Berat
Berat is a city located in south-central Albania and the capital of both the District of Berat and the larger County of Berat.
As of 2009, the city has an estimated population of around 71,000 people.
In July 2008, the old town (Mangalem district) was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The name of the city in Albanian is Berat or Berati, which is derived from the older Bel(i)grad (Белград, meaning "white city" in the South Slavic languages), under which name it was known in Greek, Latin and Slavic documents during the High and Late Middle Ages.
That name was rendered as Bellegrada (Βελλέγραδα) in Greek.
It is believed to have been the site of an Ancient Macedonian stronghold, Antipatreia (Ancient Greek: Ἀντιπάτρεια "city of Antipater") or Antipatrea in Latin, while during the early Byzantine Empire the name of the town was Pulcheriopolis (Greek: Πουλχεριόπολις, "city of Pulcheria").
In the Republic of Venice the city was known as Belgrad di Romania, while in the Ottoman Empire it was also known as Belgrad-i Arnavud (Albanian Belgrade) to distinguish it from Belgrade.
Berat lies on the right bank of the river Osum, a short distance from the point where it is joined by the Molisht river. It has a wealth of beautiful buildings of high 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, called Shpirag over a young woman. They killed each other and the girl drowned in her tears, which then became the Osum river.
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 a Thousand Windows (a similar epithet is sometimes applied to Gjirokastra), or The City of Two Thousand Steps.
As of 2009, the city has an estimated population of around 71,000 people.
In July 2008, the old town (Mangalem district) was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The name of the city in Albanian is Berat or Berati, which is derived from the older Bel(i)grad (Белград, meaning "white city" in the South Slavic languages), under which name it was known in Greek, Latin and Slavic documents during the High and Late Middle Ages.
That name was rendered as Bellegrada (Βελλέγραδα) in Greek.
It is believed to have been the site of an Ancient Macedonian stronghold, Antipatreia (Ancient Greek: Ἀντιπάτρεια "city of Antipater") or Antipatrea in Latin, while during the early Byzantine Empire the name of the town was Pulcheriopolis (Greek: Πουλχεριόπολις, "city of Pulcheria").In the Republic of Venice the city was known as Belgrad di Romania, while in the Ottoman Empire it was also known as Belgrad-i Arnavud (Albanian Belgrade) to distinguish it from Belgrade.
Berat lies on the right bank of the river Osum, a short distance from the point where it is joined by the Molisht river. It has a wealth of beautiful buildings of high 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, called Shpirag over a young woman. They killed each other and the girl drowned in her tears, which then became the Osum river.
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 a Thousand Windows (a similar epithet is sometimes applied to Gjirokastra), or The City of Two Thousand Steps.
