Shëngjin

Shëngjin is a coastal resort town and former municipality in Lezhë County in northwestern Albania. Since the 2015 local government reform it has been a subdivision of the municipality of Lezhë, and the 2023 census recorded 6,963 people there. The town lies about 100 metres from the Adriatic Sea below the mountainside called Rrenci, roughly 60 km from Tirana airport, and is known for its beaches and resort accommodation. Its economy rests on the Port of Shëngjin, the northernmost seaport in Albania, and on tourism. The area has been identified with the ancient harbour of Nymphaeum on the coast of Illyria, north of Lissus, and in its vicinity Skanderbeg concluded the League of Lezhë in the fifteenth century against the Ottoman Empire. In 1924 the Albanian government renamed the town Port Wilson in honour of the American president Woodrow Wilson, and during the Second World War its name was officially changed to San Giovanni di Medua before reverting to Shëngjin. In November 2023 Italy and Albania agreed to set up Italian-run reception centers for asylum seekers there.