ëndrrat

Endrrat are experiences that occur during sleep and are typically perceived as visual images, sounds, emotions, and narratives. They are reported by many people and can range from ordinary to strange or emotionally intense. In Albanian, endrrat is the plural form of ëndër, meaning dream.

Most vivid dream activity occurs during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, but dreams can also occur in non-REM stages, especially in lighter sleep. A typical sleep cycle lasts about 90 minutes in adults, with REM periods increasing in duration as the night progresses. Dream recall is more likely when a person awakens during or soon after REM sleep, though people may remember dreams from non-REM periods as well.

Dream content varies widely across individuals and cultures and often reflects recent experiences, memories, emotions, and concerns. Various theories have been proposed about dream function: psychoanalytic perspectives link dreams to unconscious wishes, while contemporary neuroscience emphasizes memory consolidation, emotional processing, and threat simulation. There is no universal agreement on the symbolic meaning of specific dream elements, and interpretations remain highly subjective. Research also explores factors that influence recall, such as sleep quality, interruptions, and the use of dream journals, which can increase the amount of remembered dream content.