Vraka (Montenegrin and Serbian Cyrillic: Врака; Albanian: Vrakë) is a minor region in Shkodër County in northern Albania. The region includes settlements located on the shore of Lake Scutari, some 7 km north of the city of Shkodër. This ethnographic region is inhabited by Serb-Montenegrins, Podgoriçani (Slavic Muslims) and Albanians; it is the centre of the Serb-Montenegrin community in Albania.
Boriç i Vogël (Stari Borič), Gruemirë
Boriç i Madh (Mladi Borič), Gruemirë
Rrash-Kullaj (Raš i Kula), Gruemirë
Grilë (Grilj), Gruemirë
Omaraj (Omara), Gruemirë
Kamicë (Kamenica), Qendër
Darragjat (Derignjat), Dajç
(Turalija)
(Kotrobudan)
The toponym is Slavic. Slavs were known to have inhabited northern Albanian since the early Middle Ages.
More recently, Montenegrins and Serbs began migrating to Vraka in the late 17th century. According to Jovan Erdeljanović, in his book Stara Crna Gora, all descendants of Jovan Martinović, who has been mentioned since 1687, have emigrated to Vraka. From confirmed documents, one of the first families to inhabit the area of Vraka was in 1705 were the Đurčevići from the village of Momče in Kuči. A certain Jerko Đurčević was the only one from his clan in Vraka to convert to Islam. His descendants later became known as the Jerkovići, who are found in the village of Štoj, near Ulcinj.
According to Edith Durham the people of Vraka had fled from Bosnia and Montenegro, because of blood feud.
In 1909, the Eparchy of Raška–Prizren had 15 protopresbyteriates, the last of which was Skadar, in which the parishes of:
Skadar: 105 households in a part of the town Skadar, parish under protojerej Obrad Popović, the Metropolitan's vicar for the Skadar protopresbyteriate. 84 in the other part, with villages Deregnjat, Brdica Bušat, parish under Mihailo Štirkić. Churches in Skadar: Church of St. Nicholas and Church of St. Alexander Nevsky.
Vraka: 119 households (villages Novi Borič, Stari Borič, Grilj, Raš, Kule, Omara, Turajlije, Kamenica) with Church in Novi Borič dedicated to Assumption of the Holy Virgin, parish under Petar Mreković.
Vranj: 69 households (villages Vranj, Mataluž, town of Tuzi), Church in Vranj dedicated to St. Nicholas, parish under Filip Majić.
In 1918, beside the Serbian Orthodox in Scutari, there were communities in different neighbouring villages such as Vraka, Vramenica, Derigniat, etc., as well as several thousands of Slavic Muslims of Montenegrin and Bosnia-Herzegovina origin. In 1920, the following villages had Serbian majority or plurality: Brch, Basits, Vraka, Sterbets, Kadrum. Farming was the chief occupation of the villages.
Vraka is known for having been the place where poet Millosh Gjergj Nikolla became teacher on 23 April 1933, and it was in this period that he started to write prose sketches and verses. The village of Vraka was at the time entirely inhabited by Serb-Montenegrins. The Serb school in Vrake was destroyed in 1934. Enver Hoxha decided to destroy the Serbian cemeteries and 2 of the Serb temples.
A period of immigration existed between 1925 and 1934. This wave marked the migration of many Serb-Montenegrin families to Montenegro, Serbia proper and Kosovo, leaving their homes in Vraka behind.
In 1992, the Morača-Rozafa Association was established.
During the Yugoslav Wars, there were incidents of violence against the Serb/Montenegrin minority in places like Boriç i Vogël and Boriç i Madh, where the Albanian government also tried to forcibly take land from them. A large group of the Serbian Orthodox left the region in the 1990s, though some 600 of them later returned.
The surnames were forcibly changed by the Albanian government, from Slavic into Albanian ones, as part of Albanianization.
The region serves as the centre of the Serb-Montenegrin minority in Albania (as listed in the census). The estimations of the total number of Serb-Montenegrins in the area vary from 1,000 to over 2,000. The community has retained their language, culture and religion. The minority association of the community, the "Morača-Rozafa", represents the interests of this minority in Shkodër.
