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{{Short description|Ninth largest city of Albania}}
{{About|the city in Albania|other uses|Berat (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox Albanian settlement
| name                   = Berat
| other name             =
| type                   = m
| flag                   = Flag of Berat.png
| emblem                 = Stema e Bashkisë Berat.svg
| image_skyline          = {{Photomontage
| position               = center
| photo1a                = The old town of Berat 2019.jpg
| photo2a                = Old_town_of_berat_1.jpg
| photo2b                = Old_town_of_berat_2_albania_2016.jpg
| photo3a                = BERAT_Unesco_Albania_2016.jpg
| photo3b                = The old city of Berat.jpg
| photo4a                = Panorama_of_Berat,_Albania_2016.jpg
| size                   = 300
| spacing                = 2
| color                  = #FFFFFF
| border                 = 0
| foot_montage           = Photomontage of Berat}}
| image_caption          =
| map                    =
| location               =
| county                 = Berat
| parts                  =
| settled                =
| incorporated           =
| dissolved              =
| party                  = [[Socialist Party of Albania|PS]]
| mayor                  = Ervin Demo
| council chairman       =
| administrator          =
| coordinates            = {{coord|40|42|08|N|19|57|30|E|type:city_region:AL|display=inline,title}}
| elevation              = 80
| area munic             = 421.6
| area rank              =
| population as of       = 2023<ref name="2023pop">{{cite web |title=Census of Population and Housing|url=https://www.instat.gov.al/en/themes/censuses/census-of-population-and-housing/|publisher=Institute of Statistics Albania}}</ref>
|area_unit=11.28| population munic       = 62232
| population unit        = 40665
| population rank        =
| demonym                = {{langx|sq|Beratas (m), Beratase (f)}}
| postal code            = 5001-5022
| area code              = (0)11
| website                = {{URL|https://bashkiaberat.gov.al/}}
{{designation list
| embed                   = yes
| designation1            = WHS
| designation1_offname    = [[Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra]]
| designation1_date       = 2005
| designation1_number     = [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/569 569]
| designation1_criteria   = iii, iv
| designation1_type       = Cultural
| designation1_free1name  = Region
| designation1_free1value = [[Berat County]]
| designation1_free2name  = [[List of World Heritage Sites in Europe|Europe]]
| designation1_free2value = 2005–present
}}
}}'''Berat''' ({{IPA|sq|bɛˈɾat|pron}}; {{lang-sq-definite|Berati}}) is the [[List of cities and towns in Albania|ninth most populous city]] of [[Albania]] and the seat of [[Berat County]] and Berat Municipality.<ref name="law115">{{cite web |url=https://www.vendime.al/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/137-2014.pdf |title=Law nr. 115/2014 |language=sq |page=6366|access-date=25 February 2022 }}</ref> By air, it is {{convert|71|km|abbr=off}} north of [[Gjirokastër]], {{convert|70|km|abbr=off}} west of [[Korçë]], {{convert|70|km|abbr=off}} south of [[Tirana]], and {{convert|33|km|abbr=off}} east of [[Fier]].
Berat is located in the south of the country. It is surrounded by mountains and hills, including [[Tomorr]] on the east that was declared a [[Tomorr National Park|national park]]. The river [[Osum (river)|Osum]] (total length {{convert|161|km|abbr=on}}) runs through the city before it empties into the [[Seman (river)|Seman]] within the [[Myzeqe|Myzeqe Plain]]. The municipality of Berat was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Berat, [[Otllak]], [[Roshnik]], [[Sinjë]], and [[Velabisht]], that became municipal units. The seat of the municipality is the city Berat.<ref name=law115/> The total population is 62,232 as of the 2023 census,{{efn|name=fn1|The municipality of Berat consists of the administrative units of [[Otllak]], [[Roshnik]], [[Sinjë]], [[Velabisht]] and Berat.<ref name="Classification">{{cite web |publisher=[[Institute of Statistics (Albania)|Instituti i Statistikës]] (INSTAT) |title=A new Urban–Rural Classification of Albanian Population |url=https://www.instat.gov.al/media/2919/a_new_urban-rural_classification_of_albanian_population.pdf |access-date=19 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191114101641/https://www.instat.gov.al/media/2919/a_new_urban-rural_classification_of_albanian_population.pdf |archive-date=14 November 2019 |page=15 |date=May 2014}}</ref><ref name=law115/> The population of the municipality results from the sum of the listed administrative units in the former as of the [[Demographics of Albania|2011 Albanian census]].}}<ref name="2023pop" /> in a total area of {{cvt|421.6|km2}}.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Albania: Administrative Division |url=https://citypopulation.de/en/albania/admin/ |website=City Population}}</ref>{{Efn|Calculated using geospatial data.}}{{historical populations|1950|11648|1960|18685|1969|24700|1979|33400|1989|46210|2001|44040|2011|36496|2023|40665|align=right|cols=1|source=<ref>{{cite web |title=Cities of Albania|url=http://pop-stat.mashke.org/albania-cities.htm}}</ref><ref name="2023pop" />}}
Berat, designated a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]] in 2008, comprises a unique style of [[Architecture of Albania|architecture]] with influences from several civilizations that have managed to coexist for centuries throughout the [[History of Albania|history]]. Like many cities in Albania, Berat comprises an old fortified city filled with churches and mosques painted with grandiose wealth of visible [[mural]]s and [[fresco]]s. Berat is one of the main cultural centres of the country.<ref name="Norris56"/>
== Etymology ==
The name ''Berat'' has been derived through [[Albanian language|Albanian]] [[sound change]]s from the [[Old Slavonic language]] ''Bělgrad'' (Бѣлградъ) or ''Belgrád'' / ''Beligrad'' (Белград / Белиград), meaning "White City".<ref name="Elsie">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=haFlGXIg8uoC|title=Historical Dictionary of Albania |first= Robert|last=Elsie|page=46|edition=2nd|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2010|isbn= 978-0-8108-7380-3}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Demiraj|first=Shaban|author-link=Shaban Demiraj|publisher=[[Academy of Sciences of Albania]]|title=The origin of the Albanians: linguistically investigated|isbn=978-99943-817-1-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aXIbAQAAIAAJ|year=2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120114336/https://books.google.com/books?id=aXIbAQAAIAAJ|archive-date=20 November 2020|page=148}}</ref>
It is believed to have been the site of the ancient city ''Antipatreia'' ({{langx|grc|Ἀντιπάτρεια}}, "City of [[Antipater]]") or ''Antipatrea'' in [[Latin]], while during the early [[Byzantine Empire]] the name of the town was ''Pulcheriopolis'' ([[Byzantine Greek]]: Πουλχεριόπολις, "City of [[Pulcheria]]").<ref name="FishtaElsie2005"/><ref name="HammondWalbank1988">{{cite book|last1=Hammond|first1=N.G.L. |last2=Walbank |first2=F.W. |title=A History of Macedonia: Volume III: 336–167 B.C. |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=qpb3JdwuDQIC&pg=PA391 |access-date=9 January 2011 |year=1988 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-814815-9 |page=391}}</ref><ref name="Elsie">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=haFlGXIg8uoC|title=Historical Dictionary of Albania |first= Robert|last=Elsie|page=46|edition=2nd|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2010|isbn= 978-0-8108-7380-3}}</ref>
It was recorded in [[Medieval Latin]] as ''Belogradum'', ''Bellegradum'', in [[Turkish language|Turkish]] as ''Belgrad'', in [[Italian language|Italian]] as ''Belgrado'',<ref name="Elsie"/> and in [[Greek language|Greek]] as Βελλέγραδα, ''Bellegrada''.{{citation needed|date=May 2016}} In the [[Republic of Venice]] the city was known as ''Belgrado di Romania'' ("[[Rumelia]]n Belgrade"), while in the [[Ottoman Empire]] it was also known as ''Belgrad-i Arnavud'' ("Albanian Belgrade") to distinguish it from [[Belgrade]] in [[Serbia]].<ref name="FishtaElsie2005">{{cite book |last1=Fishta |first1=Gjergj |translator=Elsie, Robert |translator2=Mathie-Heck, Janice |location=London |title=The highland Lute |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=j7tLgANw8hAC&q=Berat |access-date=9 January 2011 |year=2005 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |isbn=978-1-84511-118-2 |page=405}}</ref>
Today, in [[Aromanian language|Aromanian]], Berat is known as {{lang|rup|Birat}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://issuu.com/leogjata/docs/arumunet_albania_nr_40|title=Arumunët Albania, nr. 40|newspaper=Arumunët Albania|issue=40|page=15|year=2014|language=sq, rup}}</ref>
== History ==
=== Early development ===
Ceramic finds from the 7th century BCE initially attest to a settlement of the rocky hill of Berat by the [[Illyrians]].<ref>{{harvnb|Zindel|Lippert|Lahi|Kiel|2018|pp=278, 280}}</ref> Berat has been identified with ancient ''Antipatrea''.<ref name="CohenWalbank1995"/> Probably since the mid-4th century BCE the Illyrians went through a dynamic development, founding their own cities like [[Dimale]] and [[Byllis]]; however it is uncertain whether this development among Illyrians involved also Berat, or whether the foundation of the city is to be attributed to [[Cassander]] of [[Macedon]].<ref>{{harvnb|Fiedler|Lahi|Shehi|Pánczél|Velo|Döhner|2021|p=137|ps=: "Die Illyrier durchliefen eine dynamische Ent-wicklung mit Gründung eigener Städte wohl ab dem mittleren 4. Jh. v. Chr. wie Dimal und Byllis68. Ob hierzu auch Antipatreia (Berat)69 am östlichen Eingang zur Myzeqe-Ebene nur 40 km von Babunjë entfernt gehörte oder die Stadt erst durch Kassander (neu?) gegründet wurde, ist derzeit offen."}}</ref> The founding date is unknown, although if Cassander is the founder, it would date back after he took control of southern [[Illyria]] around 314 BCE.<ref name="CohenWalbank1995">{{harvnb|Cohen|Walbank|1995|p=76}}</ref>
Antipatrea was involved in the [[Illyrian Wars]] and [[Macedonian Wars]],<ref name="Astin1998"/> and it is mentioned as a city of [[Dassareti]]a in southern Illyria. Along with [[Chrysondyon]], [[Gertous]] and [[Creonion]], Antipatrea was one of the Dassaretan towns around which the [[Illyrians|Illyrian]] dynast [[Skerdilaidas]] and the [[Macedon]]ian king [[Philip V of Macedon|Philip V]] fought in 217 BCE. The city eventually was conquered by Philip V until Roman intervention.<ref name="Šašel_Kos">{{harvnb|Šašel Kos|1997|p=331}}</ref><ref name=Morton>{{harvnb|Morton|2017|pp=37, 42}}</ref> Antipatrea was described as the largest settlement with significant walls and referred to as the only ''urbs'' in the area, in contrast with other settlements that were described as ''castella'' or ''oppida''.<ref>{{harvnb|Morton|2017|p=23}}</ref> As reported by Roman historian [[Livy]], in 200 BCE the [[Roman Republic|Roman]] [[legatus]] Lucius Apustius "stormed and subdued Antipatrea by force of arms and, after killing the men of military age and granting all the plunder to the soldiers, he demolished the walls and burned the city".<ref>{{harvnb|Baker|2020|p=59}}</ref><ref name="Astin1998">{{harvnb|Astin|1998|p=262}}</ref> In [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times it was included within [[Illyris|Epirus Nova]], in the [[Macedonia (Roman province)|province of Macedonia]].<ref>{{harvnb|Hoti|2022|pp=245, 249}}</ref> The town became part of the unstable frontier of the [[Byzantine Empire]] following the fall of the [[western Roman Empire]] and, along with much of the rest of the [[Balkan peninsula]], it suffered from repeated invasions by [[Slavic people|Slavs]]. During the Roman and early Byzantine period, the city was known as ''Pulcheriopolis''.
The [[First Bulgarian Empire]] under [[Presian I of Bulgaria|Presian I]] captured the town in the 9th century, and the city received the Slavic name ''Bel[i]grad'' ("White City"), Belegrada (Βελέγραδα) in Greek, which persisted throughout the medieval period, changing to ''Berat'' under Ottoman rule. The town became one of the most important towns in the Bulgarian region [[Kutmichevitsa]]. The Bulgarian governor [[Elemag]] surrendered the city to the emperor [[Basil II]] in 1018, and the city remained in Byzantine hands until the [[Second Bulgarian Empire]] retook the city in 1203 during the rule of [[Kaloyan of Bulgaria|Kaloyan]]. During the 13th century, it fell to [[Michael I Ducas]], the ruler of the [[Despotate of Epirus]].
[[File:Berat Albania 15.jpg|thumb|left|230px|The entrance of the citadel, with the 13th century Byzantine [[Holy Trinity Church, Berat|Holy Trinity Church]]]]
Byzantine Emperor [[Michael VIII Palaiologos]] sent letters to the Albanian leaders of Berat and [[Durrës]] in 1272 asking them to abandon their alliance with [[Charles I of Naples]], leader of the [[Kingdom of Albania (medieval)|Kingdom of Albania]], who had captured and incorporated it at the same period in the Kingdom of Albania.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.etd.ceu.hu/2009/mphlae01.pdf|title=Regnum Albaniae and the Papal Curia|last=Lala|first=Etleva|author2=Gerhard Jaritz|year=2008|publisher=Central European University|page=32|access-date=3 February 2011}}</ref><ref name="Wirth1977">{{cite book|last=Wirth|first=Peter|title=Regesten der Kaiserurkunden des oströmischen Reiches von 565-1453: Regesten von 1204-1282|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qsM339yaKZMC&q=Berat|access-date=3 February 2011|date=2 March 1977|publisher=C.H.Beck|isbn=978-3-406-00738-5|page=114}}</ref><ref name="Norris36">{{cite book|last=Norris|first=Harry Thirlwall|title=Islam in the Balkans: religion and society between Europe and the Arab world|year=1993|location=Columbia|publisher=University of South Carolina Press|url=https://archive.org/details/islaminbalkansre00norr|url-access=registration|isbn=978-0-87249-977-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/islaminbalkansre00norr/page/36 36]}}</ref> However, they passed the letters on to Charles as a sign of their loyalty.{{sfn|Nicol|2010|p=16}}
In 1274 Michael VIII recaptured Berat and after being joined by Albanians who supported the Byzantine Empire, marched unsuccessfully against the [[Capetian House of Anjou|Angevin]] capital of Durrës.<ref name="Bartusis1997">{{cite book|last=Bartusis|first=Mark C.|title=The late Byzantine army: arms and society, 1204-1453|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rUs-hHd89xAC&pg=PA62|access-date=1 February 2011|year=1997|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=978-0-8122-1620-2|page=62}}</ref> In 1280-1281 the Sicilian forces under [[Hugh the Red of Sully]] [[Siege of Berat (1280–1281)|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.<ref>Norwich, John Julius. ''The Decline and Fall of the Byzantine Empire''. (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996) p. 246-247</ref> Later in the 13th century Berat again fell under the control of the Byzantine Empire.
[[File:AndreaIMuzakaBerat.jpg|left|thumb|[[Andrea I Muzaka]] first ruler of the [[Principality of Muzaka]] in 1280.]]
The fortress of Tomorr in the early 14th century is attested as ''Timoro(n)'' under Byzantine control. In 1337, the Albanian tribes which lived in the areas of Belegrita (the region of Mt. Tomorr near Berat) and [[Kaninë|Kanina]] rose in rebellion, and seized the fortress of Tomorr.{{sfn|Nicol|2010|p=108|ps=: The Albanians in the district between Balagrita and Kanina had against risen in rebellion, in spite of the privileges which the emperor had recently granted themtquote (..) Balagrita lay in the region of Mount Tomor (Tomorit) near Berat.}}<ref name="Fine253">{{harvnb|Fine|1994|p=253}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Osswald|first=Brendan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3zXFCs9EfEYC|title=Imagining Frontiers, Contesting Identities|publisher=Edizioni Plus|year=2007|isbn=978-88-8492-466-7|editor-last=Ellis|editor-first=Steven G.|page=134|chapter=The Ethnic Composition of Medieval Epirus|quote=In 1337, the Albanians of Epirus Nova invaded the area of Berat and appeared for the first time in Epirus, seizing the fortresses of Skrepario, Timoro and Klisoura.|editor-last2=Klusáková|editor-first2=Lud'a}}</ref> There is little detail about the rebellion in primary sources. [[John VI Kantakouzenos]] mentions that the Albanians in those areas rebelled despite the privileges which [[Andronikos III Palaiologos]] had given them a few years earlier.<ref name="Fine253"/>  Andronikos led an army mainly composed of Turkish mercenaries, and defeated the Albanians, killing many and taking prisoners.<ref name="Fine253"/> In 1345 (or maybe 1343) the town passed to the [[Serbian Empire]].<ref name="Nicol1984">{{cite book|last=Nicol|first=Donald M.|author-link=Donald M. Nicol|title=The Despotate of Epiros 1267-1479: A Contribution to the History of Greece in the Middle Ages|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XIj0FfKto9AC&pg=PA128|year=1984|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-26190-6|page=128|quote=Berat may have fallen by 1343.}}</ref> After its dissolution in 1355 Berat came under suzerainty of its former governor, [[John Komnenos Asen]] (1345-1363), [[Alexander Komnenos Asen]] (1363-1372) and [[Zeta under the Balšići|Zeta]] of [[Balša II]] (1372-1385). In 1385 Berat was captured by the Ottomans, before the [[Battle of Savra]]. According to some sources, the Ottomans probably remained in Berat for some time with intention to use it as foothold to capture [[Principality of Valona|Valona]].<ref name="Gibbons2013">{{cite book|last=Gibbons|first=Herbert Adam|title=The Foundation of the Ottoman Empire: A History of the Osmanlis Up To the Death of Bayezid I 1300-1403|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LQiAAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA159|date=21 August 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-02982-1|page=159}}</ref> By 1396, the Albanian [[Muzaka family]] took over control of Berat, which became the capital of the [[Principality of Berat]].<ref name="ĆurčićAimos1997">{{cite book|last1=Ćurčić|first1=Slobodan|last2=Aimos|last3=Preservation|first3=Society for the Study of the Medieval Architecture in the Balkans and its|title=Secular medieval architecture in the Balkans 1300-1500 and its preservation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VfhPAAAAMAAJ&q=Muzaka+family|access-date=11 January 2011|year=1997|publisher=Aimos, Society for the Study of the Medieval Architecture in the Balkans and its Preservation|isbn=978-960-86059-1-6|page=114}}</ref><ref name="FineFine1994">{{cite book|last1=Fine|first1=John V. A.|author-link1=John V. A. Fine|last2=Fine|first2=John Van Antwerp|author-link2=John Van Antwerp Fine|title=The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LvVbRrH1QBgC&pg=PA391|year=1994|publisher=University of Michigan Press|isbn=0-472-08260-4|page=391|quote=...in 1396. By this time the family of Musachi had gained control of Berat. }}</ref> In 1417 Berat became a part of the [[Ottoman Empire]].<ref name="Kiel48">{{harvnb|Kiel|1990|p=48}}. "In 1417, Berat became part of the Ottoman Empire when this strong city succumbed to a surprise attack."</ref> In 1455 [[Skanderbeg]], a commander with an Albanian force of 14,000 and small number of Catalan soldiers unsuccessfully tried to [[siege of Berat (1455)|capture Berat]] from an Ottoman force of 40,000.<ref name="Setton192">{{cite book|last=Setton|first=Kenneth Meyer|title=The Papacy and the Levant (1204–1571), Volume II. The Fifteenth Century|year=1976|publisher=[[American Philosophical Society]]|isbn=978-0-87169-127-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Sz2VYI0l1IC&q=Skenderbeg+Berat&pg=PA192|page=192}}</ref>
=== Modern period ===
[[File:Halveti Teqe Berat.jpg|thumb|230px|right|Halveti Tekke]]
During the early period of Ottoman rule, Berat fell into severe decline.{{dubious|date=June 2022}} 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 specializing in wood carving.
During the first part of the sixteenth century, Berat was a Christian city and did not contain any Muslim households.<ref name="Ergo3437">{{harvnb|Ergo|2010|pp=34, 37}}.</ref> The urban population of this period (1506-1583) increased little, with the addition of 17 houses.<ref name="Ergo36"/> [[Expulsion of Jews from Spain|Following their expulsion and arrival from Spain]], a [[Jews in Albania|Jewish community]] existed in Berat that consisted of 25 families between 1519 and 1520.<ref name="Mema"/><ref name="Giakoumis96"/>
Toward the latter part of the sixteenth century, Berat contained 461 Muslim houses and another 187 belonged to newcomers from the surrounding villages of Gjeqar, Gjerbës, Tozhar, Fratar, and Dobronik.<ref name="Ergo36"/> [[Islamization of Albania#Central Albania|Conversion to Islam of the local urban population]] in Berat had increased during this time and part of the newcomer population were also Muslim converts who had Islamic names and Christian surnames.<ref name="Ergo36">{{harvnb|Ergo|2010|p=36}}.</ref> Factors such as tax exemptions for Muslim urban craftsmen in exchange for military service drove many of the incoming rural first generation Muslim population to Berat.<ref name="Ergo33">{{harvnb|Ergo|2010|p=33}}.</ref> Followers of [[Sabbatai Zevi]] existed in Berat among Jews during the mid-seventeenth century.<ref name="Giakoumis96"/> The Berat Jewish community took an active role in the welfare of other Jews, such as managing to attain the release of war-related captives present in Durrës in 1596.<ref name="Giakoumis96"/>
By the early seventeenth century, urban life in Berat started to resemble Ottoman and Muslim patterns.<ref name="Ergo34">{{cite book|last=Ergo|first=Dritan|chapter=Islam in the Albanian lands (XVth-XVIIth Century)|editor1-last=Schmitt|editor1-first=Oliver Jens|title=Religion und Kultur im albanischsprachigen Südosteuropa &#91;Religion and culture in Albanian-speaking southeastern Europe&#93;|year=2010|location=Frankfurt am Main|publisher=Peter Lang|isbn=978-3-631-60295-9|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aCdYHU9PtiIC&q=Berat|page=34}}</ref> From 1670 onward, Berat became a Muslim-majority city and of its 30 neighbourhoods, 19 were populated by Muslims.<ref name="Skendi12"/> Factors attributed to the change of the urban religious composition in Berat was pressure to covert in some neighbourhoods, and a lack of Christian priests able to provide religious services.<ref name="Skendi12">{{cite book|last=Skendi|first=Stavro|title=The Albanian national awakening|year=1967a|location=Princeton|publisher=Princeton University Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8QPWCgAAQBAJ&q=Berat&pg=PR15|isbn=978-1-4008-4776-1|page=12}}</ref>
[[File:Naibi gr.jpg|thumb|230px|left|The city of Berat in 1813, illustration by [[Charles Robert Cockerell]] (1788-1863).]]
In the 18th century, Berat was one of the most important Albanian cities during the [[Ottoman Albania|Ottoman]] period.<ref name="AminFortna2006">{{cite book|last1=Amin|first1=Camron Michael|last2=Fortna|first2=Benjamin C.|last3=Frierson|first3=Elizabeth Brown|title=The modern Middle East: a sourcebook for history|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GzJkKk6z-zIC&pg=PA569|access-date=13 January 2011|date=21 April 2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-926209-0|page=569}}</ref>
In the early modern era the city was the capital of the [[Pashalik of Berat]] founded by [[Ahmet Kurt Pasha]]. Berat was incorporated in the [[Pashalik of Yanina]] after [[Ibrahim Pasha of Berat]] was defeated by [[Ali Pasha of Yanina|Ali Pasha]] in 1809. In 1867, Berat became a [[sanjak]] in [[Yannina]] (Yanya) vilayet. Berat replaced a declining [[Vlorë]] as centre of the sanjak (province) in the nineteenth century.<ref name="Kiel52">{{cite book|last=Kiel|first=Machiel|title=Ottoman architecture in Albania, 1385-1912|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2xYzAAAAIAAJ&q=Berat+|year=1990|publisher=Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture|isbn=978-92-9063-330-3|page=52}}</ref> The sanjak of Berat and the city itself were under the dominance of the Albanian [[Vrioni family]].<ref name="Kiel52"/> The [[Romaniote Jews|Jewish community of Yanina]] renewed the Jewish community of Berat in the nineteenth century.<ref name="Giakoumis96">{{cite book|last=Giakoumis|first=Konstantinos|chapter=The Orthodox Church in Albania Under the Ottoman Rule 15th-19th Century|editor1-last=Schmitt|editor1-first=Oliver Jens|title=Religion und Kultur im albanischsprachigen Südosteuropa &#91;Religion and culture in Albanian-speaking southeastern Europe&#93;|year=2010|location=Frankfurt am Main|publisher=Peter Lang|isbn=978-3-631-60295-9|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aCdYHU9PtiIC&q=Berat|page=96}}</ref>
[[File:Berat - Lear Edward - 1851.jpg|thumb|300px|Berat depicted by [[Edward Lear]], 15 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/lear024.htm|website=albanianart.net}}</ref>]]
A Greek school was operating in the city already from 1835.<ref name=katoptron>{{cite web | title=Σχολή Βελεγράδων. [School of Berat] | url=http://195.134.90.78:8080/katoptron/loadUserSchoolInfo.do?schoolId=315 | access-date=30 October 2010 |work=Κάτοπρον Ελληνικής Επιστήμης και Φιλοσοφίας ([[University of Athens]])|language=el}}</ref> In the late Ottoman period, the population of Berat was 10–15,000 inhabitants, with Orthodox Christians numbering some 5,000 people of whom 3,000 spoke the Aromanian language and the rest the [[Albanian language]].<ref name="Clayer109">{{cite book|last=Clayer|first=Nathalie|title=Aux origines du nationalisme albanais: La naissance d'une nation majoritairement musulmane en Europe [The origins of Albanian nationalism: The birth of a predominantly Muslim nation in Europe]|year=2007|location=Paris|publisher=Karthala|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xISnDwAAQBAJ&q=Berat%2C+au+nord|isbn=978-2-84586-816-8|page=109}} "Berat, au nord, en avait 10 a 15 000"</ref><ref name="Koukoudis358">{{cite book|last=Koukoudis|first=Asterios|title=The Vlachs: Metropolis and Diaspora|year=2003|location=Thessaloniki|publisher=Zitros Publications|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=01JoAAAAMAAJ&q=Berat|isbn=978-960-7760-86-9|page=358}} "Berat... At the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century, of the 5,000 or so Orthodox Christians in the town, some 3,000 were Vlach-speaking and the rest Albanian-speaking."</ref>
During the 19th century, Berat played an important part in the [[Albanian national revival]]. Christian merchants in Berat supported the Albanian movement.<ref name="Biondich36">{{Cite book|last=Biondich|first=Mark|title=The Balkans: Revolution, War, and Political Violence Since 1878|year=2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-929905-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gt8SDAAAQBAJ&q=Berat+Albanian+national+revival&pg=PA36|page=36}}</ref> The [[Albanian revolts of 1833–1839]] greatly impacted the city, especially with revolts that occurred in October 1833. The city's castle was surrounded by 10,000 people. Berat's [[mütesellim]], Emin Aga, was forced to leave the city in the hands of the revolt's leaders. On October 22, 1833 the revolt's leaders drafted their requests to the [[Sublime Porte]]: they would no longer allow that Berat give soldiers to the Ottoman government. They also demanded that Albania's local administration be led by Albanian people. The Ottoman government accepted the rebels' requests and nominated some Albanian officials in the city and declared an amnesty as well.{{sfn|Thëngjilli|1978|p=16-20}} In August 1839 a new uprising took place in Berat. The inhabitants attacked the Ottoman forces and besieged them in the castle. Meanwhile, the rebellion spread out to the regions of [[Sanjak of Vlorë]]. The rebels leaders sent a petition to Sultan [[Abdulmejid I]] to have Albanian officials in administration and to put Ismail Pasha, the nephew of [[Ali Pasha of Ioannina|Ali Pasha]] as a general governor. In September 1839 the rebels captured the castle, however once again the Ottoman government postponed the application of reforms in Albania.<ref name=Pollo1984p126>{{harvnb|Pollo|1984|p=126}}</ref>
Berat became a major base of support for the [[League of Prizren]], the late 19th century Albanian nationalist alliance, while the city was also represented in the formation of southern branch of the league in [[Gjirokastër]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Skendi|first=Stavro|title=Beginnings of Albanian Nationalist and Autonomous Trends: The Albanian League, 1878-1881|journal=American Slavic and East European Review|year=1953 |volume=12|issue=2 |pages=219–232 |doi=10.2307/2491677 |jstor=2491677|quote=The southern branch of the League was formed at Gjinokastër (Argyrokastro), where; Albanian leaders held a meeting at which the districts of Janina, Gjinokastër, Delvina, Përmet, Berat, Vlora (Valona), Filat, Margariti, Ajdonat, Parga, Preveza, Arta, Tepelena, Kolonja, and Korca were represented.}}</ref> In the [[First World War]], a census by [[Austro-Hungarian]] occupation forces counted 6745 Orthodox Christians and 20,919 Muslims in the Berat region.<ref name="Odile5">{{cite journal|last=Odile|first=Daniel|title=The historical role of the Muslim community in Albania|journal=Central Asian Survey|volume=9|issue=3|year=1990|page=5|doi=10.1080/02634939008400712}} "20,919 Muslims and 6745 Orthodox Christians lived in the region of Berat"</ref>
==== 20th and 21st century ====
During the [[Second World War]], Jews were concealed in the homes and basements of 60 families from the Muslim and Christian communities in Berat.<ref name="Mema"/> Albanian Muslims in the city let Jewish people worship in the local mosque, and a [[Star of David]] can still be seen on the walls of the city's main Islamic place of worship.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://exit.al/en/2020/06/17/prime-minister-edi-rama-speaks-on-albanias-history-with-jewish-wwii-refugees/|title=Prime Minister Edi Rama Speaks on Albania's History With Jewish WWII Refugees|date=17 June 2020|access-date=22 April 2021|archive-date=17 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517145533/https://exit.al/en/2020/06/17/prime-minister-edi-rama-speaks-on-albanias-history-with-jewish-wwii-refugees/}}</ref>
From 23 to 30 October 1944, the second session of the Council of National Liberation of Albania was held in Berat, where the [[National Liberation Movement (Albania)|National Liberation Movement]]-controlled Anti-Fascist National Liberation Committee became the [[Provisional Democratic Government of Albania]], with [[Enver Hoxha]] as its prime minister and minister of defence.
