Libohovë


Libohovë is a town and a municipality in southern Albania. It is overlooked by Libohovë Castle and has a main street with views across the Drino valley. Libohovë is at the foot of the Bureto Mountain. The region forms part of the Zagori Regional Nature Park located in Zagori region.
The municipality was formed at the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Libohovë, Qendër Libohovë and Zagori, that became municipal units. The seat of the municipality is the town Libohovë. The total population is 3,667, in a total area of 248.42 km2. The population of the former municipality at the 2011 census was 1,992.

History

The archaeological evidence indicates a very ancient settlement which reached its zenith in the 17th century.
It may be the exact site of present Dropull's former Catholic Diocese of Hadrianopolis in Epiro. In the late 17th century, the Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi passed through Libohovë noting it was inhabited by Muslim Albanians and had 200 houses, a mosque, prayer house, inn and small bathhouse.
It is the home of a well-known Albanian noble family, which shares its name with the town. Prior to the communist era they held considerable sway over the country's politics. The castle is a substantial fortress with four polygonal corner towers and a curtain wall surrounding a wide courtyard. The sister of Ali Pasha of Tepelenë, Shanica, married one of the most important members of the Libohovë family and the castle was the dowry that Ali Pasha presented to her. In the town centre was an old plane tree around which a bar-restaurant has been built. Also in the centre is the house of Myfit Libohovë, a renowned politician, the first minister of internal affairs and foreign affairs serving in the Albanian Government of 1912.
During the interwar period Libohovë was a well watered, large and wealthy settlement located among extensive groves containing 500 houses, its inhabitants spoke Albanian and were mostly Muslim. Libohovë was a centre for the Muslim Sufi Bektashi order with several tekkes located in Dropull.

Places of interest