[1] The administrative unit of Shishtavec contains the villages Borje, Oreshkë, Cërnalevë and Shishtavec which are populated by the Muslim Slavic-speaking Gorani people,[2] whereas the villages of Novosej, Kollovoz and Shtrezë are inhabited by Albanians.

[3][4] The village of Shishtavec consists of around 300 households with over 1,800 Gorani inhabitants.

The area is part of the wider Gora region, most of it lies on the other side of the border in Kosovo.

[6] At the same time, the population of the two Gorani-inhabited administrative units of Zapod and Shishtavec stood at 3,671 in 9 Gorani and 5 Albanian villages.

Roughly 250 acres (100 ha) of potatoes are planted annually in Shishtavec.