During the Communist era, Berat became a place of internal exile for those who were deemed public enemies, and their families. Starting in the 1950s, the village served as a political internment center from which the internees could not leave without permission.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |title=Framework Study - On prison system, internment and forced labor during communist regime in Albania with a focus on establishing a museum of memory in the former internment camp in Tepelena |author=Ermal Frashëri |url=https://www.undp.org/content/dam/albania/img/Publications/Framework%20Study%20for%20web.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731011815/https://www.undp.org/content/dam/albania/img/Publications/Framework%20Study%20for%20web.pdf |archive-date=31 July 2020}}</ref> Each day, internees were required to sign up at the Security Office or the police.<ref name="auto"/> In 1963, a Deportation-Internment Commission report indicated that there were 30 interned in Berat, which consisted in part of internees those interned due to risk of escape.<ref name="auto"/> The rest are convicted for ordinary causes. In 1967, Albanian author [[Ismail Kadare]] was sent to Berat, where he spent two years.<ref name="Morgan107">{{harvnb|Morgan|2011|pp=106–107}}</ref><ref name="Fayé">{{cite book |last=Fayé|first=Éric|editor-last=Kadaré|editor-first=Ismail |title=œuvres completes: tome 1|publisher=Editions Fayard |date=1993|pages=10–25}}</ref>  Relatives of those who had fled abroad, or sympathized with [[Titoism|Titoist Yugoslavia]] were also deported to Berat.<ref>Lek Pervizi: ''In the Circles of hell,''Album,  ISKK, Tirana, 2012.</ref><ref>Lek Pervizi, ''Tri stinet e nje jete,'' Lezhe, 2017.</ref><ref name="Pearson2006">{{cite book |last=Pearson |first=Owen |title=Albania in Occupation and War: From Fascism to Communism 1940-1945 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=P3knunC7z_oC&q=Berat++Liberation+committee&pg=PA272 |access-date=13 January 2011 |date=11 July 2006 |isbn=978-1-84511-104-5 |page=399 |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic }}</ref>
In the modern period, a [[Romani people in Albania|Romani community]] numbering 200-300 lives in Berat and its outskirts whereas others in a few nearby villages, at times living in difficult economic circumstances with some seasonally migrating to Greece for work.<ref name="DeSotoBeddiesGedeshi235">{{cite book|last1=De Soto|first1=Hermine|last2=Beddies|first2=Sabine|last3=Gedeshi|first3=Ilir|title=Roma and Egyptians in Albania: From social exclusion to social inclusion|year=2005|location=Washington D.C.|publisher=World Bank Publications|url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/7313/32181.pdf?sequence|isbn=978-0-8213-6171-9|page=235}}</ref><ref name="Koinova7">{{cite report|last=Koinova|first=Maria|date= 2000|title= Roma of Albania|url=https://cadmus.eui.eu/bitstream/handle/1814/46231/Koinova_RomaofAlbania.pdf?sequence=1|publisher=Center for Documentation and Information on Minorities in Europe-Southeast Europe (CEDIME-SE)|page=7}}</ref> Some Aromanian-speakers and Greek-speakers can be found in the town and nearby villages.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Winnifrith |first1=Tom |title=Badlands, Borderlands: A History of Northern Epirus/Southern Albania |date=2002 |publisher=Duckworth |isbn=978-0-7156-3201-7 |page=29 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dkRoAAAAMAAJ |language=en |quote=Berat was the seat of a Greek bishopric in medieval and modern times, and today Vlach- and even Greek-speakers can be found in the town and villages near by}}</ref>
== Geography ==
[[File:2011 Berat, Most Gorica 02.JPG|thumb|Berat]]
Berat lies on the right bank of the river [[Osum (Albania)|Osum]], a short distance from the point where it is joined by the [[Molisht]] river. The old city centre consists of three parts: Kalaja (on the castle hill), Mangalem (at the foot of the castle hill) and Gorica (on the left bank of the Osum). It has a number of buildings of architectural and historical interest. The pine forests above the city, on the slopes of the towering [[Tomorr]] mountains, provide a backdrop of appropriate grandeur. The Osumi river has cut a 915-metre deep gorge through the limestone rock on the west side of the valley to form a precipitous natural fortress, around which the town was built on several river terraces.
According to an Albanian legend, the Tomorr mountain was originally a giant, who fought with another giant (mountain) called Shpirag over a young woman. They killed each other and the girl drowned in her tears, which then became the Osum river.
[[Shpirag|Mount Shpirag]], named after the second giant, is on the left bank of the gorge, above the district of Gorica. Berat is known to Albanians as the city of "One above another Windows" (a similar epithet is sometimes applied to [[Gjirokastra]]), or ''The City of Two Thousand Steps''. It was proclaimed a 'Museum City' by the dictator [[Enver Hoxha]] in June 1961.
=== Climate ===
Berat has a [[Mediterranean climate]] (''Csa'') under the [[Köppen climate classification]].<ref name="Climate">{{cite web |publisher=Climate-Data |title=Climate: Berat |url=https://en.climate-data.org/europe/albania/berat/berat-3431/ |access-date=19 September 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430112626/https://en.climate-data.org/europe/albania/berat/berat-3431/ |archive-date=30 April 2019 }}</ref><ref name="Environment">{{cite web |publisher=Bashkia Berat |title=Dokumenti i Raportit Përfundimtar të Vlerësimit Strategjik Mjedisor të Planit të Përgjithshëm të Territorit të Bashkisë |url=https://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PA00WPJZ.pdf |access-date=19 September 2021 |pages=15–18 |language=sq}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |publisher=Bashkia Berat |title=Dokumenti i Planit të Përgjithshëm të Territorit të Bashkisë Berat |url=https://portavendore.al/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Plani-i-Zhvillimit-te-Territorit-Bashkia-Berat-i-skanuar-min.pdf |access-date=19 September 2021 |pages=14–19 |language=sq}}</ref> Summers are characterised as hot and dry with a maximum average of {{convert|28.2|°C|°F|1}} in July.<ref name="Environment"/> Conversely, winter brings mild and wet weather with an average of {{convert|7.2|°C|°F|1}} in January.<ref name="Environment"/> The lowest minimum temperature recorded in Berat was estimated at {{convert|-12.2|°C|°F|1}} and its highest maximum temperature at {{convert|47.1|°C|°F|1}}.<ref name="Environment"/>
{{Weather box
|width = auto
|location = Berat (1991 - 2010)
|metric first = yes
|single line = yes
|Jan record high C = 25
|Feb record high C = 27
|Mar record high C = 29
|Apr record high C = 34
|May record high C = 38
|Jun record high C = 43
|Jul record high C = 44
|Aug record high C = 43
|Sep record high C = 42
|Oct record high C = 35
|Nov record high C = 30
|Dec record high C = 28
|year record high C = 44
|Jan high C = 14.4
|Feb high C = 15.3
|Mar high C = 17.1
|Apr high C = 22
|May high C = 25.3
|Jun high C = 30.4
|Jul high C = 33.4
|Aug high C = 33.6
|Sep high C = 29.2
|Oct high C = 24
|Nov high C = 20
|Dec high C = 15.8
|Jan low C = 2.0
|Feb low C = 2.1
|Mar low C = 4.2
|Apr low C = 10
|May low C = 13
|Jun low C = 17.8
|Jul low C = 20.3
|Aug low C = 20.0
|Sep low C = 17.0
|Oct low C = 12.5
|Nov low C = 9.3
|Dec low C = 3.5
|Jan record low C = -10
|Feb record low C = -9
|Mar record low C = -4
|Apr record low C = -1
|May record low C = 3
|Jun record low C = 8
|Jul record low C = 14
|Aug record low C = 12
|Sep record low C = 6
|Oct record low C = 0
|Nov record low C = -3
|Dec record low C = -8
|year record low C = -10
|Jan precipitation mm = 145
|Feb precipitation mm = 152
|Mar precipitation mm = 108
|Apr precipitation mm = 97
|May precipitation mm = 65
|Jun precipitation mm = 20
|Jul precipitation mm = 4
