Toptani family
The Toptani family was the leading Albanian noble family in central Ottoman Albania at the beginning of the 20th century. The Toptani family belonged to a small number of noble families appointed by the Ottomans who used local chieftains to control Ottoman Albania more easily. Essad Pasha Toptani, the head of the family at the beginning of the 20th century, claimed that the family descended from the Thopia family. According to some sources, the name is derived from the word "top," which means cannon, as the family owned a cannon at a time when artillery was rare. Estates . The Toptani family initially lived in Krujë before moving to Tirana during the 17th century, when many sipahis moved from rural regions of the Ottoman Empire to cities. Their move from Krujë to Tirana probably contributed to the development of sharecropping in Albania. The Toptani family possessed around 50,000 hectares near Tirana and Durrës and remained one of the main landowners until the end of the Second World War. The 19th century house of the Toptani family situated in the center of Tirana was turned into a museum. Notable members. Notable members of the family include: