-12-12 |website=epigraphy.packhum.org |publisher=[[Packard Humanities Institute]]}}</ref> which translates as "regarding the settlement by the inhabitants of Himarë, [they submit the question] should (or can) they settle here?".<ref>{{harvnb|Kyriazis|2016|p=1}}</ref>

In [[classical antiquity]], Himarë was part of the [[Epirus (ancient state)|Kingdom of Epirus]] under the rule of the [[Molossian]] [[Aeacid dynasty]], which included King [[Pyrrhus of Epirus]]. When the region was conquered by the [[Roman Republic]] in the 2nd century BCE, its settlements were badly damaged and some were destroyed by the Roman General [[Aemilius Paulus]].{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

=== Middle Ages ===
[[File:Alt-Himara.jpg|left|thumb|220x220px|Ruins of the Himarë Fortress, locally known as 'Kastro' meaning castle]]
Himarë and the rest of the southern Balkans passed into the hands of the [[Byzantine Empire]]<ref>Badlands, borderlands: a history of Northern Epirus/Southern Albania by Tom Winnifrith, 2002,{{ISBN|0715632019}}, p. 80</ref> following the fall of Rome, but like the rest of the region it became the frequent target of various attackers including the [[Goths]], [[Avars (Carpathians)|Avars]], [[South Slavs|Slavs]], [[Bulgars]], [[Saracens]] and [[Normans]]. Himarë is mentioned in [[Procopius of Caesarea]]'s ''Buildings'' (544)<ref name="Epirus Vetus 2003, page 14">Epirus Vetus: The Archaeology of a Late Antique Province (Duckworth Archaeology) by William Bowden, 2003,{{ISBN|0-7156-3116-0}}, 2003, p. 14</ref> as ''Chimaeriae'', being part of Old [[Epirus]] and that a new fortress was built in its location. In 614, the Slavic tribe of the [[Baiounetai]] invaded the area and controlled a region from Himarë to [[Margariti]] called "[[Vagenetia]]".<ref name="Epirus Vetus 2003, page 14"/>

A local diocese of Cheimara ({{langx|el|Χειμάρα}}) was formed as noted in a Byzantine [[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Taktikon]] of the late 10th century (972-976) under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan bishopric of [[Nicopolis]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Veikou |first1=Myrto |title=Byzantine Epirus: A Topography of Transformation. Settlements of the Seventh-Twelfth Centuries in Southern Epirus and Aetoloacarnania, Greece |date=25 May 2012 |publisher=BRILL |location=47 |isbn=978-90-04-22151-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dKINo5CPFy8C |language=en}}</ref> It is unclear when Albanians and Himarë Greeks arrived in the Himarë region and when contacts between the two groups began.{{sfn|Rusakov|2021|p=2021|ps=:We have here two unknowns: we know neither the time of the arriving of Albanians into this part of the Balkans nor when the ancestors of Himarë Greeks appeared in the region}} Nevertheless, contacts between them probably started in the 13th and 14th centuries.{{sfn|Rusakov|2021|p=3}} The use of the name "[[Chaonia]]" in reference to the region apparently died out during the 12th century, the last time it is recorded (in a [[Byzantine]] tax collection document).{{citation needed|date=November 2021}} In 1278, [[Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas|Nicephorus of Epirus]] surrendered to the [[Capetian House of Anjou|Angevins]] the ports of Himarë, Sopot and Butrint. As a result, [[Charles I of Naples|Charles of Anjou]] controlled the Ionian coast from Himarë to Butrint.{{sfn|Fine|1994|pp=185–186}} It must have returned to Byzantine rule in 1281 after the battle of Berat.<ref name=Nicol238>{{cite book |last1=Nicol |first1=Donald M. |title=The Despotate of Epiros 1267-1479: A Contribution to the History of Greece in the Middle Ages |date=1984 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-26190-6 |page=238 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XIj0FfKto9AC |language=en}}</ref> In c. 1360 the Latin bishop of Chimara renounced his office and his Catholic faith and submitted to the Patriarch of Constantinople.<ref name=Nicol238/> Himarë was later ruled by [[Serbian Empire]] between 1342 and 1372. In 1372, Himarë, together with Vlora, Kanina and Berat region, was given as a dowry to [[Balsha II]] due to his marriage with [[Comita Muzaka]], the daughter of [[Andrea II Muzaka]]. After the death of Balsha II, his widow and his daughter [[Rugjina Balsha]] (who married [[Mrkša Žarković]]) managed to keep possession of the region up to 1417 when the Ottomans captured Vlora.{{sfn|Fine|1994|pp=383, 390}} At the [[Battle of Kosovo]] of 1389, contemporary Greek authors list among participants Northern Albanians, those of Himarë, Epirus and the coast.<ref name="Di Lellio">{{cite book |last=Di Lellio |first=Anna |title=The Case for Kosova: Passage to Independence |publisher=Anthem Press |year=2006 |page=32|quote= Far from arriving in the 'enemies' trucks' the Albanian population, from the lake of Shkodra to Kosova, were one with the other Christian populations At the time of the Ottoman invasion of 1389, Greek authors mention, after the Serbs and the Bulgarians, the Northern Albanians, those of Himarë, Epyrus and the coast.}}</ref> Though in 14th century Byzantine control in Himarë was lost, the local bishop remained under the jurisdiction of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nicol |first1=Donald M. |title=The Despotate of Epiros 1267-1479: A Contribution to the History of Greece in the Middle Ages |date=1984 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-26190-6 |page=78 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XIj0FfKto9AC |language=en}}</ref>

=== Early Ottoman period ===

[[File:Flag of Himara in Epirus during Ottoman rule.png|thumb|200px|The flag of Himarë during the Ottoman era, depicting the [[Archangels]] [[Saint Michael|Michael]] and [[Gabriel]]]]

In 1431 Himarë became a nahiye, an administrative division, of the [[Sanjak of Albania]].<ref name="IH">{{cite book |author=Instituti i Historise |title=Gjergj Kastrioti--Skënderbeu dhe lufta shqiptaro-turke e shekullit XV |publisher=Universiteti Shtetëror i Tiranës |year=1967 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5DE6AQAAIAAJ |page=26}}</ref> It became a symbol of resistance to the Ottomans but suffered from an almost continuous state of warfare. Himariots participated in [[Skanderbeg]]'s resistance against the Ottoman Empire.<ref name=":1">{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|p=227}}</ref> During [[Skanderbeg's rebellion]] and the rule of [[Gjergj Arianiti]], Himarë was within the domains of the [[Arianiti family|Principality of Arianiti]] between 1443 and 1462. In the summer of 1473 the chieftain John Vlasis, with a small unit from nearby Corfu and with native Himariot support, took control of the entire coastal region from [[Sagiada]] to Himarë, but when the ongoing [[Ottoman–Venetian War (1463–1479)|Ottoman-Venetian war]] ended (1479) the region was again under Ottoman control.<ref>Sakellariou, 1997, [https://books.google.com/books?id=UV1oAAAAMAAJ&q=vlasis p. 244]: "In the summer of 1473 the chieftain John Vlasis and a small band of men, using Corfu as a base... while the inhabitants of Cheimara liberated many of the Greek villages."</ref> In 1481, one year after the Ottomans had landed in [[Otranto]] in southern [[Italy]], the Himariots joined the forces of [[Gjon Kastrioti II]] (son of [[Skanderbeg]]) in his uprising against the Ottomans.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Lucia Gualdo Rosa |author2=Isabella Nuovo |author3=Domenico Defilippis |title=Gli umanisti e la guerra otrantina: testi dei secoli XV e XVI |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DptVGd1bPkQC |year=1982 |publisher=EDIZIONI DEDALO |isbn=978-88-220-6005-1 |page=97}}</ref> The Albanian rebellion in Himarë was led by [[Muzaka family|Konstantin Muzaka]] with aid from [[Krokodeilos Kladas]].<ref name="Brackob 2020">{{cite book |last=Brackob |first=A.K. |title=Scanderbeg: A History of George Castriota and the Albanian Resistanceto Islamic Expansion in Fifteenth Century Europe |publisher=Histria Books |year=2020 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-MbgDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA168 |page=168 |isbn=9781592110056}}</ref> The uprising failed, but the Himariots rose up again in 1488, and between 1494 and 1509, destabilizing Ottoman control but failing to liberate their territory.

In 1501, Himarë was governed by its own elders, and the traditional meeting place of the region was in the locality of Spille, near the village of [[Qeparo]]; the region at this time consisted of 7 villages - Qeparo, Himarë, Vuno, Sopot (which was divided into two, Shën Vasija and Nivicë Bubari), [[Dhërmi]], [[Palasë]] and [[Kudhës]]-Perivoli. Certain villages enjoyed more privileges than others, as they were provided with ''Kapedana'' - hereditary leaders with military roles, particularly regarding recruitment. The Spiromilio family were the hereditary holders of this position in Himarë, while the Gjika family held the title in Qeparo and the Kasneci family in Vuno. Sopot also had its own Kapedan but lost the privilege prior to the other three aforementioned villages, as was observed when [[Naples|Neapolitan]] documents relating to the king's recruitments in the region during the end of the 18th century only mentioned a lieutenant and future captain called Giovanni Spiro (Spiromilio), alongside a major by the name of Atanasio Gjika and a lieutenant called Costantino Kasneci, as well as multiple cadets. Apart from these Kapedana, the villages in the Himarë region did not have unique leaders, but rather a council made up of the heads of the local tribes or brotherhoods known as primates in relevant documents.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Valentini |first1=Giuseppe |title=Il Diritto delle Comunità - Nella Tradizione Giuridica Albanese |date=1956 |publisher=Vallecchi Editore |location=Florence |pages=271–272 |url=https://www.dimarcomezzojuso.it/autore.php?id=36}}</ref> The Albanians in southern Albania and northern Greece were not divided in ''fis'' like northern and central Albanians, but in [[Albanian tribes|''fara'']] or ''gjeri'' ("common thing"). Among the lineages was that of Himarë.<ref name="Kaser">{{cite book | last=Kaser | first=K. | title=Household and Family in the Balkans: Two Decades of Historical Family Research at University of Graz | publisher=Lit Verlag| series=Studies on South East Europe | year=2012 | page=298}}</ref>

In 1532, [[Denis Possot]], who travelled through the region, described Albania as divided into three parts: one ruled by the Ottomans, one ruled by the Venetians and the other ruled by the Albanians themselves. He included the Himarë region, which still included all of [[Labëria]], among those ruled by the Albanians. He added that it could field 20,000 warriors against the Ottomans.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frashëri |first=Kristo |title=Himara dhe Përkatësia Etnike e Himarjotëve |year=2005 |publisher=Toena |page=31 |quote="Udhëtari frëng Denis Possot në veprën e vet të hartuar në vitin 1532, e ndan Shqipërinë në tre pjesë – në Shqipërinë e zotëruar nga venedikasit, në Shqipërinë e sunduar nga turqit dhe në Shqipërinë e sunduar nga vetë shqiptarët (la troisiesme est en la seigneurie des Albanoys). Duke folur për zonat “e lira” të Shqipërisë, ai njofton se burrat e kësaj pjese shkojnë në luftë kundrejt pagesës, se ata “kanë 20000 kalorës për të shkuar kundër armiqve në Turqi dhe ata banojnë në një vend e në një pjesë të Shqipërisë që tani quhet Himarë” (ilz ont bien vingut mille gens se cheval pour aller contre les ennemis de Turquie. Et se tiennent a un lieu e t partie d’Albanie que maintenant on apelle Chimere). Sikurse shihet këtu Himarë është në vështrimin më të gjerë kur me emrin e saj përfshihej gjithë Labëria, fshatrat e së cilës sot bëjnë pjesë në rrethin e Vlorës, Tepelenës, Gjirokastrës, Delvinës dhe Sarandës."}}</ref>

