Albania vs Isle of Man

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Albania ( (listen) a(w)l-BAY-nee-ə; Albanian: Shqipëri or Shqipëria; Gheg Albanian: Shqipni or Shqipnia also Shqypni or Shqypnia), officially the Republic of Albania (Albanian: Republika e Shqipërisë, pronounced [ɾɛpuˈblika ɛ ʃcipəˈɾiːsə]), is a country in Southeast Europe on the Adriatic and Ionian Sea within the Mediterranean Sea.

It shares land borders with Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo into the northeast, North Macedonia to the east, Greece to the south and maritime borders with Greece, Montenegro and Italy to the west. Geographically, the country displays diverse climatic, geological, hydrological, and morphological conditions, defined in an area of 28,748 km2 (11,100 sq mi). It possesses significant diversity together with the landscape ranging from the snow-capped mountains in the Albanian Alps as well as the Korab, Skanderbeg, Pindus and Ceraunian Mountains to the hot and sunny coasts of the Albanian Adriatic and Ionian Sea along the Mediterranean Sea. Historically, the nation has been inhabited by numerous civilisations like the Illyrians, Thracians, Ancient Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Venetians and Ottomans. The Albanians established the autonomous Principality of Arbër in the 12th century. The Kingdom of Albania and Principality of Albania formed between the 13th and 14th centuries. Before the Ottoman conquest of Albania in the 15th century, the Albanian resistance to Ottoman expansion into Europe headed by Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg won them acclaim over most of Europe. Between the 18th and 19th centuries, cultural developments, widely attributed to Albanians having accumulated both intellectual and spiritual strength, conclusively resulted in the Albanian Renaissance. Following the defeat of the Ottomans in the Balkan Wars, the modern nation state of Albania declared independence in 1912. In the 20th century, the Kingdom of Albania was invaded by Italy which formed Greater Albania before becoming a protectorate of Nazi Germany. Enver Hoxha formed Communist Albania following the Second World War and launched the Albanians on a course of oppression and decades of isolation. The Revolutions of 1991 concluded the fall of communism in Albania and eventually the establishment of the current Republic of Albania. Politically, the country is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic and developing nation with an upper-middle income economy dominated by the service sector, followed by manufacturing. It went through a process of transition following the end of communism in 1990, from centralized planning to a market-based economy. Albania provides universal healthcare and free primary and secondary education to its citizens.The nation is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, UNESCO, NATO, WTO, COE, OSCE, and OIC. It's an official candidate for membership in the European Union. It is one of the founding members of the Energy Community, such as the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and Union for the Mediterranean.

Source: Wikipedia

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The Isle of Man (Manx: Mannin [ˈmanɪnʲ], also Ellan Vannin [ˈɛlʲan ˈvanɪnʲ]), also known as Mann (), is a self-governing British Crown dependency situated in the Irish Sea between Great Britain and Ireland. The head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, holds the title of Lord of Mann and is represented by a lieutenant governor. The United Kingdom has responsibility for the island's military defence. Humans have lived on the island since before 6500 BC. Gaelic cultural influence began in the 5th century AD, and the Manx language, a branch of the Goidelic languages, emerged. In 627 King Edwin of Northumbria defeated the Isle of Man along with most of Mercia. In the 9th century Norsemen established the thalassocratic Kingdom of the Isles, which included the Isle of Man. Magnus III, King of Norway from 1093 to 1103, reigned also as King of Mann and the Isles between 1099 and 1103. In 1266 the island became part of Scotland under the Treaty of Perth, after being dominated by Norway. After a period of alternating rule by the kings of Scotland and England, the island came under the feudal lordship of the English Crown in 1399. The lordship revested into the British Crown in 1765, but the island never became part of this 18th-century kingdom of Great Britain, nor of its successors, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the present-day United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It has always kept its inner self-government. In 1881 the Isle of Man parliament, Tynwald, became the first national legislative body in the world to give women the right to vote in a general election, although this sold married women. In 2016, UNESCO awarded the Isle of Man biosphere reserve status.Insurance and internet gambling each generate 17% of their GNP, followed by information and communications technologies and banking with 9% each. Internationally, the Isle of Man is known for the Isle of Man TT (Tourist Trophy) bicycle races and for the Manx cat, a breed of cat with no or short tails. The inhabitants (Manx) are considered a Celtic nation.

Source: Wikipedia