 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
 Germany 740.000[1] | |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Albanians inAustria andSwitzerland | |
a The number includes nationals fromAlbania andKosovo. |
| Part ofa series on |
| Albanians |
|---|
 |
Native communities Diaspora
Subgroups |
TheAlbanians in Germany (German:Albaner in Deutschland;Albanian:Shqiptarët në Gjermani) refers to theAlbanian migrants inGermany and their descendants. They mostly trace their origins toAlbania,Kosovo and to a lesser extent toNorth Macedonia and otherAlbanian-speaking territories in theBalkan Peninsula. Their exact number is difficult to determine as some ethnic Albanians holdGerman,Macedonian,Serbian or anotherFormer Yugoslavian citizenship.
There are approximately 740.000 Albanians distributed in the territory of Germany composed of 242,855 Kosovar nationals and 73,905 Albanian nationals.[2] This makes them one of the largest immigrant groups in the country and the third largest non-EU foreign national group after Turkish and Syrian nationals. They are predominantly concentrated in thestates ofBaden-Württemberg,Bayern,Hessen,Nordrhein-Westfalen andNiedersachsen.[3]Berlin,Hamburg,München andStuttgart represent themetropolitan areas with the most significant Albanian population in the country.
Germany maintains close ties withAlbania andKosovo which are characterised by a spirit of economic and political partnership.[4][5] Relations with Albania have become more significant after thecollapse of communism in 1991 as the country paved the way of ademocratisation process. Germany was also one of the first countries toofficially recognise and establish diplomatic relations with Kosovo after it declared itsindependence in 2008.[6]
The first mention of Albanians being present in Germany was during the wars of Austrian Succession fighting asstratioti mercenaries for Empress Maria Teresa.[7]
In the modern era,Albanian migrants came toGermany asgastarbeiter in the middle of the 20th century.[8] They came to the country asYugoslavian migrant workers from the recruitment state ofYugoslavia. They were usually regarded as Yugoslavs and not as Albanians because they came fromKosovo andNorth Macedonia which at that time were part of Yugoslavia. Nevertheless, more and more Albanians arrived in the country since the beginning of the 1980s.
In 1990, more than 3,000 Albanian nationals fled the communist regime ofAlbania in the German Embassy Tirana and were later allowed to travel on viaItaly toGermany as embassy refugees.
During theKosovo war in 1999, manyKosovo Albanians sought asylum in the Federal Republic of Germany. By the end of 1999, the number of Kosovo Albanians in Germany was about 480,000, about 100,000 had returned voluntarily after the war in their homeland or been forcibly removed.
In theKosovo war in 1999, relatively manyKosovo Albanians came toGermany fled from Serbian aggression. In Berlin, about 23,000Albanians lived in 1999. In 2015, there was another wave of Albanian immigration when tens of thousands of people from the WesternBalkans traveled to Germany and applied for asylum. In the first six months of this year, 31,400 people fromKosovo and 22,209 people fromAlbania sought asylum inGermany, although there was little chance of success. By the end of the year, the numbers increased to 54,762 people fromAlbania and 37,095 people fromKosovo. In addition to the high unemployment and lack of perspective also targeted disinformation by tour operators and people smugglers is seen as the cause of mass immigration. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees tried to prevent furtherAlbanians from leaving forGermany by advertising and media campaigns. Many leftGermany months later voluntarily, while others were deported and were banned from entering the Schengen area.
Based on results of theGerman microcensus of 2020, there were approximately 316,760 Albanians distributed in the territory ofGermany composed of 242,855 people withKosovan nationality and 73,905 people holdingAlbanian nationality.[9] The exact estimation of Albanians in the country could be higher but note that official data gives no indication ofethnic backgrounds.[10]
In Berlin in 1999, there were about 25,000 Albanians, the number dropped because of remigration and Germany's general population decline. It is quite hard to know the true number of Albanians in Germany, as they were defined as Yugoslavs or Macedonians when they came to Germany. Germany is the most popular destination for Kosovar Albanians seeking to emigrate toWestern Europe.
Thestates with the most significant concentration of Albanians areBaden-Württemberg,Bayern andNordrhein-Westfalen mostly in western Germany. The most lesser number are to be found inBrandenburg,Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,Sachsen-Anhalt andSaarland.Berlin,Hamburg,München andStuttgart represent themetropolitan areas with the most significant concentration of Albanians in Germany.[11][12]
Selected people:
%2c_RP-P-1910-66.jpg)
.jpg)
The size of the national minority groups in Germany is only an estimate: No population or socio-economic statistics on the basis of ethnicity have been gathered in the Federal Republic of Germany since the end of World War II.
| Europe | |
|---|---|
| Americas | |
| Asia | |
| Africa | |
| Oceania | |
