Arvanites (,
Arvanitika:
Arbëreshë / Αρbε̰ρεσ̈ε̰ or Arbërorë) are a population group in
Greece who traditionally speak
Arvanitika, a dialect of the
Albanian language. They settled in Greece during the late
Middle Ages and were the dominant population element of some regions of the
Peloponnese and
Attica until the 19th century. Arvanites today self-identify as
Greeks as the result of a process of assimilation, and do not consider themselves to belong to Albania or the Albanian nation. They call themselves Arvanites (in Greek) and Arbëror (in their language). The Arvanite communities in northwestern Greece call themselves
Shqiptar (the same used by
Albanians of Albania). Arvanitika is in a state of
attrition due to
language shift towards
Greek and large-scale internal migration to the cities and subsequent intermingling of the population during the 20th century.