Controversies surrounding the new atlases of Albania

Régis Darques reviews the 2003 geographical atlas of Albania’s population alongside INSTAT’s census atlas. Produced by the Academy of Sciences with the University of Tirana, the 2003 volume uses Albanian, English and German and contains about sixty colour map plates with substantial commentary. Its historical analysis spans the century and covers seven themes, including population distribution, migration, urban–rural dynamics, education and health. Darques criticizes its colour choices, cartographic symbolization and occasionally unclear sources, finding its maps less rigorous than INSTAT’s. He also examines the controversy over its treatment of ethnic minorities, noting that press commentators concentrated on one of its 115 pages and that the atlas groups ethnic minorities together without distinguishing individual groups. He argues that these debates need to account for severe population losses in some affected localities, including losses of 80% over the preceding decade, and welcomes the effort to document Albania’s demographic and territorial conditions after decades of censorship.