[citation needed] The Zogu family’s roots are tied to the Mati region of Albania, where they established prominence following the Ottoman conquest over four centuries ago.

An Ottoman official, Gazi Bey, sought to humiliate the families of Mati by demanding their unmarried daughters perform degrading acts.

It derives from the warrior’s village, Zogaj, with the addition of the Turkish suffix “-oglu,” meaning “son of.” This naming custom was typical under Ottoman rule.

Another, less substantiated theory suggests a connection to a German crusader duke (Herzog) who settled in Mati and adopted the name "Zog," but this narrative is largely dismissed as speculative.

[1] The most famous member of the dynasty is Zog I, who in 1928 proclaimed himself King of the Albanians and ruled until he was deposed by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy following the Italian invasion of 1939.