Year VIII, July – December 2023, 3-4

Frictions of the Franciscan missionaries in Albania with the local clergy and the Ottoman authorities in the first half of the 17th century

Rediscovering a report sent to the Congregation of the Propaganda
Fide provided material for scholar Italo Sarro to describe the true
relationship between the Albanian clergy and the missionary friars who arrived in the country in 1634.
Published for the first time, the following report displays a deep rift between the local clergy, who for over 150 years now had been able to keep alive the Catholic faith though amidst unaccountable problems and compromises of different kinds with the Ottoman rulers on the one hand, and the Franciscans missionaries on the other. The latter had been sent to Albania by Pope Urban VIII to aid the local bishops and priests in their work. It is evident though that Fr Cherubino da Trento, deputy prefect of the mission also had a special assignment – that of controlling and reporting back to Rome on the situation in Albania. In fact, he underscores that surviving Christianity in Albania is already a miracle, but on the other hand highlights certain unacceptable aspects of the behaviour of the Albanian bishop Frang Bardhi. According to the Italian missionary, Msgr Bardhi acted unfairly by annexing the church in Barbullush which, in reality, belonged to the archbishopric of Tivar. In his report, Fr Cherubino also recounts his imprisonment and the questioning by the Ottoman authorities and how they tried to convert the Italian friars to Islam.

Early Albanian vocabulary from the perspective of present-day philological and etymological research

As it can be evinced by its title, the following essay acquaints the
auditory with the object and the goals that the authors pursue in this study. In fact, it has to do with the linguistic-philological and etymological gathering, organization, classification and analysis of the historical vocabulary of Albanian, in exactly the way in which the authors sampled such lexicon as part of the early culture of Albanian writing (15th – 18th centuries) that is known so far.
By ignoring in the title at least – and as it is to be expected in such a case – the time span of such a project, the authors would also like to add in advance that the following vademecum is not, however, designed to simply unfold before scholars some general theoretical and methodic considerations and criteria of how in the possibly near future the historic lexicon of Albanian can and must be laid out and studied, but primarily to introduce specific research steps which are outlined and followed in the implementation of the long-term project “Digital Philological-Etymological Dictionary of Early Albanian” i.e., “Digitales, philologisch-etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altalbanischen”, 2018-2024 (<https://www.dpwa.gwi. uni-muenchen.de/>), under the auspices of the Albanological Center of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (1. Modul – Demiraj; 2. Modul – Hackstein).

A General Survey on Vepra Pijore (1907-1946)
(continues from issues 1-2, 2023)

Vepra Pijore was an association of the Catholic Clergy, founded
in the Saverian Seminary in Shkodra in 1907. The association was created to serve the propose of publishing and distributing useful works such as calendars, novels, history books, hagiography studies, translation of books on religion etc. Standing for Pious Works, the Vepra Pijore formed part of the Albanian National Awakening as it contributed to the national question, to the enriching and purification of the language from Ottoman loans. It also lay the groundwork to the literary Albanian by continually ameliorating
phonetics and graphemes used in its publications in time. The main supporter of the Vepra Pijore was the printing press “Zoja e Papërlyeme”, in Shkodra. The foundation of the Vepra Pijore was the result of the ceaseless efforts of a group of clergymen who managed to publish a collection of 44 works spanning difficult years in Albanian history. Fr. Shtjefën Zadrima, S.I., creator of such project along with Fr. Francesco Genovizzi, S.I., its founder and several other co-operators and benefactors made possible the publication of such collection, which contributed to Albanian literature, history, archaeology and religion.

Modernist features in Ernest Koliqi’s short stories

The following paper aims to shed light on the creative method
used by Ernest Koliqi in composing his short stories, as after his fifty-yearlong exclusion from Albanian literary historiography, his work is back to Albanian literature. The internal dynamics of literature arguably need concepts of modern literary theory to ensure efficient development of literary thought in the present-day freedom. It has been noted by scholars since the very beginning that Koliqi is a founder of modern Albanian prose, but what supports such claim? Has it stood the test of time? Utilizing this approach, the
authors intend to offer our point of view on these issues of special  importance for Albanian literature. By analysing specific short  stories from the collections “The Shadow of the Mountains” (1929) and “Flags’ Merchant”, (1935) the authors highlight in this essay specific technical elements of Koliqi’s short prose which bring it closer to the poetics of modernist prose. The authors have used a comparative approach regarding Koliqi’s literary poetics as well
as an analytical approach for Koliqi’s development as a prose writer.

Gjergj Fishta’s comedy Patuku’s tricks as a textual “trick” for the introduction of Molière to the Albanian audience.

The article aims to describe, analyze, and interpret Molière’s comedy Les fourberies de Scapin adapted by Gjergj Fishta as Patuku’s tricks through a parallel approach. When the most important author of French classicism and Gjergj Fishta, one of the most prominent  writers in our literary tradition meet, though born centuries apart, it is normal to believe that such encounter can potentially produce a discussion of literary interest. Over a long period of time, the readership and critics alike have pointed out the importance of this translation and the translator himself who allowed a French author to reach an audience otherwise far from the French milieu. Throughout this article, the echo of some researchers’ opinions on Fishta’s orientation towards Molière is addressed, including the importance he gave to the main character of this comedy, as a playwright and stage director. The text translated by Fishta in  Albanian as Dredhít e Patukut is also examined, along with the many transformations it undergoes in its adaptation, either in terms of plot, dramatic action, characters, or language. Based on the changes in the plot lines, the removal and addition of various characters, the changes in stage directions and the dialogues of the original text compared with its adaptation, it can be concluded that the original text served Fishta more as a paratext, on which he relied to build an almost new comedy, which would entertain Albanian audience.

The temporary government of Vlora and the secularization of public education. An analytical approach focused on the area of Elbasan.

The foundation of a centralized and secularized public education
was an important undertaking in the newly independent Albania. It aimed at the rejection of the power of the religious authority which was both much heterogenic and dividing at the same time for the plans lying ahead of the new Albanian state.
In fact, the founding fathers wanted Albanian subjects to perceive the new state as lay and unifying; it could not possibly belong to any religion in particular. What ensued was the confirmation of the power of the new state over all other competitors.
The Temporary Government of Vlora extended secularization to different fields, including public education. Such process constitutes the fulcrum of the following study. The first part is a short history of the de-ottomanisation of public administration, whereas the second focuses on the implementation of such policy in Elbasan and the reaction of local society, considering such town as a case study. Intertwining theoretical and practical analysis against a cross-cultural approach highlights the salient features of the study.

The beginnings and the main problems of the Communist regime in Albania from November 1944 to October 1945.

The beginnings of Communist rule in Albania during November
1944-August 1945, were full of challenges. The main, however, was that of understanding how to run the country through detailed information on every district where the Communist power had been established by now. Over such period the first frictions showed up among districts’ leaders who were trying to take over more and more responsibilities in an attempt to earn praise from the Central Committee of the Albanian Communist Party. In the international relations of Albania, it seems that the principal problems were
the relations with the western allies (Great Britain and USA) and above all, the complicated relations with Greece, with the latter being at the focus of the leadership’s attention until 1949. In order to secure the newly seized power, the Albanian Communist Party focused on three tenets: first, information on the internal situation; second, the identification through information of all those who were or would be considered potential elements against the Albanian Communist Party; third, striking hard all those who were identified as opponents to the party or, would potentially be against the party.