Begin with a place, not only a surname
The most useful first fact is usually the ancestral village. The same surname may appear in several communities, while the same village may be written differently in Greek, Albanian, Italian, English and immigration documents. Search for local and official forms without assuming that one spelling is the only correct one.
Records worth checking
Depending on the period and village, evidence may include civil registrations, Orthodox baptism and marriage registers, cemetery inscriptions, school records, census material, property documents, passports, passenger lists and naturalisation files. Access and survival vary, so no single collection should be treated as complete. FamilySearch provides a browsable Albania Census, 1930 collection that includes some Gjirokastër County records, but coverage must be checked inside the collection.
A repeatable process
Record the person’s full name, approximate dates, religion, occupation and relatives. Identify the village and every spelling used for it. Work backwards through records, cite the archive and image number for each finding, and compare documents with clearly labelled oral testimony. Keep a log of unsuccessful searches.
Privacy and responsible genealogy
Do not publish addresses, identity documents or sensitive details about living people without clear permission. Treat online family trees as clues rather than evidence, respect archive and parish access rules, and distinguish documented facts from family tradition.