| Counties of Albania | |
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| Category | Unitary state |
| Location | Republic of Albania |
| Number | 12 |
| Populations | 59,381 (Gjirokastër) – 906,166 (Tiranë) |
| Areas | 766 km2 (296 sq mi) (Durrës)–3,711 km2 (1,433 sq mi) (Korçë) |
| Government |
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| Subdivisions | |
| Administrative divisions of Albania |
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Counties (Albanian:qarqe orqarqet), also sometimes known asprefectures (prefekturë), are the first-leveladministrative subdivisions ofAlbania, replacing the earlierdistricts. Since 2000, there have been 12 counties.Since 2015, they have been divided into 61municipalities, 373communes, and 2,972villages.
Sinceits Declaration of Independence from theOttoman Empire in 1912, Albania has reorganized itsdomestic administrative divisions 21 times. The primary division until mid-2000 was intodistricts (Albanian:rrethe), whose number, size, and importance varied over time.[1] They were organized into groups comprising 12 counties beginning in 1991.[1]
The current status of the counties[2] is based on the1998 constitution and was implemented on 31 July 2000.[3] The former districts were abolished entirely and replaced withurban municipalities (bashki) andrural municipalities (komuna), which further oversawvillages (fshatra) in the countryside. This was revised in 2014, so that the2015 local elections divided the counties intomunicipalities (bashki) at the regional level andadministrative units (njësi administrative) forlocal government.
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