ABSTRACT
Despite its small size, Albania and the Albanians, the Shqiptars or the Arna’uts, as the latter are sometimes known in the Middle East, have made an outstanding contribution to Sufi thought in Eastern Europe and in the world at large. The country has been a bridge between East and West and, unlike many of its neighbouring Muslim communities, has been a channel for the penetration of Iranian thought and letters, both Sufi and non-Sufi. With justification, Nathalie Clayer, a leading authority, titled her book, published in Berlin, in 1990, L’Albanie, pays des derviches.
