Palasë

Palasë (also Paljasa, from Greek: Παλάσα, Palasa) is a village close to the Llogara National Park in the Albanian Riviera. It is located in the municipality of Himarë (13 kilometres from the town), in the Vlorë County, Albania. The inhabitants of Palasë speak mainly a variant of the Himariote Greek dialect, and partly the Tosk Albanian dialect.

History

In classical antiquity there was a settlement of the Chaones, one of the three major ancient Greek tribes of Epirus, named Palaesti (Greek: Παλαίστη). On January 4, 48 BCE during his pursuit of Pompey, Julius Caesar landed in Palaeste (modern Palase).

In 1720, the villages of Himara, Palasa, Ilias, Vuno, Pilur and Qeparo refused to submit to the Pasha of Delvina.

Until the 1750s Himarë was composed of more than 50 villages, but by the end of the 1780s it comprised only 16, situated by the seashore from Saranda to Palasë. Later on, with Ali Pasha's defeat, the region of Himara shrunk to only seven villages. In September 1916, the provinces of Himarë and Tepelenë became part of the Vlorë prefecture and were placed under the control of the Italian armed forces. The city of Himarë became the official capital of the region and was responsible for the administration of the traditionally Orthodox coastal villages of Palasë, Dhërmi, Kudhës, Qeparo, Vuno and Iljas. However each village retained its own identity, despite falling under the municipality of Himarë.

Palas

A palas (from the Late Latin palatium = imperial court via the Old French pales or palais) is a German term for the imposing or prestigious building of a medieval Pfalz or castle that contained the great hall. Such buildings appeared during the Romanesque period (11th to 13th century).

Thanks to 19th-century studies of castles ("castle science"), the term palas is often used as a generic term used for covered halls in castles; however, the architectural and historical use of the term is restricted by other authors to the Romanesque hall building.

Design

The stone hall of a palas has an elongated rectangular floor plan. Frequently, the building has cellars or is provided with a basement. The main floors (usually two, sometimes even more) are well lit by arched windows that are often grouped to form arcades. Rich architectural sculpture is often found here in order to enhance the prestige of the hall. The great hall, located on the first floor, occupies the entire floor area of the building and is reached by a separate staircase. Often, the hall is divided by a row of columns into two aisles, but can also be vaulted. Multi-storey palas buildings may also contain several superimposed halls. The great hall was used mainly in the summer, because it was difficult to heat, whilst in winter the cabinet (Kemenate) was the preferred living room. The heated area was often referred to as the dürnitz and usually located on the ground floor, below the great hall. The palas was usually covered by a gabled roof.

Palas, Kohistan

Palas is a valley in Kohistan District, North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan.

Fauna

Among the birds found here are western tragopans and Himalayan monals. Several surveys on other wildlife, including one on musk deer by Naeem Ashraf Raja, have also been compiled by experts.

References

External links

Coordinates: 35°06′N 73°00′E / 35.100°N 73.000°E / 35.100; 73.000