Achievement & Equality Team
Information on Albania and the Albanian language
For the Lord Himself has said
That nations vanish from the earth
Albania shall live on
Because for her, it is for her that we fight
National Anthem of Albania
ALBANIA AT A GLANCE
Location – South East Europe
Neighbours – Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro
Size – 11,100 square miles
Population– 3,172,155 (129th)
Life Expectancy – 73 male/79 female
Capital city – Tirane
Website – president.al/English/pub/default.as
Potted History
The Illyrians were the earliest known inhabitants. The area came under Roman control after a defeat in 165BC, and later became part of the Byzantine Empire. It was subsequently ruled by the Ottoman Turks before independence in 1912. King Zog, then Italy, were subsequent rulers; the end of the second world Warsaw a Stalinist-style communist state under Enver Hoxha.
Political pressure points
Albania has been a parliamentary democracy since 1991. However the late 1990s saw political instability, an influx of ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo and collapse of the economy due to a pyramid selling scheme, A stabilisation and association agreement with the EU- the first step to membership- will focus on law reform and anti-corruption measures.
Population mix
Albanian 98%, Greeks, Macedonians, Bulgarians, Roma, Serbs, Montenegrins, Vlahs 2%
Religious makeup
Muslim 65%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Catholic 10%
Main languages
Albanian, principal dialects Gheg and Tosk.
Living national icons
Inva Mula (soprano) Patrick Nuo (singer) Romela Begaj (weightlifter)
The Nottinghamshire Context
Due to the recent unrest in Albania, families have been arriving in Nottinghamshire to flee persecution. The majority of these families claim asylum and face uncertain times while they are here. There will be a number of agencies involved with these families and schools are encouraged to attend the multi-agency meetings.
There are a small but significant number of young people who come to the UK without their parents. This again can impact on their lives due to a limited level of English language, separation from family members and friends and the traumatic experiences they may have witnessed.
Education in Albania
- Many Albanian children attend nurseries.
- Primary education is free and compulsory. It starts at age six and lasts for eight years.
- Many children leave school earlier than allowed by law, especially in rural areas, in order to work with their families.
- Primary education is divided into two stages of four years each: lower primary or Cikël i Ulët (years 1 to 4), and upper primary or Cikël I Lartë(years 5 to 8).
- In lower primary, a class teacher teaches all subjects.
- In upper primary,different specialist teachers teach each subject. The compulsory subjects are Albanian, foreign language, music, art, natural science, history, geography, physics, mathematics, biology, civic education, technical education and physical education.
- Primary pupils are assessed throughout the school year with a final exam in year 8.
- Promotion from year 1 to 2 is automatic, but after that a pupil who fails in more than two subjects must repeat the year.
- At the end of year 8 pupils sit an exam in mathematics and the Albanian language.
- Secondary education is not compulsory.
- It lasts for four years.
- Pupils go to either general secondary schools (Shkollë e Mesme Përgjithshme), technical schools (Shkollë Teknike) or vocational schools (Shkollë Professionale).
- At the end of the secondary phase (year 12) students take the Matura examination.
Information about the Albanian Language
Albanian (Gjuha shqipepronounced) is a language spoken by nearly 6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo, but also in other parts of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population. These parts include the west of the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, and south Serbia. In Greece and down the eastern coast of Italy plus Sicily, the language is also spoken. Elsewhere throughout the latter two countries, there is a modern diaspora originating from the Balkans; similarly, many other diasporans live in Scandinavia, Germany, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Australia, Turkey and the United States.
Albanian is an Indo-European language which forms its own branch in the Indo-European family and has no close relatives. There are two main dialects of Albanian: Tosk, which is spoken by about 3 million people in southern Albania, Turkey, Greece and Italy; and Gheg, which is spoken by about 2.8 million people in Serbia and Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia, northern Albania and Bulgaria. The dialects are more or less mutually intelligible and Tosk is the official language of Albania, and one of the official languages of Kosovo and Macedonia.
Albanian has been written with various alphabets since the 15th century. Originally the Tosk dialect was written with the Greek alphabet, while the Gheg dialect was written with the Latin alphabet. They have both also been written with the Turkish version of the Arabic alphabet. The Latin alphabet for Albanian was standardised in 1909, and a unified literary version of Albanian, based on the Tosk dialect, was established in 1972.
Sample text in Albanian
Të gjithë njerëzit lindin të lirë dhe të barabartë në dinjitet dhe në të drejta. Ata kanë arsye dhe ndërgjegje dhe duhet të sillen ndaj njëri tjetrit me frymë vëllazërimi.
Translation
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
.
Words and Phrases
English / Albanian easy pronunciationWelcome / Mirë se vjen
Hello / C'kemi, Tungjatjeta
How are you? / Si jeni?
I'm fine, thanks. And you? / Mirë
What's your name? / Si te quajnë? (inf) Si ju quajnë? (frm)
My name is ... / Mua më quajnë ...
How old are you? / Sa vjec je (m) ? Sa vjece je (f)?
