THE ILLYRIANS .........
The origins of the Albanian people are not definitely known, but data drawn
from history and from linguistic, archaeological, and anthropological studies have led to the conclusion
that Albanians are the direct descendants of the ancient Illyrians and that the latter were natives of the
lands they inhabited. Similarly, the Albanian language derives from the language of the Illyrians, the
transition from Illyrian to Albanian apparently occurring between the 4th and 6th centuries AD.
Illyrian culture is believed to have evolved from the Stone Age and to have manifested itself in the
territory of Albania towardthe beginning of the Bronze Age, about 2000 BC. The Illyrians were not a
uniform body of people but a conglomeration of many tribes that inhabited the western part of the
Balkans, from what is now Slovenia in the northwest to (and including) the region of Epirus, which
extends about halfway down the mainland of modern Greece. In general, Illyrians in the highlands
ofAlbania were more isolated than those in the lowlands, and their culture evolved more slowly--a
distinction that persisted throughout Albania's history.
In its beginning, the kingdom of Illyria comprised the actual territories of Dalmatia, Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, with a large part of modern Serbia. Shkodra (Scutari) was its capital, just as
it is now, the most important center of Northern Albania.
The earliest known king of Illyria was Hyllus (The Star) who is recorded to have died in the year 1225
B.C.
The Kingdom, however, reached its zenith in the fourth century B.C. when Bardhylus (White Star), one
of the most prominent of the Illyrian kings, united under scepter the kingdoms of Illyria, Molossia
(Epirus*) and a good part of Macedonia. But its decay began under the same ruler as a result of the
attacks made on it by Philip of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great.
In the year 232 B.C. the Illyrian throne was occupied by Teuta, the celebrated Queen whom historians
have called Catherine the Great of Illyria. The depredations of her thriving navy on the rising
commercial development of the Republic forced the Roman Senate to declare war against the Queen.  A
huge army and navy under the command of of Santumalus and Alvinus attacked Central Albania, and,
after two years of protracted warfare, Teuta was induced for peace (227 B.C.)
The last king of Illyria was Gentius, of pathetic memory. In 165 B.C. he was defeated by the Romans
and brought to Rome as a captive.
Henceforth, Illyria consisting of the Enkalayes, the Taulantes, the Epirotes, and the Ardianes, became a
Roman dependency. She was carved out into three independent republics the capitals of which were
respectively Scodar (Shkoder), Epidamnus (Durres) and Dulcigno (todays' Ulqin in Montenegro).
Authors of antiquity relate that the Illyrians were a sociable and hospitable people, renowned for their
daring and bravery at war. Illyrian women were fairly equal in status to the men, even to the point of
becoming heads of tribal federations. In matters of religion, Illyrians were pagans who believed in an
afterlife and buried their dead along with arms and various articles intended for personal use.
The land of Illyria was rich in minerals--iron, copper, gold, silver--and Illyrians became skillful in the
mining and processing of metals. They were highly skilled boat builders and sailors as well; indeed, their
light, swift galleys known as liburnae were of such superior design that the Romans incorporated them.
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From the 8th to the 6th century BC the Greeks founded a string of colonies on Illyrian soil, two of the
most prominent of which were Epidamnus (modern Durrës) and Apollonia (near modern Vlorë). The
presence of Greek colonies on their soil brought the Illyrians into contact with a more advanced
civilization, which helped them to develop their own culture, while they in turn influenced the economic
and political life of the colonies. In the 3rd century BC the colonies began to decline and eventually
perished.
Roughly parallel with the rise of Greek colonies, Illyrian tribes began to evolve politically from
relatively small and simple entities into larger and more complex ones. At first they formed temporary
alliances with one another for defensive or offensive purposes, then federations and, still later,
kingdoms. The most important of these kingdoms, which flourished from the 5th to the 2nd century
BC, were those of the Enkalayes, the Taulantes, the Epirotes, and the Ardianes.
After warring for the better part of the 4th century BC against the expansionist Macedonian state of
Philip II and Alexander the Great, the Illyrians faced a greater threat from the growing power of the
Romans. Seeing Illyrian territory as a bridgehead for conquests east of the Adriatic, Rome in 229 BC
attacked and defeated the Illyrians, led by Queen Teuta, and by 168 BC established effective control
over Illyria.
society
underwent great change, especially in its outward, material aspect. Art and culture flourished, particularly in Apollonia, whose school
of philosophy became celebrated in antiquity. To a great extent, though, the Illyrians resisted assimilation into Roman culture. Illyrian
culture survived, along with the Illyrian tongue, though many Latin words entered the language and later became a part of the Albanian
language. Christianity manifested itself in Illyria during Roman rule, about the middle of the 1st century AD. At first the new religion
had to compete with Oriental cults--among them that of Mithra, Persian god of light--which had entered the land in the wake of
Illyria's growing interaction with eastern regions of the empire. For a long time it also had to compete with gods worshiped by Illyrian
pagans. The steady growth of the Christian community in Dyrrhachium (the Roman name for Epidamnus) led to the creation there of
a bishopric in AD 58. Later, episcopal seats were established in Apollonia, Buthrotum (modern Butrint), and Scodra (modern Shkodr‘).
By the time the empire began to decline, the Illyrians, profiting from a long tradition of martial habits and skills, had acquired great
influence in the Roman military hierarchy. Indeed, several of them went on from there to become emperors. From the mid-3rd to the
mid-4th century AD the reins of the empire were almost continuously in the hands of emperors of Illyrian origin: Gaius Decius,
Claudius Gothicus, Aurelian, Probus, Diocletian, and Constantine the Great.