The Ottoman Sultan [[Suleiman the Magnificent]] personally mounted an expedition in 1537 that destroyed or captured many surrounding villages but did not manage to subdue the area. The Ottomans found it necessary to compromise with the inhabitants by giving them a series of privileges: local self-government, the right to bear arms, exemption from taxes, the right to sail under their own flag into any Ottoman port and to provide military service in time of war.<ref>Pappas, 1991: [https://books.google.com/books?id=eAW5AAAAIAAJ&q=liaz p. 35]: "In 1537 the Ottomans mounted an expedition... the maritime privileges of Cheimarra."</ref> However, despite the privileges, the Himariots revolted during the following conflicts: [[Ottoman–Venetian War (1537–40)]], [[Albanian revolt of 1566–1571]], [[Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–73)]], [[Morean War]] (1684–99), [[Ottoman–Venetian War (1714–18)]] and the [[Russo-Turkish wars]] of the 18th century. On the other hand, Ottoman reprisals depopulated the area and led to forced Islamizations which finally limited the area's Christian population by the 18th century to the town of Himarë and six villages.<ref>Pappas, 1991: [https://books.google.com/books?id=eAW5AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Even+the+special+privileges+which+they+enjoyed%22 p. 36]: "Even the special privileges which they enjoyed..."</ref> In 1567, Himariots are counted among Albanians that could be rallied against the Ottoman, as they, together with other Albanians, had caused great damage to the Ottomans since 1537.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frashëri |first=Kristo |title=Himara dhe Përkatësia Etnike e Himarjotëve |year=2005 |publisher=Toena |page=31 |quote="Ne nje relacion qe funksionari venedikas me origjine nga Kotorri me emrin Bukja (Bucchia) hartoi ne vitin 1567, ne te cilin flitet mbi mundesite qe ekzistonin, sipas tij, per nje debim perfundimtar te osmaneve nga Gadishulli Ballkanik, himariotet perfshihen ne popullsine shqiptare dhe jo ne viset ku banonin te perzier shqiptare dhe greke. Aty thuhet midis te tjerave: "Perkundrazi shqiptaret (albanesi), sidomos ata qe prej Bunes shtrihen deri ne Preveze, duke perfshire Himaren perballe Puljes dhe Kepit te Otrantit – sepse prej Arte e tutje ne ane te Lindjes, kudo popujt qe jane te nenshtruar prej te pafeve (turqve – K.F.), jane te perzier, nje pjese greke e nje pjese shqiptare". Ai thote gjithashtu: "Dhe qysh nga kjo kohe (nga viti 1537 – K.F.) himariotet ne fjale, si dhe shqiptaret e tjere nga keta te Adriatikut – ne kohet e lashta detare ilire ose maqedone (et da quel tempo li detti Cimariotti et li altri albanesi di questi dell’ Adriatico anticamente Illirici et Mecedones marrittimi), u kane bere shume dhunime e deme armiqve te perbashket."}}</ref>

In one occasion, in 1577, the villages of the bishopric of Himarë appealed to the [[Pope]] for arms and supplies promising to fight the Ottomans. They also promised to transfer their religious allegiance to Rome, provided that they would retain their [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox]] liturgical customs;<ref>{{cite book |last1=Charles A. |first1=Frazee |title=Catholics and Sultans: The Church and the Ottoman Empire 1453-1923 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2006 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X6DM4szwUpEC&pg=PA104 |isbn=9780521027007 |pages=103–104}}</ref> the letter concludes with "From Himarra, i.e. Epiros of the Arvanids [Albanians], on July 12th 1577".<ref>{{cite book |last=Frashëri |first=Kristo |title=Himara dhe Përkatësia Etnike e Himarjotëve |year=2005 |publisher=Toena |page=43 |quote="Më në fund letra mbyllet me adresën: “Prej Himare, d.m.th. prej Epirit të shqiptarëve”}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|p=238|ps=: "Ἐκ Χειμάῤῥης ἤτοι Ἠπειρίας τῶν Ἀλβανιτῶν τῇ ιβ΄· ἰουλίου αφοζ΄ ... From Himarra, i.e. Epiros of the Arvanids, on July 12th 1577."}}</ref> The term "Albanian" was used by the Himariots, both as an identifier of local Himariotes, and as an identifier of "otherness" (as for example in letters from 1532 and 1578), which has led some to suggest that it indicated that Himariots consisted of both Albanians and non-Albanians.<ref>{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|pp=224–225}}</ref> In various letters to European rulers the Himariots claimed that they were once ruled by leaders such as [[Alexander the Great]], [[Pyrrhus of Epirus]] and [[Skanderbeg]], personalities with which the Himariotes formed identitarian historical memory; as they later did with the figure of Spyros Spyromilios. The most cited figure with which the Himariots proud themselves through their past is Skanderbeg.<ref name=":1" /> The Himarë region was one example where Christian Albanians during the Ottoman period could carry arms and have a rather independent life.<ref name="Roy">{{cite book |last1=Roy |first1=O. |last2=Elbasani |first2=A. |title=The Revival of Islam in the Balkans: From Identity to Religiosity |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK |series=Islam and Nationalism |year=2015 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dZhMCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT48 |page=48 |isbn=9781137517845}}</ref> In the second half of the 16th century, Himarë was one of the cities of southern Albania that maintained the pre-Ottoman Christian character. It did not have a single Muslim family.<ref name="Schmitt">{{cite book |last1=Schmitt |first1=O.J. |last2=Rathberger |first2=A. |title=Religion und Kultur im albanischsprachigen Südosteuropa |publisher=Lang |series=Pro Oriente |year=2010 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aCdYHU9PtiIC&pg=PA38 |page=38 |isbn=9783631602959}}</ref> By the end of the century, an Italian author states that the Himariots are peoples of Albania who speak Albanian and adhere to the Greek Orthodox rite.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frashëri |first=Kristo |title=Himara dhe Përkatësia Etnike e Himarjotëve|year=2005|publisher=Toena|page=46|quote=“Uskokët banojnë rreth 500 milje larg prej himariotëve, të cilët nga ana tjetër janë popuj të Shqipërisë dhe banojnë ndër malet që quhen Akroceraune në grykën e gjirit Adriatik përballë Kepit të Shënmërisë, kepi i fundit i Italisë. Uskokët flasin sllavisht, himariotët flasin shqip (Gli Uscochi parlano Schiauone, I Chimeriotti albanese)."}}</ref>

The Ottomans managed to register the population for taxation purposes in 1583. Kristo Frashëri describes the list as having predominantly Albanian anthroponymy. The town of Himarë had 130 households and 7 orphans, where the most common names and surnames were ''Dhima/Dhimo'', ''Gjon'', ''Kont/Kond'', ''Gjin'', ''Gjoka''; the village of Dhërmi had 50 households and 3 orphans, where most common anthroponyms were ''Gjin'', ''Dhima/Dhimo'', ''Kond'', ''Todor''; the village of Palasë had 95 households, where the most common anthroponyms were ''Dhima/Dhimo'', ''Jorgo'', ''Pali'', ''Andrea'', ''Nika/Niko''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frashëri |first=Kristo |title=Himara dhe Përkatësia Etnike e Himarjotëve |year=2005 |publisher=Toena |page=46 |quote=“Sikurse shihet kryefamiljarët e të tre fshatrave të ashtuquajtura “greqishtfolëse” (helenofone), mbajnë në përgjithësi emra dhe mbiemra të onomastikës shqiptare..."}}</ref> Oliver J. Schmitt notes that in the 16th century Ottoman registers the anthroponyms of Himarë includes not only Albanian, Greek, Orthodox but also Slavic [[Christian name|baptismal names]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schmitt |first1=Oliver Jens |title=Die Albaner: Eine Geschichte zwischen Orient und Okzident |date=2012 |publisher=C.H.Beck |isbn=978-3-406-63031-6 |page=133 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OD9D_tmufccC |language=de |quote=Die Vorstellung eines kompakten albanischen Gebietes, das etwa dem heutigen Albanian entsprache und von dem aus eine Auswanderung nach allen Himmelsrichtungen erfolgte, ist freilich auch ungenau. So trugen laut osmanischen Steuerregistern im 16. Jh. Maner in den sudalbanischenn orthodoxen Landschaften Dropull und Himare nicht nur Albanische, griechische sowie orthodoxe, sondern auch slawische Taufname.}}</ref>

Albanians organized an uprising again in the region of Himarë on 1596 against the Ottoman Empire.<ref name="AR">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KfYnAQAAMAAJ |title=Studii: revistă de istorie |publisher=Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne. |year=1971 |volume=24 |page=419 |quote=Andrei Pippidi a arătat că rascoala albanczilor din Himara (1596-1597) face parte dintr-o serie de mişcări de eliberare care se intind din Epir pină ia Sibenik, fiind conduse de arhiepiscopii de Ohrida, Ioachim, Gavriil şi Atanasie I. Rolul unui ...}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Barbu |first1=Violeta |date=2010 |title=Les arbanassi : un réseau marchand aux frontières de l'Empire Ottoman au début du XVIIe siècle |journal=Études balkaniques |page=213 |quote=Des soulèvements des peuples des Balkans ont eu lieu dans la période 1595-1598 à:Himara (les Albanais),...}}</ref><ref name="Lloshi">{{cite book |last=Lloshi |first=Xhevat |title=Fjalor enciklopedik shqiptar |publisher=Akademia e Shkencave |year=1985 |series=Fjalor enciklopedik shqiptar |page=585 |quote=K.Sh. arritën të korrnin disa suksese ushtarake, si: fitorja në luftën e Himarës, çlirimi i përkohshëm i Vlorës më 1596, thyerja e 4 sanxhakbejlerëve në Dibër e në Mat më 1601 etj. |issue=v. 1}}</ref>

