ABSTRACT
This chapter draws on historical research and on fieldwork carried out in Albania and among Albanians living in Italy to addresses minorities' rights, with particular reference to aspects of integration of historically established linguistic minorities. It focuses on the case of the Arbresh, who migrated to Italy between the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries. The chapter discusses the contemporary Albanian migrations looking at the relationship between these new migrants and the historically established communities, on the one hand, and between Albanians and Italian society, on the other. According to Pedio, fifteenth century Arbresh migrations were mainly a consequence of the foreign policy adopted by Gjeorgj Kastriot Skanderberg, the Albanian chieftain who unified the Albanian tribes against the Ottoman invasion. Some historical studies focuses on this issue, suggesting that the Albanian migrations of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries should be seen as a consequence of pan-European policies encouraging the movement of labour force.
