The Italo-Albanians or Arbëreshë are an ethnic minority living in Southern Italy and Sicily. They settled there in several waves between the 15th and 18th centuries due to invasions by the Ottoman Empire of the Balkans. Migrations in the early 20th century lead to about half the Arbëreshë villages becoming depopulated, and putting the population at risk for cultural disappearance. To quote a letter from 2004 from one cousin still in San Nicola dell'Alto to another in the United States. "The reason the Inglese family left for the face of America is simple to understand, to search for fortune, and for work as so many others did in that period of time." The diaspora can be found today in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Uruguay, and the United States. The project welcomes membership from anyone with Arbëreshë roots. The project will utilize Y DNA, mtDNA, and autosomal DNA in an attempt to discover family ties, and deep ancestral origins.