During the Ottoman period, the people of Himarë established close links to the Italian city states, especially [[Naples]] and the powerful [[Republic of Venice]], which controlled Corfu and the other Ionian Islands, and later with [[Austro-Hungary]]. In 1743, Albanian families from [[Piqeras]], [[Lukovë]], Klikursi, Shën Vasil and Nivica-Bubar migrated to Italy and founded the village Villa Badessa in [[Abruzzo]], where the [[Arbëreshë language|Arbëreshë]] dialect is still spoken.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Guistiniani |first1=Lorenzo |title=Dizionario geografica-ragionato del Regno di Napoli |year=1805 |page=195 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cdjlPASewQoC&pg=PT3 |quote=A quei tali Albanesi fu assegnata un'estensione di terra in Abruzzo ulteriore, che appellavasi Abadessa...}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8J9exOJ01RcC&pg=PA86 Guida d'Italia: Albania], Touring Club Italiano, Milano, 1940, ISBN 88-365-1148-1, pg. 86</ref> After the death of Skanderbeg, successive waves of Albanians from regions such as Himarë moved to Italy, and often settled in depopulated places; they are known as [[Arbëreshë people|Arbëreshë]].<ref name="Candeloro">{{cite book |last=Candeloro |first=D. |title=Italian Ethnics--their Languages, Literature, and Lives: Proceedings of the 20th Annual Conference of the American Italian Historical Association, Chicago, Illinois, November 11-13, 1987 |publisher=The American Italian Historical Association |year=1990 |page=53}}</ref><ref name="Shkurtaj Shkurtaj Likaj Topalli 2013 p. 77">{{cite book |last=Shkurtaj |first=Gjovalin |title=Ligjërimet arbëreshe |publisher=Redona |year=2013 |page=77}}</ref>

The first school in the region opened in 1627, where lessons were held in the Greek language. The following years (until 1633) Greek-language schools opened also in the villages of Dhërmi and Palasa.<ref name="Gregorič p. 67">[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 67.</ref> During the Ottoman period, judicial authority in Himarë and the surrounding villages was exercised by community courts also known as "councils of elders", that consisted exclusively of laymen. Their decisions was subject to the sanction of the local Orthodox bishop who belonged to the metropolis of Ioannina.<ref>Sakellariou, 1997, p. 255: "In Cheimara and the villages of its region (Nivitsa, Hagios Basileios, Loukovo, Keparon, Drymades, Vounos, Pikerni), the court consisted exclusively of elders (laymen), but the execution of its decisions was subject to the sanction of the local bishop (episcopal see at Bouthrotos), who was dependent on the metropolis of Ioannina"</ref> In 1632 Albanian schools were founded in Himarë by [[Neophytos Rodinos]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Temo |first=Sotir |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pPkOAQAAIAAJ |title=Education in the People's Socialist Republic of Albania |date=1985 |publisher="8 Nentori" Publishing House |page=7 |language=en |quote=... the primary schools in Korça ( 1637 ), in Pedhanë and Blinisht in the Shkodra district ( 1639 ) where a secondary school was opened that same year, the Albanian schools in the region of Himara : Dhërmi, Vuno, Palasë ( 1632 ) .}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gaçe |first=Bardhosh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TwC5AAAAIAAJ |title=Lëvizja kombëtare në Vlorë, 1878-1912 |date=1999 |publisher=Botimet Toena |isbn=978-99927-1-185-9 |page=224 |language=sq |quote=Shkollat e para u çelën në Dhërmi, Palasë, Vuno dhe Himarë . Këtu vinin nxënës nga Dukati, Tërbaçi, Kuçi, Lukova, Piqerasi e tjerë . Shkollat e para i çeli Noefit Rodinoja, që besohet se në fshatrat e Himarës arriti në vitin 1632}}</ref>

In 1661, both the Muslims and the Christians of the region had joined in rebellion against the Ottomans.<ref name="Jačov,1992">{{cite book |first=Marko |last=Jačov |title=Le missioni cattoliche nei Balcani durante la guerra di Candia:(1645-1669) |location=Biblioteca apostolica vaticana |year=1992 |page=185}}</ref> In 1720, the villages of Himarë, Palasa, Ilias, Vuno, Pilur and Qeparo refused to submit to the Pasha of Delvina.<ref>{{cite book |title=Etnografia shqiptare |volume=15 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nusRAQAAIAAJ |year=1987 |publisher=Akademia e Shkencave e RPSH, Instituti i Historisë, Sektori i Etnografisë |page=199}}</ref> In 1759–1760, local leaders sent three letters to the government of the [[Russian Empire]], stating that the population of Himarë was Orthodox Christian, Albanian-speaking (with the educated speaking Greek and the nobility Italian) and willing to join an anti-Ottoman uprising, provided the Russians would support a liberation movement of the Greece.<ref>Pappas, 1991, [https://books.google.com/books?id=HMtEAQAAIAAJ&q=%22The+Russo-Turkish+War+of+1+769-1+77M+In+late+1759+and+early+1760%2c+three+letters+arrived+in+St.+Petersburg+from+Cheimarra.+The+first+described+the+conditions+of+the+territory+and+expressed+the+willingness+of+its+population+to+rise+against+the+Turks+if+the+Russians+came+to+free+Greece%22 p. 69]: "In late 1759 and early 1760, three letters arrived in St. Petersburg from Cheimarra. The first described the conditions of the territory and expressed the willingness of its population to rise against the Turks if the Russians came to free Greece"</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|p=243|ps=: "The people are ready for war... Their common action with the famous king Pyrrhus and the recently glorified Scanderbeg are not mentioned - stories praiding their courage... We only add that our faith is Orthodox, we are led by a Bishop; we are spiritually subjugated to the Patriarch of Constantinople. We speak the Albanian language, the same [language spoken] at the neighbouring Albania and Bosnia. Yet, in many areas all learned speak Greek; noble families also speak Italian, due to the many officers serving foreign states and the young people studying at the Padova and Napoli theological seminaries."}}</ref> The Himariots did revolt in 1767, laying siege to [[Delvinë]] and [[Vlorë]], but were eventually defeated by Ottoman reinforcements from nearby regions. This defeat resulted in large numbers fleeing to [[Apulia]] and [[Corfu]], where many were recruited as Albanian contingents for the Russian fleet.<ref>Pappas, 1991, [https://books.google.com/books?id=eAW5AAAAIAAJ&q=Greeks+in+Russian+Military+Service+in+the+Late+Eighteenth+and+Early+Nineteenth+Centuries p. 72]: "Following the lead of the Montenegrins under Stephan the Little, the Cheimarriotes rose in revolt in 1767 and laid siege to the outlying towns of Delvino and Valona. Large forces from the pashaliks of Bosnia, Scutari [Shkodër], and Roumeli were able to check the movements of both the Montenegrins and the Cheimarriotes in the same year. Great numbers of Cheimarriotes became regufees on Corfu and Apulia, Italy to avoid reprisal by the Ottoman forces. It was no doubt from these exiles that the Russians recruited some of the Albanian contingents to serve as marines with their fleet.</ref>

The Italian missionary Giuseppe Schiro, who visited the region, wrote during the same period (1722) that the settlements of [[Himarë (town)]], [[Dhërmi]], and [[Palasë]] were ethnically Greek, while the rest ethnically Albanian.<ref>{{harvnb|Kyriazis|2016|p=9|ps=: "Δεν τα έφερε εκείνος τα ελληνικά στη Χιμάρα, αλλά τα βρήκε εκεί, κι αυτό μας το μαρτυρά ο εξ Ιταλίας ιεραπόστολος Giuseppe Schiro (Zef Skiro) από το έτος 1722 ... O Schiro έγραφε ότι «η Cimara (Χιμάρα) …, Drimades (Δρυμάδες), Balasa (Παλάσα) [είναι] ελληνικής εθνότητας -"di natione greci"-, ενώ τα υπόλοιπα χωριά της Χιμάρας είναι αλβανικής εθνότητας -"di natione albanesi"»."}}</ref> They all wrote in the Greek dialect of the region in their "in-group" communication, mixed with Albanian, Turkish, Italian and some Arabic words. They used Greek in their correspondence with the Pope and other representatives of western countries, as well as with the Russian Empire. When they communicated in Italian, they used a translator, but signed in Greek, with Greek conferments of their names. Their preference of writing in Greek was conscious and not imposed by any conditions or a secretariat.<ref>{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|p=226}}</ref> At that time (1730-1750) after extensive Islamization the term "Albanians" in local literature referred to the inhabitants of nearby Kurvelesh province, or as an identifier of the Islamized Himariots located in the same province, who were portrayed as adversaries of Himarë.<ref>{{harvnb|Giakoumis|2016|p=226=227}}</ref>

=== Late Ottoman period ===
[[File:Khimara - Lear Edward - 1851.jpg|thumb|Sunset on the coast of Himarë depicted by [[Edward Lear]], 24 October 1848.<ref>{{cite web|editor-last=Elsie |editor-first=Robert |title=Albania in the Painting of Edward Lear (1848)|url=http://www.albanianart.net/painting/lear/lear033.htm |website=albanianart.net}}</ref>]]
[[File:Ethnographic map of Epirus, based on P. Aravandinos, 1878.jpg|thumb|200px|Ethnographic map based on the work of P. Aravandinos of the [[Epirus]] region from 1878]]
The [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]]-[[Albanians|Albanian]] communities of the Himariots and Souliotes were often in conflict with [[Ali Pasha of Ioannina|Ali Pasha of Yanina]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schmitt |first1=Oliver Jens |title=Die Albaner: Eine Geschichte zwischen Orient und Okzident |date=2012 |publisher=C.H.Beck |isbn=978-3-406-63031-6 |page=65 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OD9D_tmufccC |language=de |quote=...bekämpften beide im Ringen um Land und einträgliche Steuerpachten muslimische Regionaldynastien (Kurd Ahmet Pascha von Berat, die Toptani von Kruja), Ali auch albanisch-orthodoxe Dorfgemeinschaften (Suli, Himara)..}}</ref> In 1797, [[Ali Pasha of Yanina|Ali Pasha]], the Muslim Albanian ruler of the ''de facto'' independent [[Pashalik of Yanina]], led a raid on the town of Himarë because they supported his enemy, the [[Souliotes]], and more than 6,000 civilians were slaughtered.<ref>Antonina Zhelyazkova.[http://www.imir-bg.org/imir/books/Urgent_anthropology_21.pdf Urgent Anthropology. Vol. 2. Albanian Prospects.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724010419/http://www.imir-bg.org/imir/books/Urgent_anthropology_21.pdf |date=24 July 2011}} IMIR, Sofia, 2003. p. 90</ref> Two years later, Ali Pasha tried to create good relations with the Himariots after declaring their enclave part of his emerging semi-independent state, by financing various public works and churches. A church he built near Himarë, opposite of the [[Porto Palermo Castle|Porto Palermo (Panormos) Castle]] is the largest and most magnificent in the region and still stands today as a major tourist attraction. Ali Pasha's rule over Himarë lasted about 20 years until it was abruptly terminated by his murder at the hands of the Ottoman agents. Himarë subsequently reverted to its ''status quo ante'' of an enclave surrounded by Ottoman territory. To emphasize the region's special status, the terms that the Himariots had reached with Suleiman the Magnificent were inscribed on bronze tablets at the request of their leaders, who wanted to record the agreement on a durable medium. These tablets are preserved to this day in the [[Topkapı Palace|Topkapi]] palace museum in [[Istanbul]].