The surnames were forcibly changed by the Albanian government, from Slavic into Albanian ones, as part of Albanianization. The changed surnames, in Serbo-Croatian transliteration, are indicated with (→)
Serb–Montenegrin families (Vračani)
Andrijević brotherhood
Andrijević-Obrenović, in Omaraj
Ajković brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël, Kotrobudan
Babić brotherhood
Banjević brotherhood, in Grilë
Banušić (sq. Banushaj)
Bašanović brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh, Omaraj
→"Beljaj" (sq. Belaj)
Berović
Bjelanović brotherhood
Bulatović
Brajović brotherhood (sq. Brajoviq), in Boriç i Vogël, Grilë
→"Ferizaj", "Jako", "Jakoja" and "Foljeta", in Grilë
→"Foljeta", in Boriç i Vogël
Camaljić brotherhood, in Grilë
→"Mino", in Grilë
Camnić brotherhood, in Grilë
Ceklić, in Omaraj
Colić
Čelebić brotherhood
Ćeklić brotherhood
Ćorović brotherhood
Dambarić brotherhood
Popović-Dambarić (sq. "Popaj"), in Boriç i Madh
Dragović brotherhood
Đergić
Đinović brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël and Grilë
→"Ograja" and "Musaja", in Boriç i Vogël and Grilë
Đoković (sq. Gjokaj)
Đuretić brotherhood
Đurčević brotherhood
Đurčević, in Grilë
Jerković, of the Đurčević brotherhood
Gašović brotherhood
Gorović brotherhood
Hajković brotherhood
→"Hajku", in Boriç i Vogël and Grilë
Janković brotherhood
Kadić brotherhood (sq. Kadija)
Kavarić brotherhood, in Kotrobudan
Klikovac brotherhood
Kontić brotherhood
→"Konto", in Boriç i Vogël
Kračković brotherhood, in Omaraj
Krkotić brotherhood
Krstović brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël, Boriç i Madh, Omaraj and Grilë
→"Karanaj"
→"Nikola" and "Nikolaj" (sq. Nikolla/j), in Grilë
→"Nikolaj" (sq. Nikollaj), in Boriç i Vogël
Krstić
Lambulić brotherhood, in Grilë
Lukačević (sq. Llukaçeviq)
Mačkić, in Omaraj
Majić brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël
Matanović brotherhood (sq. Matanoviq), of the Kaluđerović brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël, Boriç i Madh, Grilë
Matanović-Vujović, in Boriç i Madh
→"Ceklaj"
Marković brotherhood, hailing from Piperi, in Omaraj
Martinović brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël, Boriç i Madh
→"Matanaj"
→"Šuto" (sq. Shuto), in Boriç i Vogël
Mikulić brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh
Milogorić brotherhood, in Omaraj
Mrenović brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh
Mrkaljević (sq. Merkulaj)
Musić
Nikić brotherhood, in Omaraj
Nikolić (sq. Nikollaj)
Pavlović brotherhood
Pejović brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh
Pelević brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh
Pelčić/Peličić/Peljčić brotherhood in Grilë
→"Šeljčaj", in Grilë
Pešović brotherhood
Pešukić brotherhood
Popović brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh, Grilë
→"Popaj", in Boriç i Madh
Racković brotherhood
Radičković brotherhood, in Grilë
Radović brotherhood
Radulović brotherhood
Radusinović brotherhood
Radušinović
Raičević/Rajčević brotherhood (sq. Rajçeviq)
Redinović brotherhood
Rešetar brotherhood
Roganović brotherhood
Sekulić brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël
→"Haškaj", in Boriç i Vogël
Senić brotherhood, in Boriç i Madh
Stanić brotherhood
Stanković brotherhood
→"Ymeri", originally Stanković
Stajkić brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël
Šabanović brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël
→"Dritaraj", in Boriç i Vogël
Šoć brotherhood, in Kotrobudan
Špićanović brotherhood
Šunjević brotherhood
→"Pranvera"
(sq. Suti), in Boriç i Madh
Uskoković brotherhood
Vujačić brotherhood
Vukčević brotherhood
Vukčević-Vesnić, in Boriç i Vogël
Vučković
Vučinić
→"Nikaj"
Vučić brotherhood, in Omaraj
Zlatičanin brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël, Grilë
in Boriç i Vogël
→"Krsto", "Krstaja" and "Faticaj", in Grilë
Žarić brotherhood, in Boriç i Vogël
Žigić
"Brojaj"
"Zefaj" (originally Đonović)
"Goraj"
"Maçaj"
"Mlloja"
"Imeri"
"Umeri"
Podgoriçani families
Piranić (→Piranaj, Pirani), in Boriç i Madh
Pepić (→Pepaj, Pepa), in Boriç i Madh
Lekić (→Lekiqi, Leka), in Boriç i Madh
Tuzović (→Tuzi), in Boriç i Madh
Kerović (→Keraj), in Boriç i Madh
Osmanagić (→Osmani), in Boriç i Madh
Bibezić (→Bibezi), in Boriç i Madh
Goković (→Gokovi), in Boriç i Madh
Salagić (→Salagaj), in Boriç i Madh
Ferizović (→Ferizi), in Boriç i Madh
Beganović (→Begani), in Boriç i Madh
Albanian families
Marđonović, Catholics from Šestan, in Omaraj
Millosh Gjergj Nikolla, Albanian poet
Vojo Kushi, Albanian communist guerilla and National Hero of Albania
Vasil Shanto, Albanian communist guerilla and National Hero of Albania
Nikola Vulić (1872–1945), Serbian academic
Kosta Miličević (1877–1920), Serbian painter
Branko Kadia and Jordan Misja, students and Communists, killed in 1942
