Editing Albania (section)

== Etymology ==
{{main|Names of the Albanians and Albania}}
The historical origins of the term "Albania" can be traced back to [[medieval Latin]], with its foundations believed to be associated with the [[Illyrian tribe]] of the [[Albani (Illyrian tribe)|Albani]]. This connection gains further support from the work of the Ancient Greek geographer [[Ptolemy]] during the 2nd century AD, where he included the settlement of [[Albanopolis]] situated to the northeast of [[Durrës]].<ref>Madrugearu A, Gordon M. The wars of the [[Balkan Peninsula]]. Rowman & Littlefield, 2007. p. 146.</ref><ref>{{Barrington|49 & notes}}</ref> The presence of a medieval settlement named [[Principality of Arbanon|Albanon]] or Arbanon hints at the possibility of historical continuity. The precise relationship among these historical references and the question of whether Albanopolis was synonymous with Albanon remain subjects of scholarly debate.<ref>The Illyrians by J. J. Wilkes, 1992, {{ISBN|978-0-631-19807-9}}, page 279,"We cannot be certain that the Arbanon of Anna Comnena is the same as Albanopolis of the Albani, a place located on the map of Ptolemy (3.12)"</ref>

The Byzantine historian [[Michael Attaliates]], in his 11th-century historical account, provides the earliest undisputed reference to the Albanians, when he mentions them having taken part in a revolt against [[Constantinople]] in 1079.<ref name="MadgearuGordon25b">{{harvnb|Madgearu|Gordon|2008|p=25}}. "It is still disputed by scholars that those Albanoi from 1042 were Normans from Sicily, [Southern Italy], or if they are in fact the Albanoi [a large clan of that belongs to the many clans of Albanians] found in Albanian lands during this time frame."</ref> He also identifies the Arbanitai as subjects of the Duke of [[Durrës|Dyrrachium]].<ref>Robert Elsei. ''The Albanian lexicon of Dion Von Kirkman. Earliest reference to the existence of the Albanian language'', pp. 113–122.</ref> In the Middle Ages, Albania was denoted as {{lang|sq|Arbëri|i=yes}} or {{lang|sq|Arbëni|i=yes}} by its inhabitants, who identified themselves as {{lang|sq|Arbëreshë|i=yes}} or {{lang|sq|Arbëneshë|i=yes}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pinocacozza.it/|title=pinocacozza.it|website=pinocacozza.it|access-date=23 November 2007|archive-date=30 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191230223257/http://www.pinocacozza.it/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Albanians employ the terms {{lang|sq|Shqipëri|i=yes}} or {{lang|sq|Shqipëria|i=yes}} for their nation, designations that trace their historical origins to the 14th century.<ref name=Matasović>{{cite book|last=Matasović|first=Ranko|year=2019|title=A Grammatical Sketch of Albanian for Students of Indo European|url=http://mudrac.ffzg.unizg.hr/~rmatasov/Albanian.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://mudrac.ffzg.unizg.hr/~rmatasov/Albanian.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live|place=Zagreb|publisher=Ranko Matasovic|page=39}}</ref> But only in the late 17th and early 18th centuries did these terms gradually supersede {{lang|sq|Arbëria|i=yes}} and {{lang|sq|Arbëreshë|i=yes}} among Albanians.<ref name=Matasović /><ref name=Lloshi>{{cite book |last=Lloshi |first=Xhevat |chapter=Albanian |editor1-last=Hinrichs |editor1-first=Uwe |editor2-last=Büttner |editor2-first=Uwe |title=Handbuch der Südosteuropa-Linguistik |year=1999 |location=Wiesbaden |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=9783447039390 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Phyvk2tPaYQC |page=277}}</ref> These two expressions are widely interpreted to symbolise "Children of the Eagles" and "Land of the Eagles".<ref>Kristo Frasheri. ''History of Albania (A Brief Overview)''. Tirana, 1964.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://mirror.undp.org/albania/download/pdf/albanian.pdf |title=The Albanian Language |last=Lloshi |first=Xhevat |publisher=United Nations Development Programme |access-date=9 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110709114947/http://mirror.undp.org/albania/download/pdf/albanian.pdf |archive-date=9 July 2011}}</ref>