Most importantly, these sons and daughters of a small country like Albania confirm the vitality and the verve these people hold, by listing us proudly in the big human terrestrial family.

The humanity, the geniality, the verve and the vitality of this small nation is revealed and signified in many outstanding figures, each of whom has proudly brought their extraordinary work to the international arena in helping the development of global prosperity, peace, art and culture, science and medicine worldwide.

On the top of the list for sure is the National hero and ruler of Medieval Albania Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg , he lead the small Albanian nation and unite the people under an resistance of 25 years against the Ottoman Empire that was the strongest army of that era , for that he deserved a gold place in history and around 150 books , operas , paintings ect was made about his figure from Renaissance times until nowadays . He was one of the greatest generals and strategist of the medieval era .

The country is home to the great figure of humanity, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, whose maiden name is Gonxhe Bojaxhi and whose parents were both Albanians. Her activities in humanitarian assistance to people in need, poor and victimized by wars, are unprecedented, transforming her in the image of a saint for the entire world.

Ismail Kadare is published in almost every country in the world and has won many prestigious international awards for literature, including the inaugural “Man Booker International Prize.”He has also been nominated several times for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

To achieve a position in the history of contemporary visual arts is an indisputable merit and such was given to Ibrahim Kodra, born in the town of Durrës and formed and shaped as an artist in Italy. His masterpieces stand alongside other famous painters such as Modigliani and exposed in the most well-known galleries around the world.

One of the most searched photographers of Life magazine , Gjon Mili was a pioneer in the use of stroboscopic instruments to capture a sequence of actions in one photograph. Trained as an engineer and self-taught in photography, Gjon Mili was one of the first to use electronic flash and stroboscopic light to create photographs that had more than scientific interest.

The opera singer Inva Mula ranks among the ten best sopranos of the world, with a collection of extraordinary arias from nearly all the best opera composers of all time. The soprano appears in the most prestigious opera scenes of the world and is particularly appreciated at La Scala in Milan and at the Metropolitan in New York. But she is not alone , Ermonela Jaho another great soprano and Saimir Pirgu a wellknown tenor they are doing a great world tour in all the most important Operas ever .

The violinist Tedi Papavrami has been described in the media as the “little Albanian virtuoso” because of his skillful violin playing upon the international stages as a child.

Another major talent, named in the French media as a genius of contemporary choreography, is the Paris Opera House ballet maestro, Angelin Prelocaj, whose works stand alongside the works of the great Nureyev. Born in 1957 to Albanian parents who had immigrated to Paris, he began his career by studying classical dance before turning to contemporary dance. He has received many prestigious prizes, among them the “Chevalier de L’Ordre National des Arts et des Lettres.”

In the Contemporary World Art scene Anri Sala , Adrian Paci and Sisley Xhafa are doing very well and their exhibitions are averywhere from New Museum of New York , to Venice Biennale or other important galleries…

There are also very known new Pop singers that are Albanian by origin such as Rita Ora , Dua Lipa , Bebe Rexha.

Sportive include people like Lorik Cana …

On the other side of the Atlantic, many other famous Albanians are contributing in their respective areas. Ferid Murad is the Nobel Prize winning inventor of the Viagra pill.

Laura Mersini is an Albanian-American cosmologist and theoretical physicist , and associate professor at the University of North Carolina. She is a proponent of the multiverse hypothesis, which holds that our universe is one of many.

Famous Hollywood actors of Albanian origin include Jim Belushi, his brother John Belushi, and Eliza Dushku.

Stan Dragoti is famous not only as a film director but as the man who led the “I Love New York” promotion campaign.

Many art critics consider Fadil Berisha, the great photographer living in New York, to be a genius in his field.