|Aug precipitation mm = 5
|Sep precipitation mm = 30
|Oct precipitation mm = 80
|Nov precipitation mm = 190
|Dec precipitation mm = 198
|source 1 = METEOALB Weather Station{{Citation needed|date=February 2024|reason=Please provide a reference with a link to the page that contains the data in the table}}
|date=August 2010
}}
== Economy ==
By the 18th century the economy and society of Berat was closely connected to the city's craft guilds partly related to various tax exemptions that existed since the late Middle Ages. By 1750 there were twenty-two guilds, the most important of which were the tanners', the cobblers' and other leather-working guilds. Other guilds included metal-working, silver-smithing and silk-making ones.<ref name="AminFortna2006"/>
Present-day Berat houses Albania's military industry with the nearby [[Kuçovë Aerodrome|Kuçovë base]] and Poliçan factory as well as a developing tourist economy as of recent years thanks to its historical sites.{{Citation needed|date=March 2021}}
== Culture ==
=== Landmarks ===
{{See also|Tourist attractions in Berat}}
{{wide image|Panorama of Berat, Albania 2016.jpg|1000px|align-cap=center|Panorama of Berat}}
The coexistence of religious and cultural communities over several centuries, beginning in the 4th century BC into the 18th century is apparent in Berat. The town also bears testimony to the architectural excellence of traditional [[Balkans|Balkan]] housing construction, which date to the late 18th and the 19th centuries. Some of the landmarks of that historical period could be seen in the Berat Castle, churches of the Byzantine era such as the Church of St. Mary of Blaherna (13th century), the Bachelors' Mosque, the National Ethnographic Museum, the Sultan's Mosque (built between 1481 and 1512), Leaden Mosque (built in 1555) and the Gorica Bridge.<ref name=Unesco>{{Cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/569 |title=UNESCO.orgHistoric Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra|access-date=2010-09-07|publisher=Unesco.org}}</ref><ref name="Castle">{{cite web|url=http://www.castle-park.com/berat_city.htm|title=The Castle|publisher=Castle Park|access-date=5 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101226023204/http://www.castle-park.com/berat_city.htm|archive-date=26 December 2010}}</ref><ref name="BM"/><ref name=Museum>{{cite web|url=http://albania.shqiperia.com/kat/m/shfaqart/aid/2243/National-Ethnographic-Museum-Berat.html|title=National Ethnographic Museum, Berat|publisher=Albania Shqiperia|access-date=5 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110224085339/http://albania.shqiperia.com/kat/m/shfaqart/aid/2243/National-Ethnographic-Museum-Berat.html|archive-date=24 February 2011}}</ref>
[[File:Berat citadel.jpg|thumb|230px|View of the Citadel of Berat]]
[[Berat Castle]] is built on a rocky hill on the right bank of the river [[Osum]] and is accessible only from the south. After being burned down by the Romans in 200 BC the walls were strengthened in the 5th century under Byzantine [[Emperor Theodosius II]], and were rebuilt during the 6th century under the Emperor [[Justinian I]] and again in the 13th century under the Despot of Epirus, [[Michael I Komnenos Doukas|Michael Komnenos Doukas]], cousin of the Byzantine Emperor. The main entrance, on the north side, is defended by a fortified courtyard and there are three smaller entrances. The surface that the fortress encompasses made it possible to house a considerable portion of the town's inhabitants. The buildings inside the fortress were built during the 13th century and because of their characteristic architecture are preserved as cultural monuments. The population of the fortress was Christian, and it had about 20 churches (most built during the 13th century) and only one mosque, for the use of the Muslim garrison, (of which there survives only a few ruins and the base of the minaret). The churches of the fortress have been damaged through the years and only some remain.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
The [[Church of St. Mary of Blachernae (Berat)|Church of St. Mary of Blachernae]] dating from the 13th century, has 16th century mural paintings by Nikollë Onufri, son of the most important post-medieval Albanian painter, [[Onufri]]. In a small tree - planted square, on a hillside inside the walls of the fortress, stands the 14th century Church of the Holy Trinity. It is built in the form of a cross and has Byzantine murals. Outside the ramparts is the Church of St. Michael (Shën Mehill), built in the 13th century. This church is reached by a steep but perfectly safe path. Near the entrance, after a guardhouse, is the little Church of St. Theodore (Shen Todher), which have wall paintings by Onufri himself. The most interesting is the cathedral of St. Nicholas, which has been well restored and is now a museum dedicated to Onufri. Onufri was the greatest of the 16th century painters in Albania. Not only was he a master of the techniques of fresco and icons, but he was the first to introduce a new colour in painting, shiny red, which the French called "Onufri's Red". In addition, Onufri introduced a certain realism and a degree of individuality in facial expression.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://beratkulture.com/ShenMeriVllaherna.aspx |title=Kisha e Shën Mëri Vllahernës |language=sq |access-date=6 November 2010 }}{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
{{multiple image
|total_width = 500
| align = left
| background color = #BBDD99
| width = 200
| image1 =Old town of berat albania 3.jpg
| alt1 =
| image2 = Old town of berat 1.jpg
| alt2 =
| image3 = Old town of berat 2 albania 2016.jpg
| alt3 =
| footer_background = #BBDD99
| footer_align = center
| footer = The [[UNESCO]] Site of [[Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastër|Berat]].
}}
The first inscription recording Onufri's name was found in 1951, in the Shelqan church. The Kastoria church has a date 23 July 1547 and 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, Nikolla (Nicholas), though not so successful as his father. In Onufri's museum can be found works of Onufri, his son, Nikolla and other painters'. There are also numbers 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 an iconostasis of carved wood, with two icons of Christ and the Virgin Mary. The bishop's throne and the pulpit are also notable.
Near the street running down from the fortress is the Bachelors' Mosque (Xhami e Beqareve), built in 1827. This has a portico and external decoration of flowers, plants, and houses. The 'Bachelors' were the young shop-assistants (in practice generally unmarried), whom the merchants in Berat used as their own private militia.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
The [[King Mosque, Berat|King Mosque]] ({{langx|sq|Xhamia e Mbretit}}), the oldest in the town built in the reign of [[Bayazid II]] (1481–1512),<ref name="Norris56"/> is notable for its fine ceiling. It is museum in the modern period.<ref name="Norris56">{{harvnb|Norris|1993|p=56}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=kTcRDKnYf2cC&q=great+cultural+centres&pg=PA68]</ref>
The [[Lead Mosque, Berat|Lead Mosque]] (Xhamia e Plumbit), built in 1555 and so called from the covering of its cupola. This mosque is the centre of the town.<ref name="Mediterranean Europe">{{cite book|title=Mediterranean Europe|last=Garwood|first=Duncan|year=2009|publisher=Lonely Planet|isbn=978-1-74104-856-8|page=60|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YbtxTd95IjwC&q=Lead+Mosque+berat&pg=PA60|access-date=23 July 2010}}</ref>
[[File:Berat UNESCO 2016 Albania.jpg|thumb|right|230px|Berat as seen from the [[Berat Castle|Castle]].]]
The [[Halveti Teqe, Berat|Halveti Tekke]] (Teqe e Helvetive) is thought to have been built in the 15th century. It was rebuilt by [[Ahmet Kurt Pasha]] in 1782. It belongs to the [[Khalwati order|Khalwati Sufi order]].
