Berat County (; ), officially the County of Berat (), is a county in the Southern Region of the Republic of Albania. It is the ninth largest by area and the ninth most populous of the twelve counties, with around 140,956 people within an area of .
History
Archaeologists have found artifacts including silver women's earrings and bronze belt-buckles in Bronze Age tumuli in Pëllumbas, one of the villages of Berat. These items are similar to other artifacts found in northern Albania (Kukës and Mat), Kosovo (Gjilan) and northwestern Greece (Pogoni).
Antipatrea () was an ancient Greek polis in Illyria, now Berat. It was founded by Cassander as Antipatreia, who named it after his father Antipater at 314 BC. An ancient Greek fortress and settlement are still visible today. Dassaretae tribe existed in the area, as early as the 6th century BC. It was captured by the Romans in the 2nd century BC. Livy (31.27.2) describes Antipatrea as a strongly fortified city in a narrow pass that the Romans sacked and burned. The city was composed of two fortifications on both banks of the Osum River.
Historical manuscripts such as the 6th century Codex Purpureus Beratinus, discovered in 1868, and the Codex Aureus, a 9th-century Greek language manuscript have revealed much about the history of the region and that Berat had a reputation for producing manuscripts; 76 of the 100 codes protected in the National Archives of Albania are from Berat, indicating its historical importance.
The town of Berat became part of the unstable frontier of the Byzantine Empire following the fall of the Roman Empire and, along with much of the rest of the Balkan peninsula, it suffered from repeated invasions by Slavs and other tribes. During the Byzantine period, it was known as Pulcheriopolis.
In 1274 Michael VIII recaptured Berat and after being joined by Albanians, who supported the Byzantine Empire marched unsuccessfully against the Angevin capital of Durrës.
In 1280–1281, the Sicilian forces under Hugh the Red of Sully laid siege to Berat. In March 1281, a relief force from Constantinople under the command of Michael Tarchaneiotes was able to drive off the besieging Sicilian army. In 1335–1337, Albanian tribes took control of the area between Berat and Vlorë for the first time, that time the Muzakaj formed the Lordship of Berat. Serbs took control of the area in 1345. In 1867, Berat became a sanjak in the Janina (Yanya) vilayet. During Ottoman rule, it was known Arnavut Belgradı in Turkish (meaning "Albanian Belgrade") at first and then Berat.
During the early period of Ottoman rule, Berat fell into severe decline. By the end of the 16th century, it had only 710 houses. However, it began to recover by the 17th century and became a major craft centre in the Ottoman Balkans, specializing in wood carving. During the 19th century, Berat played an important part in the Albanian national revival. It lies between latitudes 41° N, and longitudes 20° E. The county area is and the ninth unit of the Albanian county in area and the fifth in the Southern Region. Alone among the counties, Berat neither borders the sea nor another country. It is bordered by the counties of Elbasan to the north, Korçë to the east, Gjirokastër to the south, and Fier to the west.
thumb|left|210px|The [[Osum Canyon is thought to have been formed 3 million years ago by water erosion.]]
The physical relief of the south of the county is dominated by Tomorr massif (known as the Throne of Gods) and Mount Shpirag. Standing at above sea level, the mountain is one of the highest points in Southern Albania. A deep ravine cut by the Osum river on Tomorrs west side, which is deep in a limestone formation, is where Berat is situated on stepped terraces. The north is comprised mostly by lowlands and the Myzeqe plain. The valley of the Osum river flowing from southeast to the northwest becomes also wider.
The county is home to the source of the Seman river. The river originates close to Kuçovë at the confluence of the Osum and Devoll rivers. The Osum river flows through the Osum canyon and the city of Berat, where the river has formed the narrow Gorica gorge. The river banks tend to be densely forested. Other notable rivers include the Çorovoda river, passing through the town of Çorovodë.