The most famous  military corps of the [[Kingdom of Naples]] that consisted of Greeks, the ''Reggimento Real Macedone'' was initially  formed (1735) by Himariots, but after 1739 accepted also Greek fighters from different areas.<ref>Hasiotis, Guirao, 2008, p. 63: "El más famoso de los cuerpos militares griegos fue el llamado...  de varias zonas griegas</ref>
At the turn of the 18th century various Himariot Albanian captains had their own military troops in the Kingdom of Naples, and they occasionally returned to their homeland in order to recruit new military troops.{{sfn|Fleming|2014|pp=159–160}} During the period of Ali Pasha's rule in the late 18th century
Dimo Staphanopoli, a [[Greeks in France#The Greeks of Corsica|Corsican Greek]] of the French army, was particularly active in spreading revolutionary ideas and was found in areas receptive to the concept of Greek liberation, such as Himarë.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Russell |first1=Quentin |last2=Russell |first2=Eugenia |title=Ali Pasha, Lion of Ioannina: The Remarkable Life of the Balkan Napoleon |date=30 September 2017 |publisher=Pen and Sword |isbn=978-1-4738-7722-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UQPMDwAAQBAJ |language=en |page=242 |quote= Dimo Staphanopoli... to areas receptive to the idea of Greek liberation, including Himara.}}</ref>

When the [[Greek War of Independence]] (1821–1830) broke out, the people of Himarë rose in revolt.<ref>Pappas, 1991: [https://books.google.com/books?id=eAW5AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Some+joined+existing+units+and+became+ranking+officers%2C+%22 p. 318]: "Following the failure of an insurrection in Cheimarra in 1821"</ref> The local uprising failed, but many Himariots, veterans of the [[Russian Empire|Russian]] and [[France|French]] Army, joined the revolutionary forces in today southern Greece, where they played a significant role in the struggle.<ref>Banac, Ackerman, Szporluk, Vucinich, 1981: [https://books.google.com/books?id=2tuCAAAAIAAJ&q=Melios p.46]: "Cheimarriote veterans played a significant role in the Greek War of Independence (1821-1830)"</ref> Many Himariots also joined the revolutionary movement in Greece via Greek commities formed in the Ionian Islands.<ref>Banac, Ackerman, Szporluk, Vucinich, 1981: 46</ref> In 1854, during the [[Crimean War]], a major local [[Epirus Revolt of 1854|rebellion broke out]], with Himarë being one of the first towns that joined it. Although the newly founded Greek state tried tacitly to support it, the rebellion was suppressed by Ottoman forces after a few months.<ref>Sakellariou, 1997, [https://books.google.com/books?id=UV1oAAAAMAAJ&q=Cheimara+Tsamantas p. 288].</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Reid |first=James J.|title=Crisis of the Ottoman Empire: prelude to collapse 1839-1878 |publisher=Franz Steiner Verlag|year=2000 | ref=Reid |isbn=978-3-515-07687-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zgg6c_Ndtu4C&q=Russo-Turkish+War+1878+Greeks&pg=PA182}}</ref> The Himariots were continuously held suspicious of supporting the [[Megali Idea|expansionist plans]] of Greece in the region, especially during the era of the [[Albanian national awakening]].<ref>{{cite thesis|last1=Skoulidas|first1=Ilias|title=The Relations Between the Greeks and the Albanians during the 19th Century: Political Aspirations and Visions (1875-1897)|journal=Didaktorika.gr|date=2001|page=222|doi=10.12681/eadd/12856|publisher=[[University of Ioannina]]|quote=Οι Χειμαριώτες θεωρούνταν διαρκώς ύποπτοι ευρύτερων ανατρεπτικών σχεδίων στην περιοχή, τα οποία θα εκπορεύονταν από την Ελλάδα.|hdl=10442/hedi/12856|hdl-access=free}}<!--|access-date=11 November 2015--></ref>

The leader of Albanian independence, [[Eqrem Vlora]], wrote at the turn of the 19th century that among Himariots there were only 3,000 who had always been Greek-speaking. According to him, they were of a single Greek line of descent, regardless how old it was.<ref>{{harvnb|Kyriazis|2016|p=12|ps=: "Μήπως ήταν λιγότερο φιλόπατρις ο Eqrem bej Vlora όταν, αναφερόμενος στους κατοίκους της Χιμάρας, έγραφε στα Απομνημονευματά του ότι «Ανάμεσά τους είναι μόνο 3000 άτομα που μιλούσαν ανέκαθεν ελληνικά και που όλοι τους ανάγονται σε μια μοναδική ρίζα, οπωσδήποτε μακρόχρονη, ελληνικής προέλευσης»; ... "Midis tyre ka vetëm 3000 njerëz që kanë folur gjithmonë greqisht dhe që të gjithë rrjedhin nga një rrënjë e vetme, sado e largët në kohë, me prejardhje greke"."}}</ref>

Himara became the most notable centre of the 'Epirote Society' created in 1906 under [[Spyros Spyromilios]] that sought the establishment of a network between the Greek state and the Orthodox communities of Epirus.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kinley |first1=Christopher |title=The Balkan War in Epirus: Religious Identity and the Continuity of Conflict |journal=Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies |date=3 September 2021 |volume=23 |issue=5 |page=3 |doi=10.1080/19448953.2021.1935077 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/19448953.2021.1935077 |access-date=22 November 2024 |language=en |issn=1944-8953|quote=The Epriote Society created a network between the Greek state and Orthodox communities in Epirus, most notably in Himarë under the leadership of Spyros Spyromēlios. The expressed goals of the society were to act as a clandestine revolutionary committee and to protect ‘the Greek Orthodox population against rival nationalisms’.1|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

In 1913, the French journalist Rene Puaux was impressed by the strong Greek feeling of the Himariots.<ref name="NitsiakosNitsiakos2010">{{cite book |author1=Vasilēs G. Nitsiakos |author2=Vassilis Nitsiakos |date=2010 |title=On the Border: Transborder Mobility, Ethnic Groups and Boundaries Along the Albanian-Greek Frontier |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |pages=97– |isbn=978-3-643-10793-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H-7toRTGrFkC&pg=PA97}}</ref>

During the last year of Ottoman rule in Albania, a demographic census conducted in the [[Kaza]] of Himara, showed that it was inhabited by 12,000 people.<ref>Vlora E., Kujtime 1885–1925, translated by A. Koçi, Tirana: "IDK", 2003. pp. 192–193.</ref>

=== Modern ===

[[File:Himarra 1912.jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|Spyros Spyromilios in the entrance of the castle (locally called Kastro) of Himarë]]

During the [[First Balkan War]], on 18 November 1912, the town [[Himara revolt of 1912|revolted]] under the [[Greek Gendarmerie]] officer and Himarë native [[Spyros Spyromilios]] and expelled the Ottoman forces<ref>{{cite book |last=Kondis |first=Basil |title=Greece and Albania, 1908-1914 |publisher=Institute for Balkan Studies |year=1978 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tEloAAAAMAAJ&q=%22on+November+18%2C+Chimara%2C%22 |page=93|isbn=9798840949085 }}</ref><ref>Badlands, borderlands: a history of Northern Epirus/Southern Albania by Tom Winnifrith, 2002,{{ISBN|0715632019}}, page 129</ref> in order to join [[Greece]]. In March 1914, the "[[Protocol of Corfu]]" was signed, which established the [[Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus]], of which Himarë formed a part, though the Autonomous Republic itself formally remained part of the newly formed [[Albania]]n state. However, in the Panepirotic assembly in Delvinë, that aimed at the ratifications of the terms of the Protocol by the Northern Epirote representatives, the delegates of Himarë abstained, insisting that only union with Greece would be a viable solution.<ref>Sakellariou, 1997, [https://books.google.com/books?id=XPs-AQAAIAAJ p. 381].</ref>

During the [[First World War]], Himarë was under Greek administration (October 1914-September 1916) and then occupied by [[Italy]]. The Italians used Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war to build a road running through Himarë, which greatly reduced the region's isolation. [[Spiro Jorgo Koleka]], a native of [[Vuno]] and a local leader of the Albanian national movement, opposed the annexation by foreign powers of Himarë area and the wider region around Vlora.<ref name=Meta/> To that effect Koleka was an organiser of the [[Vlora War]], where other local Himariots participated.<ref name=Meta>Meta, Beqir (2008). "Ballafaqimi shqiptaro-grek për Himarën (1920-1924) [Greek-Albanian confrontation in Himarë (1920-1924)]." ''Studime Historike''. 1-2: 43: "Pas mbarimit të Luftës I Botërore lëvizja atdhetare shqiptare në Himarë u rigjallërua. Një vend të veçantë luajti Spiro Gogo Koleka, i cili ndihmoi për mbledhjen e Kongresit të Lushnjës dhe zbatimin e vendimeve të tij. Ai bashkë me patriotë të tjerë ishte nënshkruesi i mjaft dokumenteve dërguar përfaqësuesve të Fuqive të Mëdha në Konferencën e Paqes, në të cilat kundërshtohej çdo përpjekje për aneksimin e Vlorës dhe Himarës. Në maj të vitit 1920 Spiro G. Koleka u caktua anëtar i qeverisë kombëtare. Ai më vonë u bë njëri nga organizatorët e Luftës së Vlorës kundër italianëve, në të cilën morën pjesë edhe himarjotë të tjerë." "[After the end of World War One, the Albanian patriotic movement in Himarë was revived. A special place Spiro Gogo Koleka played, who assisted at the gathering of the Congress of Lushnja and implementation of its decisions. He and other patriots were signatory to many documents sent to the representatives of the Great Powers during the Peace Conference, that opposed any attempt to annex Vlora and Himarë. In May 1920 Spiro G. Koleka was appointed member of the national government. He later became one of the organizers of the Vlora War against the Italians, where other Himariots participated.]"</ref> In 1921 the region came under the control of the Albanian state. The Himarë question in 1921, regarding the rights of "Himariots" and their villages Dhërmi, Vuno, Himarë, Piluri, Kudhës and Qeparo, was supervised by Albanian government representative Spiro Jorgo Koleka.<ref name="Kondis1994">{{cite book |author=Basil Kondis |title=The Greek minority in Albania: a documentary record (1921-1993) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gn1pAAAAMAAJ |year=1994 |publisher=Institute for Balkan Studies |isbn=978-960-7387-02-8 |quote=THE PROTOCOL OF HIMARRA, 1921 We, Spiros Kolekas, Deputy of Valone, General Representative of the Albanian Government for the settlement of the question of the Himarra district, i.e. the villages of Drymades, Vouno, Himarra, Piliouri, Koundessi and Kyparou, which have sent their representatives, Mr G. Bolanos, M. Karas, D. Lekkas and Mr A. Simonides as their Secretary, have agreed upon the following: a) Privileges: The Albanian ...}}</ref> The government concluded that Albanian was obligatory in school, as the official language, while Greek was free to be taught as a second language, as desired by the people.<ref name="Kondis1994"/> The locals rose in revolt, in 1924, protesting against a series of measures aiming at [[Albanisation]], and demanding the same privileges they enjoyed prior to incorporation to Albania.<ref>[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 124.</ref> Other uprisings followed in 1927 and 1932, both suppressed by the government of king [[Zog of Albania]].<ref>[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 156.</ref>

Later, Himarë was again occupied by the [[Italians]] as part of the Italian invasion in Albania. During the [[Greco-Italian War]], the 3rd Infantry Division of the [[Greek Army]] entered Himarë, on 22 December 1940, after [[Battle of Himara|victorious fighting]] against the [[Fascist]] Italian forces deployed in the region. The town briefly came under Greek control until the [[Battle of Greece|German invasion in 1941]].

In 2015 the government merged Himarë with the municipalities [[Horë-Vranisht]] and [[Lukovë]]. The seat of the municipality is the town [[Himarë (town)|Himarë]].<ref name="Law 2014"/>

==Demographics==
[[File:Albania – Piqeras.jpg|thumb|250px|The village of [[Piqeras]] and the [[Albanian Riviera]]]]

Himarë is composed of three former municipalities which now serve as administrative divisions of the post-2011 municipality: Himarë, Vranisht and Lukovë. In the 2011 census, the three - then independent municipalities - had a total combined population of ~7,800.<ref name="Census2011">{{Cite web |url=http://pop-stat.mashke.org/albania-ethnic-comm2011.htm |title=Ethnic composition of Albania 2011 |website=pop-stat.mashke.org}}</ref> Lukovë had 2,916 permanent inhabitants, Himarë 2,822 and Vranisht 2,080.<ref name="Census 2011 Vlorë County">{{cite web |publisher=[[Institute of Statistics (Albania)|Institute of Statistics]] (INSTAT) |title=Censusi i popullsisë dhe banesave/ Population and Housing Census–Vlorë (2011) |url=http://www.instat.gov.al/media/3070/12__vlore.pdf|access-date=14 March 2022 |location=Tirana |page=85}}</ref> Comparatively, the 2015 Albanian Civil Registry offices, which list all Albanian citizens including those who live abroad, put the population of the municipality at 27,049 people.<ref name="instatgis.gov.al">{{cite web |title=Official 2011 census results per municipality. |url=http://instatgis.gov.al/#!/l/prefectures/population/prefpop1 |access-date=26 May 2014 |archive-date=14 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160714192445/http://instatgis.gov.al/#!/l/prefectures/population/prefpop1 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Himarë municipality has the second lowest population density in Albania after [[Dropull]]. The majority of the population has left to live in Greece or large cities in Albania.<ref>{{cite web|title=Profili i Bashkisë|publisher=Himarë Municipality|url=https://himara.gov.al/profili-i-bashkise/}}</ref>

=== Himarë ===
The population of the former Himarë municipality was 2,822 in the 2011 census. 60.38% declared themselves as Albanians, 24.56% as Greeks and 14.00% preferred not to declare any ethnicity at all.<ref name="Census2011"/> 70.5% of the population declared themselves Christian Orthodox, 16.6% as Muslims, 2.7% as Catholics and ~10% declared no religious affiliation.<ref name="Census2011Religion"/> The census results were disputed and affected by a boycott by part of the Greek minority,<ref name="irf 2014">{{cite web |title=International Religious Freedom Report for 2014: Albania |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/documents/organization/238560.pdf |page=5 |website=www.state.gov/ |publisher=United States, Department of State |access-date=20 October 2015 |quote=Ethnic Greek minority groups had encouraged their members to boycott the census, affecting measurements of the Greek ethnic minority and membership in the Greek Orthodox Church.}}</ref><ref name="Tirana Times">{{cite web |title=Final census findings lead to concerns over accuracy |url=http://www.tiranatimes.com/news.php?id=14605&cat=1 |publisher=Tirana Times |access-date=26 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528005354/http://www.tiranatimes.com/news.php?id=14605&cat=1 |archive-date=28 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="Likmeta">{{cite web |last=Likmeta |first=Besar |title=Albania Moves Ahead With Disputed Census |date=6 July 2011 |url=http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-moves-forward-with-controversial-census |publisher=Balkaninsight |access-date=26 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="United Nations Albania">{{cite web |title=Three Albanian journalists awarded with "World at 7 Billion Prize" |url=http://www.un.org.al/subindex.php?faqe=news&newsid=361 |publisher=United Nations (Albania) |access-date=26 May 2014 |quote=...the controversial CENSUS data |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528005418/http://www.un.org.al/subindex.php?faqe=news&newsid=361 |archive-date=28 May 2014}}</ref> Mangalakova (2004) describes the ethnic composition of the territory of the former municipality of Himarë as predominantly Greek.<ref>[http://www.imir-bg.org/imir/books/Urgent_anthropology_3.pdf Urgent anthropology Vol. 3.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319185818/http://www.imir-bg.org/imir/books/Urgent_anthropology_3.pdf |date=2009-03-19}} Problems of Multiethnicity in the Western Balkans. International Center for Minority Studies and Intercultural Relations. Sofia 2004. Page 39</ref> Karl Kaser states that the Greek population comprised a majority or at least an important part of the population of Himarë.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaser |first1=Karl |title=Hirten, Kämpfer, Stammeshelden: Ursprünge und Gegenwart des balkanischen Patriarchats |date=1992 |publisher=Böhlau Verlag Wien |isbn=978-3-205-05545-7 |page=209 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TXEocmR9X-gC&q=himara |language=de |quote=}}</ref> According to Martin Urban (1938) only three out of eight villages in Himarë were inhabited by a population of Albanian origin  (Pilur, Vuno, Kudhes) with the rest being of Greek. From 1989 to 2011, about 3/4 of its population, left the Himarë region.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Triantis |first1=Loukas |title=The Politics of Space, Institutional Change and International Development: the Area of Himara/Albania during the post-Socialist Transition |journal=Didaktorika.gr |date=2016 |url=https://www.didaktorika.gr/eadd/handle/10442/37436 |access-date=27 June 2023 |publisher=Athens National Polytechnic |language=el|page=100|doi=10.12681/eadd/37436 |doi-access=free |hdl=10442/hedi/37436 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaser |first1=Karl |title=Hirten, Kämpfer, Stammeshelden: Ursprünge und Gegenwart des balkanischen Patriarchats |date=1992 |publisher=Böhlau Verlag Wien |isbn=978-3-205-05545-7 |page=208 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TXEocmR9X-gC&q=himara |language=de |quote=nur drei albanische Dorfer typischer Geschlechtsdorfer geweswen. 93 Die ubrigen Dorfer waren griechische. }}</ref>

Today the town of Himarë and the settlements of Dhërmi and Palasë, which account for the bulk of the region's population, are inhabited by Greeks, while Pilur, Kudhës, Vuno and Ilias are populated by an Orthodox Albanian population.<ref name="Kallivretakis"/> The village of Qeparo is inhabited by both Greeks (upper neighbourhood) and an Orthodox Albanian population (lower neighbourhood).<ref name="Kallivretakis">Kallivretakis, Leonidas (1995). "[http://helios-eie.ekt.gr/EIE/handle/10442/8696 Η ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλβανίας υπό το πρίσμα της ιστορικής γεωγραφίας και δημογραφίας [The Greek Community of Albania in terms of historical geography and demography]." In Nikolakopoulos, Ilias, Kouloubis Theodoros A. & Thanos M. Veremis (eds). ''Ο Ελληνισμός της Αλβανίας [The Greeks of Albania]''. University of Athens. p. 51. "Ε Έλληνες, ΑΧ Αλβανοί Ορθόδοξοι Χριστιανοί, AM Αλβανοί Μουσουλμάνοι"; p.53. " XIMARA: XIMAPA: 1. FSHAT & SHEN MEHILL ΧΩΡΙΟ & ΑΓΙΟΣ ΜΙΧΑΛΗΣ 1595 E, 2. SPILE ΣΙΠΛΙΑ 3629 E + AX + AM (1000); VUNOS ΒΟΥΝΟΣ 555 ΑΧ; ILIASI ΙΛΙΑΣ 124 ΑΧ; QEPARO POSTHME ΚΗΠΑΡΟ ΚΑΤΩ 854 ΑΧ; QEPARO SIPERME ΚΗΠΑΡΟ ΑΝΩ 461 E; KUDHES ΚΟΥΔΕΣΙ 748 ΑΧ; PILUR ΠΗΛΙΟΥΡΙ 532 ΑΧ; DHERMI ΔΡΥΜΑΔΕΣ, KONDRAPE DHERMI ΚΟΝΤΡΑΠΕ ΔΡΥΜΑΔΩΝ 1550 Ε; PALASA ΠΑΛΙΑΣΣΑ 356 Ε"</ref>

In the early 19th century according to Greek scholar and secretary to Ali Pasha [[Athanasios Psalidas]], three villages of the area were considered Greek, while he also stated that there were also some Orthodox Albanian villages in the region.<ref name=Kallivretakis1>Kallivretakis, Leonidas (1995). "[http://helios-eie.ekt.gr/EIE/handle/10442/8696 Η ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλβανίας υπό το πρίσμα της ιστορικής γεωγραφίας και δημογραφίας [The Greek Community of Albania in terms of historical geography and demography]." In Nikolakopoulos, Ilias, Kouloubis Theodoros A. & Thanos M. Veremis (eds). ''Ο Ελληνισμός της Αλβανίας [The Greeks of Albania]''. University of Athens. p. 32. α) Γραικούς Χριστιανούς, που τους τοποθετεί σε ολα τα δυτικά χωριά της Δρόπολης ως την Δερβιτζάνη (εκτός από δύο), σε όλα τα ανατολικά χωριά της ίδιας κοιλάδας (εκτός από τρία), σε επτά μεγάλα και αρκετά μικρά χωριά του Δελβίνoυ και σε τρία χωριά της Χιμάρας. β) Αλβανούς Χριστιανούς, στα βόρεια και βορειοανατολικά χωριά της Δρόπολης (περιοχές Λιτζουριάς και Ρίζας), σε ορισμένα χωριά του Δέλβινου, της Χιμάρας, της Πρεμετής και της Κολόνιας καθώς και 20 περίπου χωριά της Κορυτσάς. [a) Greek Christians, placing them in all western villages from Dropull as the Dervitzani (except two), in all the eastern villages of the same valley (except three) in seven large and several small villages Delvinë and also three villages of Himarë. b) Albanian Christians in the north and northeast villages from Dropull (the areas Lunxhëri and Rrëzë), in some villages of Delvinë, Himarë, Përmet and Kolonjë with approximately 20 villages in Korçë.]</ref> In general, the allegiances of the locals were in a narrow sense to their respective clans (the "phatriae") and areas, and in a broader sense to their Orthodox religion and cultural heritage. The later factors indicate closer links with their Greek co-religionists than to the Muslim Albanian communities.<ref>Banac, Ackerman, Szporluk, Vucinich, 1981: p. 45: "Since, Himara has been part of the disputed border region of Greek and Albania in this century, the question of nationality of the Cheimarriotes has prompted much discussion... Leaving conflicting linguistic evidence aside and using the modern criteria of nationality, one cannot label the Cheimarriotes as either Greeks or Albanians. In a narrow sense their allegiances were to their respective clans and areas, and in a broader sense to their religious and cultural heritage. This latter allegiance to Orthodox Christianity would seem to indicate closer ties to their Greek coreligionists than to the Muslim Albanians."</ref>

=== Vranisht ===
Vranisht had a total resident population of 2,080 in the 2011 census.<ref name="Census2011"/> 83% declared themselves as Albanians and the rest didn't provide a reply.<ref name="Census2011"/> More than 75% of the population declared no religion, while 22.6% are Muslims.<ref name="Census2011Religion">{{Cite web |url=http://pop-stat.mashke.org/albania-religion-comm2011.htm |title=Religious composition of Albania 2011 |website=pop-stat.mashke.org}}</ref> Vranisht is largely part of the region of [[Kurvelesh (region)|Kurvelesh]].

