List of mountains in Albania

Albania is mostly mountainous, with the first alpine regions forming towards the end of the Jurassic period. During the Cenozoic era, the malformation of the Albanides accelerated, causing the subterranean landscape to take its present form.^[1] The average altitude of the country is 708 m (2,323 ft), more than twice that of Europe.^[2] Its highest summits are situated in the Accursed Mountains and the eastern mountain range, with Korab being the highest peak, at 2,764 m (9,068 ft) above sea level.

The country's geography is unique due to its location and varied relief, with landscapes ranging from mediterranean in the west to a more continental influence and mountainous terrain in the interior and east. Such combination of plains, hills and mountains has resulted in a diverse range of geographical features, extending horizontally and vertically. However, this complexity has made regionalisation challenging, as different authors have used alternating criteria and methods. In the 1920s, Herbert Louis proposed a scheme that divided Albania into two large regions: Inner Albania and Coastal Albania, each with specific subdivisions.^[3] His scheme was widely used until 1964, when it was to be replaced by Pandi Geço's proposed scheme which divided the country into four physiographic regions, listed as follows: Albanian Alps, Central Mountain Region, Southern Mountain Region, Albanian Coastal Lowlands and its hills. By 1990, Geço's scheme was improved through further research and consideration of ecological concerns, recapping all regions into 67 constituent subunits.^[4]

The earliest written accounts on the mountains of Albania can be attributed to German geographer Kurt Hassert, who explored the northern region of the country in June 1897, carrying out his first expedition to Mount Cukal.^[5]

In 1926, British mountaineer C. M. Sleeman surveyed the mountains of northern Albania and his observations later appeared in the 42nd edition of the Alpine Journal.^[6]

Franciscan friar Bernardin Palaj penned a collection of memoirs that pay tribute to Albania’s mountainous landscapes, highlighting their natural beauty, cultural significance and influence on the traditions and character of the Albanian people.^[7]

Distaptur Editions published in 1941 a mountain guidebook titled "Montagne d'Albania", authored by renowned Italian alpinist Piero Ghiglione and printed by the "Geographical Institute De Agostini of Novara". The guidebook includes a study of the rhapsodes of Albanian mountains by Nicola Lo Russo Attoma and contains 117 pages, featuring 60 black and white illustrations from photographs taken by Ghiglione.^[8]

The first post-war mountaineering expedition in Albania was organized by the Committee of Physical Culture and Sports that took place on Tomorr in late July of 1949. A second expedition the following year was attended by Minella Kapo, a representative of the committee’s leadership and an experienced mountaineering instructor, who witnessed the renaming of the main summit from Çuka e Tomorrit to Çuka Partizani. According to mountaineering expert Aleksandër Bojaxhi, the designation of this peak and others that followed was decided not by party officials but by sports forums and even mountaineers themselves.^[9]

Mountain database, PeakVisor, identifies 230 peaks exceeding 2,000 meters (including 6 ultra^[10]; 20 ribu^[11]) and a further 856 peaks above 1,000 meters, though such figures may be inconclusive. Moreover, many listed peak names contain grammatical errors or non-standard exonyms and are incorrectly mapped.

The peaks listed below are arranged by their massifs. Occasionally, the highest peak of the massif is listed instead, if it holds greater notability. The remaining mountains on the list are important landmarks of biodiversity, history, culture and economic impact.^[12]