Near of tekke is purported to be the grave of [[Sabbatai Zevi]], an [[History of the Jews in the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Jew]] who was banished to [[Dulcigno]] (present day Ulcinj), who created controversy among his followers upon his conversion to [[Islam]].<ref>[https://www.intoalbania.com/attraction/medieval-center-of-berat/ The Halveti Tekke] Retrieved 6 May 2024.</ref>
A Jewish history museum named "[[Solomon Museum]]" is located in southern Berat, and contains exhibits about the [[Holocaust in Albania]] and the survival of Jews during the war in the country.<ref name="Mema">{{cite news|last=Mema|first=Briseida|title=Albania's endangered Jewish museum reopens|url=https://news.yahoo.com/albanias-endangered-jewish-museum-reopens-174127642.html|work=Yahoo! News|date=30 September 2019|access-date=22 November 2019}}</ref>
[[File:Muzeu Etnografik ne Berat.JPG|thumb|left|230px|The Ethnographic Museum]]
The town is known for its historic architecture and scenery and is known as the "''Town of a Thousand Windows''", due to the many large windows of the old decorated houses overlooking the town.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
It is unclear whether it really means "Thousand" (një mijë) or "One over Another" (një mbi një) windows. Indeed, the quarter is built in a very steep place and windows seem to be one over another. Similar views can be seen in [[Melnik, Bulgaria]], [[Gjirokastër]] in Albania, as well as [[Catanzaro]] in Italy, where an Albanian minority once lived.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
The Citadel overlooks the river and the modern city as well as the old Christian quarter across the river. It is a well preserved area containing narrow streets, Turkish houses and Orthodox churches.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
[[File:Berat - Kathedrale 1a Vorhalle.jpg|thumb|right|230px|The [[Onufri Museum of Icons|Onufri Museum]]]]
Modern Berat consists of three parts divided by the [[Osum River]]: Gorica ("little mountain" in [[Old Church Slavonic]]), Mangalem and Kalaja, the latter being a residential quarter within the old Byzantine citadel that overlooks the town. The town also has a 15th-century mosque and a number of churches of the [[Albanian Orthodox Church]], whose [[autocephaly]] was proclaimed there in 1922. Several of the churches house works by the renowned 16th century painter [[Onufri]].{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}
[[File:BERAT Unesco Albania 2016.jpg|thumb|left|The [[St. Michael's Church (Berat)|St. Michael's Church]] of Berat]]
[[Berat National Ethnographic Museum]] opened in 1979.<ref name="BM">{{cite web|url=http://www.beratmuseum.net/index_etno_en.htm|title=Ethnographic Museum|publisher=Berat Museum|access-date=5 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100405033130/http://beratmuseum.net/index_etno_en.htm|archive-date=5 April 2010}}</ref> It contains a diversity of everyday objects from throughout Berat's history. The museum contains non-movable furniture which hold a number of household objects, wooden case, wall-closets, as well as chimneys and a well. Near the well is an olive press, wool press and many large ceramic dishes, revealing a glimpse of the historical domestic culture of Berat's citizens.<ref name="BM"/> The ground floor has a hall with a model of a medieval street with traditional shops on both sides. On the second floor is an archive, loom, village sitting room, kitchen and sitting room.<ref name=Unesco/><ref name=Museum/><ref name=Canada>{{Cite web |url=https://albca.com/albania/berat.html |title=Berat |access-date=2010-09-07 |publisher=Albanian Canadian League Information Service |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110233953/http://albca.com/albania/berat.html |archive-date=10 January 2011}}</ref>
[[Gorica Bridge]], which connects two parts of Berat, was originally built from wood in 1780 and was rebuilt with stone in the 1920s.<ref name="Castle"/> The seven-arch bridge is {{convert|129|m|ft}} long and {{convert|5.3|m|ft}} wide and is built about {{convert|10|m|ft}} above the average water level.<ref name="Castle"/> According to local legend, the original wooden bridge contained a dungeon in which a girl would be incarcerated and starved to appease the spirits responsible for the safety of the bridge.<ref name=Unesco/><ref name="Castle"/>
=== Education ===
In addition to secondary schools, the city hosted the [[Albanian University in Berat]], a private institution that terminated its programs in 2019.
=== Sports ===
The [[football (soccer)]] club is [[KS Tomori Berat]].
==Twin towns – sister cities==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Albania}}
Berat is [[Sister city|twinned]] with:
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|TUR}} [[Amasya]], [[Amasya Province]], [[Turkey]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Amasya Belediyesi Kardeş Şehirleri|url=http://amasya.bel.tr/icerik/265/8/amasya-belediyesi-kardes-sehirleri.aspx|website=amasya.bel.tr|publisher=Amasya|language=tr|access-date=2021-03-08|archive-date=6 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200206132538/http://amasya.bel.tr/icerik/265/8/amasya-belediyesi-kardes-sehirleri.aspx}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|TUR}} [[Bağcılar]], [[Istanbul, Turkey]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Kardeş Belediyeler|url=http://www.bagcilar.bel.tr/kardesbelediyeler|website=bagcilar.bel.tr|publisher=Bağcılar|language=tr|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Bérat]], [[Occitania (administrative region)|Occitania]],  [[France]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Bérat. Réception des représentants de la ville jumelle Albanaise|url=https://www.ladepeche.fr/article/2014/12/12/2009924-reception-des-representants-de-la-ville-jumelle-albanaise.html|website=ladepeche.fr|publisher=La Depeche|language=fr|date=2014-12-12|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|ITA}} [[Fermo]], [[Marche]],  [[Italy]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Fermo Internazionale|url=https://www.comune.fermo.it/it/fermo-internazionale/|website=comune.fermo.it|publisher=Fermo|language=it|access-date=2021-03-08|archive-date=27 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127172809/https://www.comune.fermo.it/it/fermo-internazionale/}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|ISR}} [[Karmiel]], [[Northern District (Israel)|Northern District]], [[Israel]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Konkretizohet marrëveshja e binjakëzimit mes qyteteve Berat-Karmiel|url=http://www.ambasadat.gov.al/israel/sq/konkretizohet-marr%C3%ABveshja-e-binjak%C3%ABzimit-mes-qyteteve-berat-karmiel|website=ambasadat.gov.al|language=sq|publisher=Ambasada e Republikës së Shqipërisë në Izrael|date=2017-07-20|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|BUL}} [[Lovech]], [[Lovech Province]], [[Bulgaria]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Побратимени градове|url=https://www.lovech.bg/bg/pobratimeni-gradove|website=lovech.bg|publisher=Lovech|language=bg|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|ROU}} [[Ploiești]], [[Muntenia]], [[Romania]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Municipiul Ploiești (Menu) => Orașe înfrățite|url=http://www.ploiesti.ro/|website=ploiesti.ro|publisher=Ploiești|language=ro|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|KOS}} [[Prizren]], [[District of Prizren|Prizren District]], [[Kosovo]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Prizreni binjakëzohet me Beratin|url=https://prizrenpress.com/prizreni-binjakezohet-me-beratin/|website=prizrenpress.com|publisher=Prizren Press|language=sq|date=2018-05-31|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|MNE}} [[Ulcinj Municipality|Ulcinj]], [[Montenegro]]<ref name=ulcinj>{{cite web |title=Bratimljenje|url=http://www.uom.co.me/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/bratimljenje-m2-3.pdf|website=database.uom.me|publisher=Zajednica opština Crne Gore|page=53|language=cnr|date=January 2013|access-date=2021-03-08}}</ref>
{{div col end}}
== Notable people ==
[[File:Margarita Tutulani.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Margarita Tutulani]]]]
* [[Omer Pasha Vrioni II]] –  Albanian ruler from one of the most powerful Albanian families of the 19th century, modern founder of the city [[Fier]].
