rous in the southwestern coastal area of Dhermi and Himare and the
region extending southward to the Greek border from Gjirokaster. They
have adopted Albanian folkways and dress. Although their first language
is Greek, they speak Albanian as well.

Persons of Vlach, Bulgar, Serb, and Gypsy origin make up about 1 percent
of the population. The Vlachs in Albania have lost much of their
homogeneity and adopted the ways of their Tosk neighbors. The typical
Vlach is akin to the modern Romanian. Both are descendants of Romanized
Dacians or Thracians of the pre-Christian era.

Under Communist rule the Vlachs, mostly herdsmen, have been incorporated
into the collectivized economy. Previously, they grazed their flocks in
the mountains in the summer and then returned to the valleys in the
winter. They are most numerous in the Pindus Mountains and in the Fier,
Korce, and Vlore areas. Persons of Bulgar origin live mostly in the
border area near Lake Prespa; a few persons of Serb derivation live in
the Shkoder area; and Gypsies are scattered in various places.

There are large numbers of persons of Albanian origin living outside the
country. Estimates based on Yugoslav data indicated the total number in
Yugoslavia in 1970 was approximately 1 million, of which about 70
percent were in Kosovo. Data is generally lacking on the exact number in
other areas, and estimates vary widely. There may be as many as 250,000
in Italy and Sicily, 350,000 in Greece, and 80,000 in the United States.
They are found also in Bulgaria, Egypt, Romania, and Turkey. The degree
to which persons living outside the country have retained Albanian
customs and language varies. Indications are that they have retained
their clannishness to a considerable degree.

LANGUAGES

Albanian, of Indo-European origin, is the only surviving language of the
early Thraco-Illyrian group and is spoken by all or nearly all
inhabitants. Some of the minority ethnic groups also speak the tongue of
the country from which their families originated.

Modern Albanian is derived from the ancient Illyrian and Thracian, but
many outside influences are evident. Additions and modifications,
beginning in the pre-Christian era, were made as a result of foreign
contacts. Most important of these were the Latin and Italian influences
during the centuries of Roman domination and trade with the Venetian
merchants and, later, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Contributions also were