Rafaela Prifti/
If you are in the Belmont section of the Bronx, you are just about in the heart of Little Albania. It is an informally designated area bursting with intra-ethnic diversity of immigrant generations of Albanians and first born Americans. The area is decked out with Albanian flags of different sizes, some draped over balconies, others at window displays of the neighborhood’s bakeries, byrek-cafes, restaurants, boutiques and TV shops that line up the streets, co-habitating with Italians on Arthur Avenue and areas nearby.
Little Albania in the Bronx is not defined in square feet, it is rather measured by the heart of its residents infused with heritage and symbolism. This was exactly the impetus for the Immigrant Heritage Celebration Project that Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Affairs launched in 2023. Yesterday, December 10, the MOIA’s Immigrant Enclave Illustration Series was exhibited to the members of represented communities. The map of Little Albania in the Bronx made its debut, among the 25 communities featured in the Series, such as Little Ecuador, Little Poland, Little Haiti, Little Africa, Little Ukraine. “This is the first time the Albanian American Community is part of the NYC Maps. It is a milestone for our community and a privilege for me and the team that worked on this special project and also to be recognized by Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Affairs Commissioner Manuel Castro,” said Vera Mjeku, a NYC public servant for over a decade, involved in the project.
The map was unveiled at the Albanian Flag Raising ceremony commemorating 113th Anniversary of Albania Independence, on Monday.
Vera Mjeku expressed appreciation for Mayor Eric Adams and his administration for spearheading this Project with special significance in the city that 3 million immigrants call home.
It comes at the end of Mayor’s term in office. During his incumbency, “Mayor Adams partnered with our community in flag raising events, round tables, facilitating the Albanian Parade, hosting Albanian festivities in Gracie Mansion, attending street fairs and fighting to make possible the Albanian Dual Language program in a Bronx public school,” said the NYC civil servant, Vera Mjeku,
Getting our own map in the series commissioned by the city is no small endeavor, and it’s made even more challenging by the required strict guidelines. Ismer Mjeku, Publisher of the Albanian Yellow Pages and Albanian Media Group, a consulting company focusing on the community, calls this project “a testament of how far our community has come, business wise.” Adding that “Little Albania in the Bronx is home to over 60 Albanian American Businesses.”
In terms of what you’ll find on the map itself, Ismer Mjeku points out that “the Gjergj Kastrioti Skenderbeu Way is a proud meeting point, that also hosts the only and biggest fair of NYC commemorating our national hero’s birthday. The area was home to important media outlets that have played an important role in the history of our community such as Illyria Newspaper and is home to Dielli Newspaper, the oldest Albanian newspaper in the US.”
In terms of its significance, the map goes beyond the symbolic representation of selected characteristics of a place. It is an affectionate recognition of the shared heritage that lives within Albanian immigrants and first-born Americans alike. Because, no matter where you come from, when you are there, you are in Little Albania in the Bronx.