Chabad Arrives in Albania

At the recent International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries, Albania was announced as the newest country on Chabad’s global map. Rabbi Yossi and Etka Fridman along with their son, Meir, will set up the first permanent Chabad House in the Balkan nation. They will serve its local Jewish community and the growing number of Jewish visitors who now pass through.

Jews have lived in Albania for about 2,000 years. Roughly two decades ago, the remains of an ancient synagogue were found in the coastal town of Saranda. But it’s the country’s more recent history that gives it a special place in Jewish memory. Besa, a pillar of Albanian culture, holds that a home belongs to G-d and to the guest, and that a host must do everything in his power to protect whoever is under his roof.

During the Holocaust, Albanians lived by that code. They sheltered Jews and hid them in their own homes. Albania came out of World War II as the only country in Europe with more Jews living there than before it began.

Decades of communist rule followed. Religious life was banned, and Albania’s Jews were cut off from Jewish communities in the rest of the world. Even so, a small and resilient community survived. The Fridmans plan to work alongside it to grow Jewish life and meet the needs of local residents.

“The Albanian concept of besa means you keep your promise to your guest no matter the cost,” Rabbi Fridman said. “During the Holocaust, they kept that promise to the Jewish people. We’ve come to build a home where every Jew who walks through the door is treated like family—the way Albania treated our people when it mattered most.”

Albania is changing fast. As the country develops, tourism has grown sharply, including many Israeli travelers. That has created new needs: kosher food, a synagogue, and a warm Jewish home for visitors far from their own. The country is known for its religious tolerance and for its respect toward Jews and Israel. The national devotion to the guest, so central to its identity, is still part of daily life.

The Fridmans will build up a community that held on through isolation and welcome travelers who come looking for a synagogue, a Shabbat meal, or simply a familiar face.

Nearly a century ago, Albanian families opened their doors to Jews with nowhere else to turn. Now a Jewish home is opening its doors in Albania—and the guest, once again, will be sacred.