language fact file: Albanian

Albanian is mainly spoken in: Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro.

Number of native speakers: 7.5 million

Learn some: Here’s something we can all master: In Albania, you can express thanks by placing your hand on your chest.

Fast facts:

More Albanian speakers live outside Albania than inside. This is because the country has an uncommonly large diaspora.

The Albanian alphabet is unique. It has 36 letters and words are written exactly as they are pronounced, which is very helpful if you are learning it!

If you are stubborn, in Albania they might say your head is full of garlic. This is an idiom that is thought to derive from the strength and toughness of garlic, which is a deeply rooted theme in Balkan tradition.