I am …. years old / Un jam ….vjet (m) vjece (f)
Where are you from? / Nga jeni? (frm) Nga je? (inf)
I’m from ... / Unë jam nga ...
Pleased to meet you / Gezohem qe te takova
Good morning / Mirëmëngjes
Good afternoon / Mirëdita
Good evening / Mirëmbrëma
Good night / Natën e mirë
Goodbye / Pacim, Mirupafshim, Shihemi më vonë (see you later)
Good luck / Paç fat!
I don’t understand / Nuk kuptoj
Please speak more slowly / Mund të flasësh pak më ngadalë, ju lutem? (frm)
Mund të flasësh pak më ngadalë, të lutem? (inf)
Please write it down / Mund ta shkruash ju lutem? (frm) Mund ta shkruash të lutem? (inf)
Do you speak Albanian? / A flisni Shqip?
Yes, a little / Po, pak
Excuse me/Sorry / Më fal!
How much is this? / Sa kushton ajo?
Thank you / falemenderit shumë
Response (You’re welcome) / Ju lutem
school / shkolle
class / klase
Head teacher / Drejtor shkolle
Teacher / Mesus (m) misuse (f)
Read / lexo
Write / Shkruaj
Listen / Ndigjo
Books / Libra
Notebook / Fletore
Pen / Stilolaps
Pencil / Laps
Monday / E hene
Tuesday / E mart
Wednesday / E merkur
Thursday / E ejte
Friday / E premte
Saturday / E shtune
Sunday / E diel
Zero / Zerro
One / Njy
Two / Dy
Three / Tre
Four / Kater
Five / Pese
Six / Gjashte
Seven / Shtate
Eight / Tete
Nine / Nente
Ten / Dhjete
Useful guidance is available from:
New Arrivals Excellence Programme Guidance
(2007) Ref 00650 – 2007BKT- EN
This resource is for primary and secondary schools and contains guidance on admission and developing classroom practice.
A language in common: assessing English as an additional language
QCA (2000) (QCA/00/584).
This document sets out steps used in assessment of EAL, linked to English National Curriculum levels. It provides guidance and exemplifications.
Aiming High: guidance on supporting the education of asylum seeking and refugee children (DfES 0287 – 2004)
This guidance helps explain the value of an inclusive ethos and curriculum to all pupils.
Aiming High: meeting the needs of newly arrived learners of EAL
(DfES 1381 -2005)
Information on working with newly arrived isolated EAL pupils in settings that have little or no access to EAL support.
Excellence and enjoyment: learning and teaching for bilingual children in the primary years (DfES 0013 – 2006PCK- EN)
Key Stage 3 National Strategy: Access and engagement in English:teaching pupils for whom English is an additional language (DfES 0609 – 2002)
Publications/Catalogues are available from:
MUNDI Tel: 0115 8546418
Mundi
Global Education Centre
Foxhall Lodge
Foxhall Road
Nottingham
NG7 6LH
(under construction/Aug 2010)
Mundi loan resources to schools in Nottinghamshire free for up to half a term
e-mail:
GRANT AND CUTLERTel: (44) 020 7734 2012
55-57 Great Marlborough Street,
London'
England
W1F 7AY
Web:
A one-stop shop for foreign language resources including language-learning material, reference books, technical dictionaries, literature, history, politics etc.
MILET PUBLISHINGTel +44 20 7603 5477
6 North End Parade
London W14 0SJ
England
Web:
Milet publishers a wide range of bilingual picture dictionaries, including board books for use in early years settings.
TRENTHAM BOOKS LTDTel: +44 (0) 1782 745567
Westview House,734 London Road,
Stoke on Trent,
UKST4 5NP Web:
Trentham publishesa wide range of titles plus seven professional journals, mainly in the field of education and social policy.
MANTRA LINGUATel: 0044 (0)208 44 55 123
Global House
303 Ballards Lane
London
N12 8NP
UK
Web:
Mantra Lingua creative learning resources Audio CDs, Big Books, e-books, fun tales, folk tales, friezes, games, language learning, packs posters, story props, toys videos and so on.
Classroom Resources are available from:
Interactive video clips showing children teaching their home languages.
The following website translates words, phrases and short paragraphs from English to Albanian available at
The Dingle Granby Toxteth Education Action Zone website; Useful letters for parents translated into Albanian available at:
DLTK's Crafts for Kids features a variety images that can be used for creating pupils own subject-specific dictionaries.
Activities for ESL Students can be adapted for EAL pupils in primary and secondary schools. Has bilingual quizzes in large number of languages, available at
Writing systems and languages of the world available at
EMA Online resource base for teachers has been developed by Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester LAs with funding from the DfES, available at;
Racist bullying. Advice designed for schools to dip in and out as appropriate for them and offers discussion topics and activities to stimulate debate and spark activity involving everyone in the school community, available at;
Teachernet states that a successful home–school relationship can be a key element in making a school stronger and more effective. In particular, it can make a real difference to groups of underachieving pupils and their families, available at;
Nottinghamshire Achievement & Equality Team