The geographical formations of the region are frequently mentioned in local folklore. According to legend, Tomorr personified a giant who fought his brother Shpirag, personified by a nearby mountain, for the love of a young woman. She was then said to have turned to stone, becoming the foundation on which Berat Castle is now built. This means that the winters are mild and wet and the summers are hot and dry but it vary by local topography. There are diverse microclimates in the county such as alpine climate.
|2023|140956
According to the latest national census in 2023 this county has 140,956 inhabitants. Ethnic groups in the county as of the 2011 census include:
- Albanians = 119,159 (83.95%)
- Greeks = 180 (0.13%)
- Macedonians = 13 (0.01%)
- Montenegrins = 1 (0.00%)
- Aromanians = 670 (0.47%)
- Romani = 202 (0.14%)
- Egyptians = 108 (0.08%)
- Others = 36 (0.03%)
- No answer = 20,427 (14.39%)
Religion
Between the 2011 and 2023 censuses in Berat, there were notable shifts in religious affiliation. The Sunni Muslim population saw a very large decrease from 50.2% to 29.4%, while Bektashi Muslims remained relatively stable, slightly decreasing from 8.2% to 8.1%. The Catholic Christian population declined from 1.1% to 0.6%, and Orthodox Christians decreased from 7.5% to 5.8%. Evangelical Christians saw a small rise from 0.1% to 0.2%.
There was a significant increase in the irreligious population: atheists rose from 3.4% to 5.1%, and those identifying as believers without denomination grew substantially from 8.4% to 15.2%. Meanwhile, the "Not stated/other" category saw a very large increase, rising dramatically from 20.8% to 35.4%.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;width: 65%"
|+
Population of Berat according to religious group (2011–2023)
|- style="background:#e0e0e0;"
! rowspan="2" | Religion group
! colspan="2" | Census 2011
! colspan="2" | Census 2023 (Revised Source)
! colspan="2" | Difference (2023−2011)
|- style="background:#e0e0e0;"
! Number
! Percentage
! Number
! Percentage
! Number
! Percentage
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Sunni Muslim
| 71,226
| 50.2%
| 41,430
| 29.4%
| -29,796
| -20.8%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Bektashi Muslim
| 11,681
| 8.2%
| 11,422
| 8.1%
| -259
| -0.1%
|-
! style="text-align:left;"| Total Muslim
! 82,907
! 58.4%
! 52,852
! 37.5%
! -30,055
! -20.9%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Catholic Christian
| 1,631
| 1.1%
| 863
| 0.6%
| -768
| -0.5%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Orthodox Christian
| 10,624
| 7.5%
| 8,201
| 5.8%
| -2,423
| -1.7%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Evangelical
| 71
| 0.1%
| 293
| 0.2%
| +222
| +0.1%
|-
! style="text-align:left;"| Total Christian*
! 12,616
! 8.9%
! 9,693
! 6.9%
! -2,923
! -2.0%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Atheists
| 4,855
| 3.4%
| 7,155
| 5.1%
| +2,300
| +1.7%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Believers without denomination
| 11,981
| 8.4%
| 21,412
| 15.2%
| +9,431
| +6.8%
|-
! style="text-align:left;"| Total Non-religious
! 16,836
! 11.9%
! 28,567
! 20.3%
! +11,731
! +8.4%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Not stated / other**
| 29,585
| 20.8%
| 49,844
| 35.4%
| +20,259
| +14.6%
|- style="background:#e0e0e0;"
| style="text-align:left;"| TOTAL
| 141,944
| 100%
| 140,956
| 100%
| -988
| –
|}
Culture
210px|right|thumb|[[Berat has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites since 2008.]]
The traditional religions in Berat are Islam and Christianity. The landscape of a mixture of minarets of mosques and grand orthodox churches and chapels are a testament to the religious coexistence of Berat inhabitants. In the Middle Ages, Berat was the seat of a Greek Orthodox Bishpric, and today Aromanian and even Greek speakers can be found in the city and some surrounding villages. In 2008, Berat was added to UNESCO's World Heritage list as an example of the coexistence of religions and cultures.
thumb|left|210px|The [[Albanian iso-polyphony was recognised by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.]]
The Saint Mary of Blachernae Church dates back to the 13th century and contains 16th century mural paintings by Nikola, son of the Albania's most famous medieval painter Onufri. The first inscription recording Onufri's name was found in 1951 in the Shelqan church. The Kastoria church dates to 23 July 1547 and has a reference to Onufri's origin: "I am Onufri, and come from the town of Berat." Onufri's style in painting was inherited by his son, Nikola (Nicholas), though not so successful as his father. Onufri's museum contains works of Onufri, Nikola and other painters. There is also a number of icons and some fine examples of religious silversmith's work (sacred vessels, icon casings, covers of Gospel books, etc.). Berat Gospels, which date from the 4th century, are copies (the originals are preserved in the National Archives in Tirana). The church itself has a magnificent iconostasis of carved wood, with two very fine icons of Christ and the Virgin Mary. The bishop's throne and pulpit are also of considerable quality.