=== Lukovë ===
Lukovë had a total resident population of 2,916 in the 2011 census. 55.8% declared themselves as Albanians, 7.3% as Greeks and the rest didn't provide a reply.<ref name="Census2011"/> ~37% are Muslims, 30.9% are Christian Orthodox, 3.40% are Catholics, 0.6% Bektashi and the rest of the population declared no religious affiliation.<ref name="Census2011Religion"/> In a demographic investigation by Leonidas Kallivretakis in the late 20th century, the population of Lukovë commune and all its villages, 54% were Albanian Christians, 40% were Albanian Muslims and 6% were Greek Christians.<ref name="Kallivretakis2"/>

=== Religion ===

[[File:Himara Kirche.JPG|150px|thumb|left|Bell tower of the Orthodox Church]]
[[File:Albania, Dhermi.jpg|right|thumb|Part of the Dhërmi village with two Orthodox church buildings visible]]

The inhabitants of Himarë are predominantly Orthodox Christians.<ref>Frank Kressing, Karl Kaser. ''Albania--a country in transition: aspects of changing identities in a South-East European country.'' Nomos, 2002. p. 129</ref> In 1577, 38 chieftains of the Himarë region appealed to Pope Gregory XIII for arms and supplies against the Ottomans. They promised to switch allegiance from the Orthodox to the Roman Catholic Church, and recognize Philip II of Spain as their sovereign. They asked to retain their Orthodox liturgical customs 'since the majority of the population is Greek and does not understand the Frankish language'.<ref name="Frazee2006"/> From 1577 to 1765 the population accepted the Pope as the religious head of the community and identified with the [[Roman Catholic Church]].<ref name="Frazee2006">{{cite book |last=Frazee |first=Charles A. |title=Catholics and Sultans: The Church and the Ottoman Empire 1453-1923 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X6DM4szwUpEC&q=Himarens+accepted&pg=PA170 |access-date=26 December 2010 |date=2006-06-30 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-02700-7 |page=104}}</ref> The success of the Roman Catholic missionaries among the Eastern-rite Albanians in Himarë led to the region becoming a refuge for Orthodox prelates that had converted.<ref name="Frazee2006"/> Himariotes thus largely adhered to Christian faith, although individual conversions to Islam were recorded from the early 16th century. One of them, [[Ayas Mehmed Pasha|Ajaz Pasha]], became Grand Vizier and was sent by the Ottoman Sultan to put down the 1537 revolt of Himariotes. Even so, crypto-Christianity appeared, particularly in the villages of Fterre, Corraj, and Vuno. Under the request of Himariots to the Pope of Rome, a Basilian mission to Albania took place. Among the missionaries were Nico Catalano and monk Filoteo Zassi, an [[Arbëreshë people|Arbëreshë]]. They departed by the end of January 1693 and first stayed in Dhërmi, where they found a deteriorated spiritual state with pressures from the Ottomans and the Greek Orthodox bishops. As noted by Catalano they: "were making of God's house a house of traffic, of affairs and of sacrilegious trade". He opened a school in the Himarë region, raised in the village of Dhërmi, where more than eighty students, both Christian and Muslim, were registered from the adjacent villages. Apart from preaching  Catalano also taught new farming techniques and other professions to locals. He was particularly careful in teaching and preaching in the Albanian language, since he considered it to be the most effective method to counter the diffusion of Islam.<ref>{{cite book |last=Murzaku |first=Ines Angeli |title=Returning Home to Rome - The Basilian Monks of Grottaferrata in Albania |year=2009 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y2EPFRL-XJQC|isbn=978-88-89345-04-7 |publisher=Analekta Kryptoferris|pages=77–78}}</ref>

In August 2015 Albanian police demolished the renovated Orthodox church of [[Saint Athanasius]] in Dhermi, as local authorities weeks earlier declared it an "illegal construction".<ref name=Erebara/> The Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania declared it ''a vandalistic act of desecration and a violation of church property'' and it also triggered diplomatic protests from Greece.<ref name=Erebara>{{cite web |last1=Erebara |first1=Gjergj |title=Albanian Church Demolition Angers Greece |date=26 August 2015 |url=http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-authorities-demolish-village-church-in-the-dead-of-the-night-08-26-2015 |publisher=BalkanInsight |access-date=26 October 2015}} "Albanian police have demolished a contested church dedicated to St Athanas in the southern village of Dhermi, angering the Orthodox Church and neighbouring Greece, which supports the Church's mission. The Orthodox Church called it a vandalistic act of desecration and a violation of church property.... Police used heavy machinery to reduce to rubble the roof built in 1994 to cover the foundations of a much older church destroyed during the communist era. The renovated church was declared an "illegal construction" by the local authorities in Himarë municipality two weeks ago, pitting Albanian nationalists against the Greek-supported Orthodox Church.... Speaking about the church, Prime Minister Rama said on Monday that "the old church in Dhermi will be regenerated in the name of national heritage [over] the 'parking lot' that is illegal, which they call a church.""</ref> This is the second demolition of the church, the first having taken place during the era of the [[People's Republic of Albania]], but at the time the church was rebuilt by the local Orthodox Church after the restoration of Democracy in the country (1991).<ref name=Erebara/><ref>{{cite web |title=Press Release 26.08.2015-The Orthodox church of St. Athanasius was destroyed, Dhermi (Drymades), Himara. |url=https://orthodoxalbania.org/2020/en/2015/08/27/press-release-the-orthodox-church-of-st-athanasius-was-destroyed-dhermi-drymades-himara/ |website=orthodoxalbania.org |date=27 August 2015 |publisher=[[Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania]] |access-date=26 October 2015}}</ref> The Albanian government has promised to rebuild the church after archaeological excavations have taken place.<ref name=Erebara/><ref name=FNikolli>{{cite web |last1=Nikolli |first1=Fatmira |title=Albanian Jorgo Goro: Kisha e Shën Thanasit do të rindërtohet, varri i Katalanos është pjesë e projektit [George Goro: St. Athanasius' Church will be rebuilt, Katalano's grave is part of the project. |url=http://www.balkanweb.com/site/jorgo-goro-kisha-e-shen-thanasit-do-te-rindertohet-varri-i-katalanos-eshte-pjese-e-projektit/ |publisher=BalkanWeb |access-date=4 November 2015}} "Po, do ta kërkojmë varrin e Nilo Katalanos. Do të vazhdojë gërmimi nga arkeologët për nxjerrjen e themeleve dhe të gjitha detajeve dhe më pas do të behet projekti në bashkepunim me Monumentet e Kulturës". Kështu është shprehur dije për "Gazeta Shqiptare", kryetari i Bashkisë së Himarës, Jorgo Goro. I pyetur për kohën e shembjes, ai bën me dije se ishte lajmëruar prifti i fshatit për prishjen dhe se kishte kohë deri në 10 për të hequr sendet nga objekti… Për mua është nje reagim i nxituar, se nuk ka prishje të një objekti kulti, por një ndërtim pa leje mbi rrënojat e një kishe mbi 500-vjeçare me histori dhe rëndësi të veçantë për zonën dhe Shqipërinë, gjë që e dinë edhe pjesa më e madhe e banorëve të Dhermiut. Objektin në fjale duam ta rindërtojmë, duke i dhënë vlerat e duhura historike dhe kulturore zonës. Vlerësim të veçantë e nderim i historisë së të parëve tanë si pionierë të Rilindjes. [Yes, we will search for Nilo Katalano's grave. We will continue with excavations by archaeologists and digging until the foundations with all the details which will then become a project in collaboration with the Cultural Monuments sector. This was expressed yesterday for "Gazeta Shqiptare", by the mayor of Himarë, George Goro. Asked about the time of the demolition, he suggests that the village priest was notified a day prior regarding the demolition and had the time until 10 to remove items from the building… For me it is a rash reaction, because there is no demolition of an object of worship, but an illegal construction on the ruins of a church with 500 years of history and of particular importance to the area and Albania, something which most of the residents of Dhërmi know. The object in question, we want to rebuild by giving proper values of the historical and cultural area. Special appreciation and honor to the history of our ancestors as pioneers of the Renaissance.]"</ref> The demolition of the religious monument also triggered strong reactions from the [[European Commission]].<ref>{{cite web |title=European Commission criticizes Albania for the incident with the Church of Dhermi |url=http://www.balkaneu.com/european-commission-criticizes-albania-incident-church-dhermi/ |publisher=Independent Balkan News Agency |access-date=4 November 2015 |quote=The European Commission has issued a strong reaction in relation to the demolition of the orthodox church in the south of Albania and calls on Albanian authorities to respect religious freedoms for the citizens of the country, while it includes the incident in the upcoming Progress Report.}}</ref>

=== Language ===

==== Himariote dialect of Greek====
{{Main|Himariote Greek dialect}}
[[File:Palasë.jpg|150px|thumb|View of the village of [[Palasë]]. Its inhabitants speak mainly the [[Himariote Greek dialect]].]]

On the other hand, the vast majority of people in Himarë, who call themselves "Horiani" ({{langx|el|Χωριανοί}}), meaning locals in the local Greek dialect,<ref>[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 43: most of the people who claim to originate from Himarë area have declared themselves as horiani (pl.), meaning locals.</ref> are bilingual in both [[Albanian language|Albanian]] and [[Greek language|Greek]]. In the town of Himarë as well as in nearby villages of Dhërmi and Palasa mainly speak a unique local [[Varieties of Modern Greek|Greek dialect]] that preserves many archaic features no longer found in standard [[Modern Greek]]. This dialect has small variations in the way it is spoken in every town, especially in the accent.<ref name=Gregoric68/> Elements of Slavic influence are limited compared to the neighboring Albanian idioms, as well as the other variants of the Greek language spoken in southeast Albania and [[Nartë]] region.<ref name="Kyriazis"/> Greek schools were operating until the 1920s. During the struggle for the re-establishment of Greek education in the area (1934-1936) even the Albanian-speaking villages asked for the reopening of Greek schools, however their demand was rejected by the Albanian government.<ref>Nitsiakos, 2010, p. 98</ref> In the spring of 2006, a private Greek-language school opened in the town of Himarë,<ref name=Gregoric68>[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 68</ref> at the precise location where the Orthodox missionary [[Cosmas the Aetolian]] founded the [[Acroceraunian School]] in 1770.<ref name="Municipality"/>

Among those who identify as Greeks in Himarë there is near equal proficiency with Albanian. This may be explained by mixed marriages with Albanian elements on the part of the ancestors of the Himarë Greeks, and as the result of the [[Hellenization]] of the local Albanian population via policies encouraged by the Greek Orthodox Church up until the time of Albania's founding, accentuated by the differences in cultural norms among Christians and Muslims.<ref>{{harvnb|Rusakov|2021|p=12}} "The “Greek” population of Himara demonstrates also near equal proficiency in Greek and Albanian (although there are now some “Greek” monolinguals among the older generation). This fact may be explained by the presence of Albanian elements among the ancestors of Himara “Greeks”, i.e. by mixed marriages (Sobolev 2017). The participation of the Albanian elements in the formation of the contemporary Himara population is confirmed by historical data and by testimonies of individual speakers. However to answer the question of the role of mixed marriages in the formation of the current linguistic (and ethnic) landscape of Himara will be possible after a more detailed study of this problem. Another source of continuous preservation of a situation with a high level of mastery in both languages might be the processes of Hellenization of the Albanian population encouraged by the Orthodox church till the time of the founding of the Albanian independent state and supported in some way by the cultural differences between the Orthodox and Muslim parts of the Albanian population."</ref> Albanian is the state language, while Greek is the language of high culture, religion, and the state language of an economically powerful neighbor where many Himariotes now earn their living.{{sfn|Rusakov|2021|p=11}} The Greek language went through a difficult period between 1946 and 1990, when the Greek population of Himarë could not study in its native language, religion was prohibited, and relations with Greece were severed.{{sfn|Rusakov|2021|p=12}}

==== Himariot subdialect of Lab Albanian ====
{{Further|Lab Albanian dialect}}

[[File:Vuno_Albania.jpg|thumb|The village of [[Vuno]]. Its population speak the Lab dialect of Tosk Albanian.]]

