Falling under Venetian and Ottoman dominion in the late Middle Ages, the modern nation state of Albania emerged in 1912 following its independence.

The summers are predominantly hot and dry, the winters relatively mild, and falls and springs mainly unstable, both in terms of precipitation and temperatures.

[4] The county features notable diversity with the landscape ranging from the snow-capped Albanian Alps in the north to the warm regions of Shkodra Lake and Adriatic Sea in the south and southwest.

While the Alps occupy the northern part of the territory, the population is concentrated mostly on the Mbishkodra plain, where the largest city is to be found, the cultural and economic centre of Shkodër.

It is limited to the counties of Kukës to the northeast and east, Lezhë to the southeast and south, the country of Montenegro in the north and the Adriatic Sea in the southwest.

The Albanian Alps, which extends in the north of the county toward Montenegro, is a primarily mountainous region with a high terrain.

The northern bound of the county forms a part of the European Green Belt, which serves as a retreat for endangered mammal and plant species.

[9] By religious affiliation, 44.84% were Muslim, 0.07% were Bektashi, 47.19% were Catholics, 0.45% were Orthodox, 0.02% were Evangelists, 0.02% were other Christians, 0.31% were believers without denomination, 0.14% were Atheists and 0.01% followed other religions.