* [[Christopher of Albania]] –  Primate of the [[Albanian Orthodox Church|Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania]] from 1937 to 1948
* [[Eni Koçi]] –  Female singer
* [[Sotir Kolea]] – Folklorist, Diplomat and activist of the Albanian National Awakening
* [[Afërdita Veveçka Priftaj]] –  physicist
* [[Myrto Uzuni]] –  Professional footballer; winger for Spanish club Granada and the [[Albania national football team]]
* [[Aziz Vrioni]] –  Ottoman-Albanian politician
* [[Iliaz Vrioni]] –  Politician and land owner; served as Prime Minister of Albania three times
* [[Isuf Vrioni]] –  Translator, diplomat, and Albanian ambassador to UNESCO
* [[Omer Vrioni]] –  Ottoman figure in the [[Greek War of Independence]]
* [[Sami Bey Vrioni]] –  Politician, diplomat, and a delegate
* [[Dhimitër Tutulani]] –  Lawyer and Politician
* [[Kasëm Trebeshina]] –  Partisan, communist prosecutor, actor, and writer
* [[Margarita Tutulani]] –  anti-fascist and hero of Albania during World War II
* [[Constantine of Berat]] - Albanian Poet of the 18th century.
* [[Aleksandër Meksi|Aleksander Meksi]] - (March 8, 1939) Former prime minister of Albania, Efigjeni Haxhistasa his mother was from Berat.
* [[Sulejman Naibi]] - Albanian Poet.
* [[:sq:Vexhi_Buharaja|Vexhi Buharaja]] - Albanian literary worker,translator and orientalist
* [[Agim Shuke|Agim Shuka]] - (April 1942–May 20, 1992) Was a famous Albanian film and stage actor. His mother Kristina (Leka) Shuka, daughter of Dhoksani Leka is from the Mangalem neighbourhood in Berat.
* [[Orli Shuka]] - (born 27 May 1976) is a [[British-Albanian]] actor best known for his role as Luan, head of the [[Albanian mafia]] in ''[[Gangs of London (TV series)|Gangs of London]].'' He is the son of Albanian actor [[Agim Shuka]], his grandmother Kristina Leka and her Father Dhoksani Leka were from the Mangalem neighbourhood in Berat.
* [[Dhimiter Beratti|Dhimitër Beratti]] (15 October 1886 – 8 September 1970) Was an [[Albanians|Albanian]] politician and journalist. One of the signatories of the [[Albanian Declaration of Independence]] Beratti served as secretary of the Albanian delegation at the [[Paris Peace Conference, 1919|Paris Peace Conference]] in 1919. His parents origins were from Berat.
* [[Babë Dudë Karbunara]]-born Jorgji Karbunara (22 April 1842-19 December 1917) Teacher and politician.One of the signatories of the Albanian Declaration of Independence.
== See also ==
* [[List of mayors of Berat]]
* [[Codex Beratinus]]
== Notes ==
{{notelist}}
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== Bibliography ==
{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
* {{cite book|last=Astin|first=A. E.|title=The Cambridge ancient history: Rome and the Mediterranean to 133 B.C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5Oe1u1H_OSMC&pg=PA262|year=1998|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-23448-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Baker|first=Gabriel|title=Spare No One: Mass Violence in Roman Warfare|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2020|isbn=978-1-5381-1222-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GG4HEAAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book|last1=Cohen|first1=Getzel M.|last2=Walbank|first2=F. W.|title=The Hellenistic settlements in Europe, the islands, and Asia Minor|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BnsPcZW4G7YC&pg=PA76|year=1995|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-08329-5}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Fiedler|first1=M.|last2=Lahi|first2=B.|last3=Shehi|first3=E.|last4=Pánczél|first4=S.-P.|last5=Velo|first5=K.|last6=Döhner|first6=Gregor|title=Ausgrabungen in der Kleinsiedlung Babunjë bei Apollonia (Albanien) Bericht zu den Kampagnen 2018–2019|journal=Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts, Römische Abteilung (RM)|volume=127|year=2021|pages=110–144}}
* {{cite book|last=Fine|first=John V. A.|author-link=John V. A. Fine|title=The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LvVbRrH1QBgC|year=1994|publisher=University of Michigan Press|isbn=0-472-08260-4}}
* {{cite book|last=Hoti|first=Afrim|chapter=Dyrrhachium bizantina e il suo territorio (VI-VIII sec.) |editor=Sonia Antonelli |editor2=Vasco La Salvia |editor3=Maria Cristina Mancini |editor4=Oliva Menozzi |editor5=Marco Moderato |editor6=Maria Carla Somma |title=Archaeologiae Una storia al plural: Studi in memoria di Sara Santoro|publisher=Archaeopress Publishing |year=2022|isbn=978-1-80327-297-9|pages=245–250|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jZKJEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA245}}
* {{cite book |last1=Morgan |first1=Peter |title=Kadare: Shkrimtari dhe diktatura 1957-1990 |date=2011 |publisher=Shtëpia Botuese "55" |location=Tiranë |isbn=978-9928-106-12-4 |edition=1}}
* {{cite journal|last=Morton|first=Jacob Nathan|title=Shifting Landscapes, Policies, And Morals: A Topographically Driven Analysis Of The Roman Wars In Greece From 200 Bc To 168 Bc|year=2017|journal=Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations|publisher=University of Pennsylvania|volume=2484|url=https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2484}}
* {{citation | title=The Despotate of Epiros 1267–1479: A Contribution to the History of Greece in the Middle Ages | first=Donald MacGillivray | last=Nicol | author-link=Donald Nicol | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2010 | isbn=978-0-521-13089-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XIj0FfKto9AC}}
*{{citation|last=Pollo|first=Stefanaq|title=Historia e Shqipërisë: Vitet 30 të shek. XIX-1912|year=1984|publisher=Akademia e Shkencave e RPS të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Historisë|language=Albanian|oclc=165705732}}
* {{cite book|last=Šašel Kos|first=Marjeta|title=Der neue Pauly: Enzyklopädie der Antike. Altertum: Cl-Epi|chapter=Dassaretia|volume=3|editor-last1=Hubert|editor-first1=Cancik|editor-last2=Schneider|editor-first2=Helmuth|year=1997|publisher=Metzler|isbn=978-3-476-01473-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CpmUjwEACAAJ}}
* {{Citation|last=Thëngjilli|first=Petrika|title=Kryengritjet popullore ne vitet 30 te shekulit XIX (documenta osmane)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4UQBAAAAMAAJ|year=1978|publisher=Akademia e Shkencave e Republikës Popullore Socialiste të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Historisë|isbn=}}
*{{cite book|last1=Zindel|first1=Christian|last2=Lippert|first2=Andreas|last3=Lahi|first3=Bashkim|last4=Kiel|first4=Machiel|title=Albanien: Ein Archäologie- und Kunstführer von der Steinzeit bis ins 19. Jahrhundert|publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht|year=2018|isbn=978-3-205-20010-9|language=de|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BR9WDwAAQBAJ}}
{{refend}}
== Further reading ==
{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
* [[Diodorus Siculus]], ''Bibliotheca'' chapters xviii, xix, xx
* [[Plutarch]], ''[[Parallel Lives]]'', "[[Demetrius I of Macedon|Demetrius]]", 18, 31; "[[Phocion]]", 31
* Franca Landucci Gattinoni: L'arte del potere. Vita e opere di Cassandro di Macedonia. Stuttgart 2003. {{ISBN|3-515-08381-2}}
{{refend}}
== External links ==
{{Sister project links|voy=Berat|collapsible=collapsed}}
*[http://www.bashkiaberat.gov.al/ bashkiaberat.gov.al] – Official Website {{in lang|sq}}
{{Berat}}
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[[Category:Berat| ]]
[[Category:Cities in Albania]]
[[Category:Administrative units of Berat]]
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[[Category:Illyrian Albania]]
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