The surrounding towns of Ilias, Vuno, Qeparo, Kudhës and Pilur mainly speak the [[Lab Albanian dialect]], a subdialect of [[Tosk Albanian]].<ref>[[#Gregorič|Gregorič, 2008]]: p. 63.</ref> A conservative phonological trait of Lab is the lack of palatalization, making residents speak "shkjip", not "shqip" (as in [[Arbëresh]]). The purported discovery of nasal vowels in the Himarë region and the neighboring Kurvelesh region challenged the traditional view that the split between Gheg and Tosk was in part caused by the phenomenon of nasalization;<ref name="Pacarizi2008">{{harvnb|Paçarizi|2008|pp=101–102}}: "Second difference is the existence of nasal vocals in Gheg which is not a characteristic of Tosk even sometimes the nasality is not really stressed. This nasal-oral feature, according to Desnickaja, forms one of the elements which differentiate the Albanian dialects whereas Gjinari cites Dilo Sheper who said that there are also some nasal vocals in some places of Eastern Albania such as in Kurvelesh and Himarë but the information at that time did not confirmed that".</ref> Elements of Slavic influence in the lexicon are also evident in the local Albanian idiom.<ref name="Kyriazis">{{cite journal |last1=Kyriazis |first1=Doris |title=Slavic elements in the Greek idioms of South Albania |journal=Philologica Jassyensia |date=2012 |volume=15 |issue=VII/I |pages=153, 163 |url=http://www.diacronia.ro/ro/indexing/details/A1051/pdf|access-date=12 September 2017 |quote=The set is pretty different if we consider the lexical material (appellatives and place names) of the inland of Chimara (Kurvelesh region) and the nearby coastal Albanian - speaking villages (Bregdet) & The Greek-speaking area that seems to be less affected by Slavic is that of Chimara although elements of Slavic influence are present in the neighboring villages,...}}</ref>

== Politics ==
Jorgo Goro backed by an electoral alliance led by the [[Socialist Party of Albania]] is the mayor of Himarë since 2011 when he defeated [[Vasil Bollano]] ([[PBDNJ]]). Bollano had won the 2007 local elections. He won 49.16% of the total vote, Dhimitri Llazari backed by a PD-led coalition 27.62%, Aleks Tato (PS-led coalition) 20.15% and Kosta Andruco 3.07%.<ref>{{cite web |title=2007 local elections - Albania |url=http://cec.org.al/Portals/0/Documents/CEC%202013/zgjedhje-vendore/2007/rezultate_2007/web%20rez%20perf/rez_kryetar.htm |publisher=CEC}}</ref> At that time, the possibility of victory by the Greek minority [[Unity for Human Rights Party]] in the municipal elections in the past triggered nationalist rhetoric, both at the local and even national level, and heightened tensions in the town.<ref>[https://www.hrw.org/wr2k1/europe/albania.html Nationalist rhetoric during the campaign, both at the local and national level, had heightened tension in the town over a possible victory by the local ethnic Greek Human Rights Union Party.]</ref> During his tenure, Bollano and his aides were accused of handing building permits on their property by locals of Himarë. Since then he has been charged with abuse of power and falsification of administrative documents related to illegal building permits in the coastal area. He has called his legal issues "politically motivated". His political narrative at the time have been described as " inflammatory nationalist rhetoric to galvanize his power base".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Likmeta |first1=Besar |title=Albania: Controversial Ethnic Greek Mayor Seeks Re-Election |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2011/03/10/albania-controversial-ethnic-greek-mayor-seeks-re-election/ |work=Balkan Insight |date=2011}}</ref> In the 2011 elections, a PS-backed coalition fielded Jorgo against him. Goro won 41.97% of the total vote, Bollano 39.25%, Savo Prifti (backed by the right-wing [[Democratic Party of Albania]]) 14.93%, Dhimitri Llazari (backed by MEGA, another Greek community party) 3.84%. The PS-backed alliance won 7 councillor seats, PBDNJ in coalition with MEGA won 6 seats and the DP-led alliance 4 seats.<ref>{{cite web |title=2011 Local Election Vlora County |url=http://cec.org.al/Portals/0/Images/CEC/rez_2011/rezultatet/111118-TTH-Qarqe/Vlore.pdf |publisher=CEC}}</ref> In the 2013 governmental elections, the region of Himarë voted 48.3% for the [[Socialist Party of Albania|Socialist Party]] and 25.5% for the Unity of Human Rights party.<ref>[http://result.cec.org.al/Results.aspx?UnitID=416&IsPS=0&Turnout=0&LangID=1''Election results for the region of Himarë in 2013''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140310051705/http://result.cec.org.al/Results.aspx?UnitID=416&IsPS=0&Turnout=0&LangID=1 |date=10 March 2014 }}, 2013.</ref> In the 2015, the elections were held under the new administrative division which includes Himarë, Vranisht and Lukovë. Goro won with 55.6% (14 councillors) of the total vote, [[Fredis Beleris|Dhionisios Alfred Beleri]] (PBDNJ) 27.34% (4 councillors), Vladimir Kumi (independent candidate) 10.08%, Lefteri Prifti (backed by PD) 6.98% (3 councillors).<ref>{{cite web |title=2015 local elections - Albania |url=http://cec.org.al/Portals/0/Documents/CEC%202013/zgjedhje-vendore/2015/rez_hetml/151123_-_buletin.htm |publisher=CEC}}</ref> In 2019, PD backed by PBDNJ and other smaller parties abstained from the elections. Goro was re-elected without opposition and PS 63.79% of the total vote for councillor seats, while former mayor Bollano who ran as an independent candidate for a seat in the municipal council got 64 votes in total and wasn't elected.<ref name="2019ele">{{cite web |title=Local elections of 2019 - Albania |url=http://cec.org.al/rezultate_2019/ |publisher=Central Electoral Commission of Albania (CEC) |access-date=11 December 2021 |archive-date=19 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119091149/http://cec.org.al/rezultate_2019/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the local elections of May 15, 2023, Greek minority candidate [[Fredis Beleris|Dhionisios Alfred Beleri]] won by a slender margin. Beleri got arrested two days earlier on charges of vote-buying raising diplomatic tensions between Albania and Greece.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ethnic Greek candidate detained on vote-buying charges wins mayoral election in Albania |url=https://apnews.com/article/albania-greece-arrest-municipal-election-e084635d37ca7b0637e8b50a437753a9 |access-date=17 May 2023 |work=AP NEWS |date=15 May 2023 |language=en}}</ref> Beleri's appeal in the middle of June 2023 to have his pre-trial detention lifted was rejected. This turn provoked reactions from the Greek Foreign Ministry.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ethnic Greek mayor unable to attend swearing-in ceremony in Himare {{!}} eKathimerini.com |url=https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1214006/ethnic-greek-mayor-unable-to-attend-swearing-in-ceremony-in-himare/ |website=www.ekathimerini.com |access-date=14 July 2023 |language=English |date=26 June 2023}}</ref>

In March 2024, Himara's [[Mayor#Acting mayor|acting mayor]] Jorgo Goro was arrested, along with four others, on charges of corruption and abuse of office by order of the [[SPAK|Special Anti-Corruption Structure]], following accusations made by Beleri. His criminal activities are connected with Artan Gaçi, the husband of the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, [[Olta Xhaçka]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 March 2024 |title=Acting Mayor of Himara Jorgo Goro Arrested |url=https://albaniandailynews.com/news/acting-mayor-of-himara-jorgo-goro-arrested-by-spak-order |access-date=23 March 2024}}</ref> Following Goro's arrest and resignation, Blerina Bala was elected as caretaker mayor by the Himara council amid protests at the municipality building in support of the jailed Beleri, who is currently challenging his conviction for electoral fraud. Bala will remain in office as caretaker for as long as is needed to hold new elections in the municipality, which will be possible after the final court decision in Beleri's case.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sinoruka |first=Fjori |date=29 March 2024 |title=With Two Mayors Behind Bars, Albanian Municipality Elects Caretaker |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2024/03/29/with-two-mayors-behind-bars-albanian-municipality-elects-caretaker/ |work=[[Balkan Insight]]}}</ref>

=== Minority issues ===
{{update|section|date=November 2021}}
While the situation of the [[Greeks in Albania|Greek minority in Albania]] has improved since the fall of communism, ethnic tensions in Himarë remain.<ref name=AthensNews>{{cite web |url=http://www.athensnews.gr/issue/13409/23391?action=print |title=Bad blood in Himara |author=George Gilson |date=27 September 2010 |work=Athens News |access-date=4 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721075328/http://www.athensnews.gr/issue/13409/23391?action=print |archive-date=21 July 2011}}</ref><ref name=BalkanChronicle>{{cite web |url=http://www.balkanchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=602:tensions-resurface-in-albanian-greek-relations&catid=83:middle-east&Itemid=460 |title=Tensions resurface in Albanian-Greek relations |date=13 September 2010 |work=Balkan Chronicle |access-date=4 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707205610/http://www.balkanchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=602%3Atensions-resurface-in-albanian-greek-relations&catid=83%3Amiddle-east&Itemid=460 |archive-date=7 July 2011}}</ref> During the 1994 trial of the [[Omonoia (organization)|Omonoia]] members, an organization that represents the Greek minority in Albania, three local Greeks were arrested and beaten by the Albanian police after they were found in possession of leaflets calling for the release of the arrested Omonoia leaders.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher,AMNESTY,,ALB,3ae6aa008,0.html |title=Amnesty International Report 1995 - Albania |date=27 September 2010 |work=Amnesty International |access-date=30 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017213017/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher,AMNESTY,,ALB,3ae6aa008,0.html |archive-date=17 October 2012}}</ref> In 2008, a number of protests took place with the locals demanding land ownership and autonomy for the region.<ref>{{cite book |title=Local lives : migration and the politics of place |publisher=Ashgate Pub. |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-4094-0103-2 |edition=null |location=Farnham, Surrey, England |pages=26}}</ref> The house of former mayor of Himarë, [[Vasil Bollano]], has been the target of a bomb attack twice, in 2004 and again in May 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.zougla.gr/page.ashx?pid=2&aid=138350&cid=4 |title=Εκρηκτικός μηχανισμός στο σπίτι του Δημάρχου Χιμάρας |access-date=5 November 2010 |archive-date=16 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221116114519/https://www.zougla.gr/page.ashx?pid=2&aid=138350&cid=4 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2009 the ethnic Greek mayor of Himarë ordered the removal of several road signs because they were not written in Greek, but only in Albanian and English. A local court convicted him for the destruction of government property but his conviction was overturned.<ref>{{cite book |title=Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Report Submitted to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives and Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senate by the Department of State in Accordance with Sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as Amended |date=2010 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |pages=1222–1223 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_UPdE81rfSYC&pg=PA1223 |access-date=9 December 2021 |language=en |quote=the ethnic Greek mayor... but not Greek}}</ref>

