Zadrima

Zadrima is an ethnographic region situated in north-western Albania between the cities of Shkodra and Lezha, located left of the Lower Drin which eventually drains into the Adriatic Sea from near Lezha.

The Zadrima Plain includes villages and settlements administratively split between the modern Shkodra (Vau i Dejës Municipality) and Lezha (Lezhë Municipality) counties. The following belong under the Vau i Dejës Municipality:^[1]

• Laç
• Kovaç
• Vau i Dejës
• Mjeda
• Shelqet
• Naraç
• Kaç
• Shkjezë
• Pistull
• Paçram
• Kukël
• Plezhë
• Hajmel
• Dheu i Lehtë
• Nënshat

While the settlements below come under the Lezhë Municipality:^[1]

• Krajnë
• Fishtë
• Troshan
• Baqël
• Blinisht
• Kodhel
• Dajç
• Kotërr
• Dragushë
• Mabë
• Gramsh
• Zojs
• Gjadër
• Piraj

At the end of the eighteenth century, Zadrima came to also encompass the nearby villages of Vjerdha, Lisna, Gajtani, and Rragami. The settlements of the former Guri i Zi Municipality, located to the immediate north of Zadrima, are traditionally connected to Zadrima due to similarities in traditions, customs, and folk clothing. On the other hand, the villages of Kallmet i Vogël, Kallmet i Madh, and Rraboshta, which are a part of the southern Zadrima Plain, differ in their customs and traditions from the rest of the greater region. Zadrima can be further broken down into three main units: 1) The area bordering Mirdita, consisting of villages located on the foothills of the mountains separating the two major ethnographic regions (e.g., Troshan, Fishtë, Nënshat); 2) The villages established on the slopes of hills and mountains located within the core territory of Zadrima (e.g., Paçram, Pistull, Dajç); 3) The villages located on the open plains of Zadrima (e.g., Gramsh, Shelqet, Gjadër).^[1]

Zadrima aparece mencionada por primera vez en el siglo XII por la princesa e historiadora bizantina Ana Comnena , quien se refiere a la región como altamente agrícola y escenario de numerosas batallas entre los imperios romanos de Occidente y Oriente. En 1281, el progenitor de la familia Dukagjini , el duque Gjin Tanushi ( Ducam Ginium Tanuschium Albanensem ), ^{[ 2 ]} aparece registrado como gobernante de partes de Zadrima, Guri i Zi ( Montaña Negra ), Pulti , Sati y tierras alrededor del Fan . ^{[ 3 ]} Gran parte de Zadrima y los territorios adyacentes entre Lezha y el Fan serían, en consecuencia, heredados por los Dukagjini, en particular por la rama descendiente de Tanush II Dukagjini. ^{[ 4 ]} Además de los Dukagjini, las familias nobles de los Blinishti y Zaharia también poseían tierras en Zadrima. Los Blinishti de los siglos XIII y XIV poseían inicialmente las tierras entre Gjadër al oeste y Mali i Shejtit al este, Arst al norte y Ndërfanda al sur, con su centro en Blinisht. ^{[ 5 ]} En el siglo XV se registra que Koja Zaharia recibió el señorío de Sapa y Dagnum del papado tras su conversión al catolicismo romano desde la ortodoxia serbia en 1414. Los Zaharia continuarían gobernando gran parte de Zadrima durante la Edad Media y a menudo se vieron envueltos en disputas territoriales y conflictos con los Dukagjini, cuya influencia se había limitado principalmente a Lezha y sus alrededores. Zadrima y Lezha acabarían bajo ocupación veneciana. ^{[ 6 ]}

The demographic history of Zadrima is one of heterogeneity and diversity in regards to geographic origins. The old population of the region, descended from the medieval inhabitants and communities of Zadrima, has largely diminished and represents a negligible percentage of modern families. For example, in the seventeenth century only a handful of native households remained in the village of Mjeda, such as that of Lazër Mati Koja, who descended from the old Zaharia family through Koja's son, Leka. The Ottoman occupation of the region resulted in mass depopulation and movement out of Zadrima, explaining the great reduction in the region's native population.^[6] From the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries onwards, Zadrima would come to be repopulated by a number of families and brotherhoods arriving from Malësia.^[7] Examples include a number of the brotherhoods from Gjatore, a quarter in Kallmet, whose ancestors arrived from Vukël in Kelmend,^[8] as well as the Lazër-Ilaj of Pistull who are believed to have come from Hoti. Numerous families from Mirdita and Puka also settled in Zadrima due to their close proximity to the region, which offered better living conditions due to its lowland terrain. Migrations from other nearby territories would also take place, examples including the Imeraj of Paçram who descend from the Çelaj of Bushat and the Ranxa of Pistull who arrived from Melgushë.^[9]

• Mirditë
• Malësia

41°55′16″N19°34′58″E / 41.9211°N 19.5828°E / 41.9211; 19.5828