Venetian rule in the Ionian Islands to south, including their Greek and Italian names in parentheses: Cythera and Lefkada were additionally called ' or ' and " respectively by the Ottomans. During the Roman Empire, the Ionian Islands were variously part of the provinces of Achaea and Epirus vetus. These would form, with the exception of Cythera, the Byzantine theme of Cephallenia in the late 8th century. From the late 11th century, the Ionian Islands became a battleground in the Byzantine–Norman Wars. The island of Corfu was held by the Normans in 1081–1085 and 1147–1149, while the Venetians unsuccessfully besieged it in 1122–1123. The island of
Albanian Ionian Sea Coast of Humanity. The country of Albania is located in the southwest of the Balkan Peninsula and bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east, and Greece to the south and southeast. Most of the country is rugged and mountainous with the Albanian Alps located in the north, the Korab Mountains in the east, the Ceraunian Mountains in the south and the Skanderbeg Mountains in the center. Being positioned in the Northern Mediterranean Sea, the country's coast touches both, the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, forming the renowned Albanian Riviera. In contrast