On 12 August 2010, ethnic tensions soared after the ethnic Greek shopkeeper [[death of Aristotelis Goumas|Aristotelis Goumas was killed]] when his motorcycle was hit by a car driven by three Albanian youths with whom Goumas allegedly had an altercation when they demanded that he must not speak Greek to them in his store.<ref name=AthensNews/><ref name=BalkanChronicle/> Outraged locals blocked the main highway between [[Vlore]] and [[Saranda]] and demanded reform and increased local Himariote representation in the local police force.<ref name=BalkanChronicle/> The incident was condemned by both the Greek and Albanian governments, and three suspects were charged for the incident.<ref name=BalkanChronicle/>

The census of 2011 included ethnicity for the first time, a long-standing demand of the Greek minority in Albania and of international organizations.<ref name="AthensNews" /> However, Greek minority representatives found unacceptable article 20 of the Census law, according to which there is a $1,000 fine for declaring an ethnicity other than what was written down on someone's birth certificate.<ref>{{cite web |title=Macedonians and Greeks Join Forces against Albanian Census |url=http://www.balkanchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1364:macedonians-and-greeks-join-forces-against-albanian-census&catid=83:balkans&Itemid=460 |publisher=balkanchronicle |access-date=24 September 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112095639/http://www.balkanchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1364%3Amacedonians-and-greeks-join-forces-against-albanian-census&catid=83%3Abalkans&Itemid=460 |archive-date=12 January 2012}}</ref> As a result, the census was boycotted by parts of the Greek community.<ref name="irf 2014" />

In 2005, after years of unanswered demands, Prime Minister Berisha authorized the opening of a Greek-language school in Himarë partially funded by the Greek government.<ref name="AthensNews" />

On 26 August 2015, Albanian government demolished the church of St. Athanasios at [[Dhërmi]]. The [[Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] condemned this action.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.skai.gr/news/greece/article/290459/alvania-katedafisan-ekklisia-sti-heimarra-athina-tzihadistes-/ |title=Αλβανία: Κατεδάφισαν εκκλησία στη Χειμάρρα – Αθήνα: Eίναι τζιχαντιστές |publisher=skai}}</ref> In October 2017 the Albanian authorities proceeded with the demolition of properties belonging to Greek minority members. Due to this development the local inhabitants publicly protested while a large number of Albanian policemen were dispatched to Himarë.<ref>{{cite web |title=Government Begins Demolition of Greek Minority Properties in Himara |url=https://exit.al/en/2017/10/31/government-begins-demolition-of-greek-minority-properties-in-himara/ |website=Exit - Explaining Albania |access-date=21 November 2021 |date=31 October 2017 |archive-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707020113/https://exit.al/en/2017/10/31/government-begins-demolition-of-greek-minority-properties-in-himara/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In March 2019 the Albanian authorities withdrew a former decision for the seizure of properties belonging to members of the local Greek minority. According to diplomatic sources, this decision came as a result of stern warning by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. Moreover, Omonoia appealed to Greece to defend the legal rights of the local Greek population and to avoid seizure of their properties.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rights of ethnic Greeks in Albania in dispute, again {{!}} eKathimerini.com |url=https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/239075/rights-of-ethnic-greeks-in-albania-in-dispute-again/ |website=www.ekathimerini.com |access-date=18 November 2021 |language=English}}</ref>

==Attractions==
[[File:05HimaraRiviera00034.JPG|thumb|right|Albanian Riviera at Himarë]]
The area has a great potential for tourism, with the major characteristics of the municipal town being its seaside [[promenade]], the [[taverna]]s and the traditionally preserved old town built on a hill.<ref>{{cite book |last=Masters |first=Tom |title=Eastern Europe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZEWKJKR_eFgC&pg=PA65 |year=2007 |publisher=Lonely Planet |isbn=978-1-74104-476-8 |pages=65–66}}; {{cite book |last=Garwood |first=Duncan |title=Mediterranean Europe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YbtxTd95IjwC&pg=PA63 |year=2009 |publisher=Lonely Planet |isbn=978-1-74104-856-8 |page=63}}</ref> The town of Himarë consists of the old town, Kastro, situated on and around the old castle and the coastal region of Spilea, which is the touristic and economic center of the region. Other parts of the town are Potami, Livadhi, Zhamari, Michaili and Stefaneli. North of the town of Himarë lie the villages of Vuno, Ilias, Dhërmi, with its coastal region Jaliskari, and Palasë. Dhermi contains a number of recently built beach resorts. On the mountains lie Pilur and Kudhës, while [[Qeparo]] lies to the south of the town of Himarë.<ref name=Municipality/>

The region has several Orthodox churches and monasteries, built with traditional [[Byzantine architecture]], like the Monastery of the Cross, Athaliotissa, Saint Theodore, Virgin Mary in Dhërmi and Saint Demetrius. Moreover, a number of churches are located inside the castle of Himarë, which was initially built in classical antiquity, like the Church of Virgin Mary Kasopitra, Episkopi, which is built on the site of an ancient temple dedicated to [[Apollo]], as well as the Aghioi Pantes church, in the entrance of the castle. Additional monuments in the castle include the mansion of the [[Spyromilios]] family and the Greek school.<ref name=Municipality/>

==Sports==
The city of Himarë's soccer club [[KF Himara]]. The club currently plays in the [[Albanian Second Division]]. Its home stadium is [[Petro Ruci Stadium]] in [[Orikum]], [[Albania]] which is owned by [[KF Oriku]] and has a capacity of 2,000 people.

==Notable people==
* [[Dhimitër Anagnosti]], [[People's Artist of Albania]], cineast, and former Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports
* [[Nafiz Bezhani]], Albanian jurist, politician and writer.
* [[Pano Bixhili]], revolutionary
* [[Vasil Bollano]], former mayor of Himarë and President of the organization of the [[Greek minority in Albania|Greek minority]], "[[Omonoia (organization)|Omonoia]]"
* [[Pyrros Dimas]], [[Greeks|Greek]] weight-lifter
* [[Dimitrios Doulis]], Greek military officer and  minister of Defence of the [[Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus]]
* [[Christos Armandos Gezos]], Greek novelist and poet
* [[Zenel Gjoleka]], leader of the [[Albanian Revolt of 1847]].
* [[Odhise Grillo]] (1932–2003), Albanian writer of children's books
* [[Hysni Kapo]], military commander and leading member of the [[Party of Labour of Albania]].
* [[Zaho Koka]], Albanian partisan, [[Hero of the People|Hero of The People of Albania]]
* [[Spiro Jorgo Koleka|Spiro Jorgo (Gogo) Koleka]] (1879 or 1880–1940) prominent Albanian politician and activist
* [[Spiro Koleka]] (1908–2001), long-serving member of the [[Politburo of the Party of Labour of Albania]]
* [[Muzafer Korkuti]], Albanian archaeologist and Vice President of the [[Academy of Sciences of Albania]]
* [[Vasil Laçi]] (1922–1941), Albanian patriot
* [[Sofokli Lazri]], counselor of [[Enver Hoxha]] and writer
* [[Petro Marko]], Albanian writer of the post-[[World War II]] era<ref>Marko, Petro. Intervistë me vetveten (Retë dhe gurët) (memories). OMSCA, 2000. 99927-40-33-7</ref>
* [[Zachos Milios]] (1805–1860), [[Hellenic Army|Greek Army]] officer and revolutionary
* [[Paskal Milo]], Albanian historian, politician
* [[Koço Muka]], Albanian politician, lawyer and [[Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth|Minister of Education]] in 1944
* [[Neço Muko]], Albanian musician of the 1920s
* [[Robert Ndrenika]], Albanian actor
* [[Niphon of Kafsokalyvia]] Greek Christian Orthodox saint and monk.
* [[Sotiris Ninis]], football player of [[Panathinaikos F.C.]] ([[Superleague Greece]])
* [[Gogo Nushi]], Albanian political figure and World War II guerilla
* [[Athanasios Pipis]] (–1821), revolutionary of the [[Greek War of Independence]]
* [[Andon Qesari]], Albanian actor and director
* [[Spyromilios]] (1800–1880), Greek Army general and politician
* [[Pyrros Spyromilios]] (1913–1961), [[Hellenic Navy|Greek Navy]] officer; director of the Greek Radio Orchestra
* [[Spyros Spyromilios]] (1864–1930), [[Greek Gendarmerie]] officer; declared the region's autonomy (1914)
* [[Georgios Stephanou]] (1824–1901), Greek gendarmerie officer; leader of the [[Epirus Revolt of 1878]]
* [[Andreas Tatos]] (1989–), football player of [[Olympiacos F.C.|Olympiacos]] ([[Super League Greece]])
* [[Leandro Zoto]], politician and former mayor of [[Tirana]]
* [[Fredis Beleris]], [[Member of the European Parliament|MEP]] of Greece

==See also==
*[[Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus]]
**[[Northern Epirus]]
*[[Chaonians]]
*[[Epirus]]
*[[Himarë (town)]]
*[[List of cities in ancient Epirus]]
*[[Tourism in Albania]]
*[[Qafa e Vishës bus tragedy]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
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*{{cite book |last1=Rusakov |first1=Alexander |editor1-last=Sobolev |editor1-first=Andrey |date=2021 |publisher=de Gruyter |isbn=978-1501509254 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aJc9EAAAQBAJ |chapter=Contemporary Language Contacts in the Balkans: Situations and Outcomes |title=Between Separation and Symbiosis: South Eastern European Languages and Cultures in Contact}}
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==External links==
{{Commons|Himara}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130127175322/http://www.himara.travel/ Official Himara Travel Guide]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100823064334/http://www.himara.gov.al/ Region of Himarë]. Official municipality website
* [http://www.epirus.com/ibe/ Research Foundation]
* [http://www.unpo.org/article.php?id=6226 Greeks in Albania]
* [http://www.himara.gr Himara's Directory]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110724070117/http://himara.gr/hist/himaramen/himarapolemistes.html Mercenaries from Himara]
* [https://www.persee.fr/doc/rebyz_1146-9447_1911_num_14_88_3907 Louis Arnaud, "Prières superstitieuses des Grecs de Chimara", ''Revue des études byzantines'', 1911, 88 pp. 146-151]

{{Municipalities of Albania}}
{{Vlorë County}}
{{Himarë div}}
{{Albanian Riviera}}
{{Northern Epirus}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Himare}}
[[Category:Himara| ]]
[[Category:Municipalities in Vlorë County]]
[[Category:Administrative units of Himara]]
[[Category:Albanian ethnographic regions]]
[[Category:Labëria]]
[[Category:Albanian Ionian Sea Coast]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Albania]]
[[Category:Chaonia]]
[[Category:Greek communities in Albania]]