and Mali i Shejtit to the east, Arst in the north and Ndërfanda in the south, with their centre in Blinisht. In the fifteenth century it is recorded that Koja Zaharia had received lordship over Sapa and Dagnum from the papacy following his conversion to Roman Catholicism from Serbian Orthodoxy in 1414. The Zaharia would continue to rule over much of Zadrima during the medieval and often came into land disputes and conflicts with the Dukagjini whose influence had been primarily limited to Lezha and its environs. Zadrima and Lezha would eventually fall under Venetian occupation. The demographic history of Zadrima is one of heterogeneity and diversity in regards to geographic origins. The old population of the region, descended from the medieval inhabitants and communities of Zadrima, has largely diminished and represents a negligible percentage of modern families. For example, in the seventeenth century only a handful of native households remained in the village of Mjeda, such as that of Lazër Mati Koja which was descended from the old Zaharia family through Koja's son, Leka. The Ottoman occupation of the region resulted in mass depopulation and movement out of Zadrima, explaining the great reduction in the region's native population. From the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries onwards, Zadrima would come to be repopulated by a number of families and brotherhoods arriving from Malësia. Examples include a number of the brotherhoods from Gjatore, a quarter in Kallmet, whose ancestors arrived from Vukël in Kelmend, as well as the Lazër-Ilaj of Pistull who are believed to have come from Hoti. Numerous families from Mirdita and Puka also settled in Zadrima due to their close proximity to the region, which offered better living conditions due to its lowland terrain. Migrations from other nearby territories would also take place, examples including the Imeraj of Paçram who descend from the Çelaj of Bushat and the Ranxa of Pistull who arrived from Melgushë. See also Mirditë Malësia Notes Sources Albanian ethnographic regions Geography of Lezhë County Geography of Shkodër County Historical regions in Albania