Geo answer
Today’s Geo Quiz sends us searching for a country where people are searching for answers…not to the Geo Quiz, but to deeper things.
We’re looking for a small republic in southeastern Europe. It was once a Stalinist dictatorship. That government outlawed all forms of religion and worship. Now it’s a free country. And people there are rediscovering their Muslim and Christian heritage.
The Adriatic Sea lies to the west. This country’s land borders are with Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Greece.
Here’s another hint. The locals call their homeland Shqiperia in their language. And that language is unique.
Some say it’s descended from the ancient Illyrians and Dacians. But no one can be sure.
So where are we?
The answer to today’s Geo Quiz — the world’s first officially atheist country — is Albania.
The Balkan nation’s Communist leaders banned all religious organizations in 1967.
Anyone caught worshiping, even in private, suffered severe penalties.
But religion rose as Communism fell in the early 1990s.
The story you just read is available for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll get us one step closer to our goal of raising $25,000 by June 14. We need your help now more than ever!