Vlorë from Encyclopædia Britannica Quote: "town that is the second seaport of Albania. It lies at the head of Vlorës Bay, which is protected by the mountainous Karaburun (peninsula) and the island of Sazan (Italian Saseno, ancient Saso). Of ancient origin, it was founded as Aulon, one of three Greek colonies on the Illyrian coast. It was strategically important during Roman times and in the 11th–12th-century wars between Normans and the Byzantine Empire. Later it was contested by Venetians, Serbs, and Turks. On Nov. 28, 1912, Ismail Qemal proclaimed there the independence of Albania. Vlorë was occupied by the Italians in 1915–20 and again in 1939. During World War II Sazan was used as a German and Italian submarine base. After the war the town’s harbour and submarine facilities were improved by the Soviet Union, which used the bay as a naval base until 1961, when conflict between the two states resulted in a Soviet departure. Vlorë’s population includes Muslims, Greek Orthodox, and a few Roman Catholics"
google book reference: Placenames of the World: Origins and Meanings of the Names for 6,600 Countries, Cities, Territories, Natural Features, and Historic Sites By Adrian Room Published by McFarland, 2005, ISBN 978-0-7864-2248-7, 433 pages.
J.P. Stein. The politics of national minority participation in post-communist Europe. East-West Insititue, New York, 2000. p. 172 [1].
