Poliçan (Greek: Πολύτσανη, romanized: Polytsani) is a village in Gjirokastër County, southern Albania.[2] At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Dropull.[3] It is within the wider Pogoni region that stretches in both Greece and Albania.[4] Poliçan was the municipal center of the former Pogoncommune in Albania. It is nicknamed "the Bride of the Pogoni region" and is inhabited by ethnic Greeks.[5]
History
Antiquity and Byzantine period
In classical antiquity the region was inhabited by the Chaonians,[6] one of the three major Greek tribes that inhabited ancient Epirus.[7] Polican was identified with the Chaonian settlement Politeiani (Greek: Πολιτειανή) also known as Polyani (Greek: Πολυανή). The name appears to be borrowed from the nearby mountain Polyainos.[6] Ancient coins depicting Alexander the Great have been unearthed in Poliçan.[8]
The ancient name has changed to the present form (Polyts(i)ani) during the Slavic invasion (7th-8th century).[6] In the late Byzantine period (11th-15th century) two Christian Orthodox monasteries were erected next to Polican.[6] After the Fall of Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade (1204), Polican became part of the Greek Despotate of Epirus and refuge for various Byzantine noble families.[9]
Ottoman period
At the period of Ottoman occupation, that started in mid-15th century, Polican enjoyed a privileged semi-autonomous status which led to economic and cultural flourishing.[9] The settlement was included in the Koinon of Zagori, although geographically it was not part of the Zagori region, but belonged to the Pogoni villages.[4]
In the early 16th century two significant church buildings were erected in the town: Saint Athanasius (1513) and Saint Demetrius (1526). Both of them display unique features of early post-Byzantine art.[10] A Greek school was founded in 1672 by the local Orthodox missionary Sophianos next to the church of Saint Athanasius.[11] The school attracted also students from the nearby regions next to Gjirokastër (Zagori and Riza).[12]
A second school started operating in 1750, sponsored by a local businessman and benefactor.[11] Greek education was expanded with the foundation of two secondary level schools in 1866, in addition to a boys' and a girls' school in 1866 and 1874 respectively.[13] The local educational institutions became renowned to such a degree that their graduates were eligible for admission to any Greek college in the Ottoman capital Constantinople (Istanbul) without qualifying examinations.[14] The schools of Polican were financed by the local community and especially by local businessmen and benefactors as well as by the town's diaspora.[15]
The Greek communities that reside in Pogon have a recognized minority status by the Albanian state.[18] A Greek elementary school is currently operating in Polican.[19]
Demographics
In 1913 the population of Polican was 1,650 (Greek census).[20] During the interwar period it reached ca. 2,500 inhabitants that spoke Greek.[21] but it decreased to 559 in 1989.[22] According to a 2014 report by the Albanian government, there were 729 ethnic Greeks in the village.[23]
Geography and culture
Polican is located on the slopes of Mount Nemërçkë, 13 km (8 mi) from the Greek-Albanian border.[5][24] It is the northernmost Greek speaking village within the Pogoni region, which is divided between Greece (40 villages) and Albania (7 villages).[4][18][24]
In Polican, along with the rest of the Pogoni region, polyphonic singing is part of the local musical tradition.[18]
Notable people
Sophianos (-1711), Greek-Orthodox bishop and scholar.
^ abHammond 1967, p. 213 "With a population of 2,500 Poliçan is the largest village in the long-rift within the double range of Nemerçkë. The villages to the north-west are Albanian-speaking, while those to the south speak Greek as their mother tongue. Poliçan therefore regards itself as the most northerly village of the area Pogoni."