Flag of Albania
Location of Albania on the globe

Albania

AL

Southern Europe

Albania is home to 4 documented ethnic groups in Southern Europe — led by Albanian (~97%), Albanian Greek (~1%), Albania Other (~1%), Romani European (~1%). This page blends their phenotype and demographic data into one weighted reference: skin tone, facial features, hair texture and build, drawn from published census and ancestry sources.

Demographic Composition

Composition weights are derived from self-identification in published census and demographic surveys. Each row links to the source ethnic-group atlas page.

Ethnic groupWeightSource
AlbanianAlbanian97.1%Institute of Statistics Albania (INSTAT) 2023 Census; Albanians (~97.1%, ~2.7M+ of ~2.8M total). The dominant ethno-linguistic identification, predominantly Sunni Muslim (~57% of population) plus substantial Bektashi Sufi Muslim (~10%), Roman Catholic (~10%), and Eastern Orthodox (~7%) sub-populations
Albanian GreekAlbanian Greek1.3%Albania 2023 Census, Greek (~1.3%, ~36,000+); concentrated in southern Albania (the Northern Epirus region). Predominantly Greek Orthodox
Albania OtherAlbania Other1.1%Albania 2023 Census residual; includes Aromanian / Vlach (~3,500+, the historic Romance-language pastoral community of the Balkans), Macedonian, Montenegrin, Egyptian / Balkan-Egyptian (a distinct community closely associated with but separate from the Roma), plus other smaller groups
Romani EuropeanRomani European0.5%Albania 2023 Census plus advocacy organization estimates; Albanian Roma (~0.5% per official census, with broader Roma-descended population estimated at 2-5% per advocacy organizations)

Albania Phenotype Profile

Albania is among the more demographically homogeneous European national populations — approximately 97% Albanian per the 2023 INSTAT Census, with smaller Greek (~1.3%), Roma (~0.5%), Aromanian / Vlach, Macedonian, and other communities. The country is religiously diverse despite ethnic-linguistic homogeneity (Sunni Muslim ~57%, Bektashi ~10%, Roman Catholic ~10%, Orthodox ~7%, plus smaller communities). Skin tone Fitzpatrick II-III modal. Hair predominantly wavy to curly dark brown to black. Eye color predominantly brown with elevated light-eye frequencies. Adult Albanian male mean stature approximately 174-178 cm — among the taller mean statures in Europe and globally.

A descriptive view, not a claim about individuals

This page shows a weighted aggregate of phenotype observations across the Albania population, based on demographic composition from published census and ancestry sources. Phenotypes within any country are far more varied than the aggregate suggests; this is a descriptive reference, not a deterministic claim about any individual. For source-level detail on individual ethnic groups, see the constituent atlas pages linked below.

Methodology Notes

Composition weights derived from Institute of Statistics Albania (INSTAT) 2023 Census. Caveats: (1) the substantial Albanian diaspora globally (~2-4M+) substantially alters source-vs-diaspora ratios; (2) the broader cross-border Albanian-language zone (Albania + Kosovo + western North Macedonia + Preševo Valley Serbia + parts of Montenegro and Greece) totals approximately 8-10M Albanians; (3) Roma populations are substantially undercounted in census enumeration relative to advocacy-organization estimates; (4) the historic Albanian Jewish community (the only European country to increase its Jewish population during the Holocaust due to Albanian Muslim and Christian sheltering) has substantially emigrated to Israel post-1948.

See full project methodology →

Primary Sources

  1. 1.Institute of Statistics Albania (INSTAT). Population and Housing Census 2023. Tirana: INSTAT; 2024.
  2. 2.Vickers M. The Albanians: A Modern History (rev ed). IB Tauris; 2014.
  3. 3.Mendizabal I, Lao O, Marigorta UM, et al. Reconstructing the population history of European Romani from genome-wide data. Curr Biol. 2012;22(24):2342-2349.
  4. 4.Elsie R. Historical Dictionary of Albania (2nd ed). Scarecrow; 2010.
  5. 5.Schwandner-Sievers S, Fischer BJ (eds). Albanian Identities: Myth and History. Indiana University Press; 2002.

Other countries in Southern Europe

Aggregate phenotype references for neighbouring Southern Europe nations, weighted by demographic composition.

Browse all Southern Europeethnic groups & countries →