Korçë
city in Albania
Korçë (pronounced [ˈkɔɾtʃə]; Albanian definite form: Korça) is the eighth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population of the city was 51,152 and 75,994 of Korçë municipality (2011 census), in a total area of 806 km2 (311 sq mi). It stands on a plateau some 850 m (2,789 ft) above sea level, surrounded by the Morava Mountains.
The area of the Old Bazaar, including Mirahori Mosque, is considered as the urban core of the city. Founded by the local Ottoman Albanian nobleman Ilias Bey Mirahori, the urban area of Korçë dates back to the late 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century, however its actual physiognomy was realized in the 19th century, during a period that corresponds with the rapid growth and development of the city. The Old Bazaar has played a dominant role in Albania's market history. Korçë is the largest city of eastern Albania and an important cultural and industrial centre.
Name
Korçë is named differently in other languages: Aromanian: Curceaua, Curceauã, Curceau or Curciau; Bulgarian, Macedonian and Serbian: Горица, Goritsa; Greek: Κορυτσά, Korytsa; Italian: Coriza; Romanian: Corcea or Corița; Turkish: Görice.
The current name is of Slavic origin. The word "gorica" means "hill" in South Slavic languages, and is a very common toponym in Albania and Slavic countries (e.g.
“Korçë” enters the record as city in Albania. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Korçë, city and Albania can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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“Korçë” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Korçë, city and Albania provides the most credible route into that argument.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q116341. VIAF identifies the subject as 126664549. The Library of Congress control number is n80036496. Authority coordinates are 40.617, 20.767. 3 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2011.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Korçë” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.