Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Ghegs" in English language version.
Most of the ethnic Albanians that live outside the country are Ghegs, although there is a small Tosk population clustered around the shores of lakes Presp and Ohrid in the south of Macedonia.
Albanian Christianity lay within the orbit of the bishop of Rome from the first century to the eighth. But in the eighth century Albanian Christians were transferred to the jurisdiction of the patriarch of Constantinople. With the schism of 1054, however, Albania was divided between a Catholic north and an Orthodox south. [..] Prior to the Turkish conquest, the ghegs (the chief tribal group in northern Albania) had found in Roman Catholicism a means of resisting the Slavs, and though Albanian Orthodoxy remained important among the tosks (the chief tribal group in southern Albania)
The Ghegs are known for a distinctive variety of epic poetry called Rapsodi Kreshnike sung by elderly men.
The Albanians comprise two ethnic subgroups: the Ghegs, who generally occupy the area north of the Shkumbin river; and the Tosks, most of whom live south of the river.
There were and there remain distinct cultural and linguistic differences between Albanian Ghegs and Tosks[permanent dead link]
the two ethnic sub-groups to which Albanians actually belong: the Ghegs in the north and the Tosks in the south... The Ghegs and Tosks differ from each other in linguistic, historical-cultural and socio-religious character.
Thus the Tosks and the Ghegs evolved virtually in isolation until Albania obtained its independence.
...was a confessional name in pre-Ottoman Albania.
Gheg (Gege) seems to be derived from an onomatopoeic word for 'babbling,' as contrasted with Shqiptare, or 'those who speak clearly, correctly.
...the Ghegs in the north (Ghegeria) and the Tosks in the south (Toskeria)
The Ghegs account for slightly more than half of the resident Albanian
Although the Albanian population in Yugoslavia is almost exclusively Gheg, the Albanian writers there have chosen, for sheer political reasons, to write in Tosk
The political-cultural relevance of the abolition of literary Gheg with literary Tosk....Albanians identify themselves with language...
The traditional social organization of the Ghegs was tribal
Ghegs of northern Albania present the only true example of a tribal system surviving in Europe until the mid-twentieth century.
... the Ghegs being split up into a number of distinct tribal groups, such as the powerful and very independent Mirdite clan in the mountain fastnesses to the south-east of Scutari; the Klementi, Hoti, Kastrati; the Pulti, Shala,...
The Ghegs, who live in the northern mountainous regions, were traditionally herders and were organized around the exogamous, patrilineal
...Albanian sworn virginity can never have been more than occasional phenomenon among Ghegs
Ghegs practiced childhood betrothal — there are reports of the betrothal of fetuses.
Gheg clan society lasted until the 1950s in northern Albania. ... Children were betrothed sometimes even before birth, often in respect of an existing alliance or in order to establish friendship or piece
The Albanian church north of Shkumbin River was entirely Latin and under the pope's jurisdiction. During the twelfth century, the Catholic church in Albania intensified efforts to strengthen its position in middle and southern Albania. The Catholic Church was organized in 20 dioceses.
Religious differences also existed before the coming of the Turks. Originally, all Albanians had belonged to the Eastern Orthodox Church... Then the Ghegs in the North adopted in order to better resist the pressure of Orthodox Serbs.
... a golden age in the first decades of the 20th century, and much credit for this blossoming of Gheg culture goes to him
A new important impulse to the rise of Gheg culture is due to the revival of Albanian Catholicism, traditionally distinguished for ils highly prestigious cultural tradition and generic Albanianism.
Ghegs, who are often described as fair, are taller than Tosks, who are darker and more Mediterranean.
These differences existed before appearance of Turks. Traditionally there has been the division between the Ghegs in the north and the Tosks in the south, the Shkumbi River being the line
However, many Ghegs perceived this event as the Tosk conquest of Gheg lands.
The Communist victory had realized the transference of political power from the Ghegs to the Tosks, and as around
Northern Ghegs were consistently persecuted by the largely Tosk-run socialist regime, stereotyped as less developed, steeped in traditional culture and communal law
It is furthermore undeniable that the entry into Albania of 1.5 million Ghegs from Kosovo would change the balance of power between Ghegs ...
Religion was once again a major factor in social identity, and elements of traditional Gheg- Tosk, north-south rivalries re-emerged.
Sali Berisha, a Gheg intellectual from the North-East
By contrast, the new leaders, including former president Sali Berisha, ousted in 1997, are almost all northern Ghegs
administration was identified as northern Gheg 'nationalist' as opposed to southern Tosk 'Socialist'
The fact that former president Sali Berisha, elected in April 1992, was a northerner from Tropojë has only intensified Gheg-Tosk rivalry.
Exploiting the historic Gheg (north)-Tosk (south) rivalry, he encouraged rioters in the northern town of Shkoder (a traditional DPA stronghold) in February 1998 and, in September, led his armed supporters in anti-Government protests that led to resignation to prime minister Fatos Nano
...national solidarity for the refugees was overwhelming, albeit coupled with inevitable grumbles about theft and community disruption. Gheg-Tosk rivalry faded and the nation was able to cater for a vast refugee influx without internal conflict
The Ghegs - are, characteristically , an immensely tall people, round - headed, long - faced and strong - nosed.
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