The 41st International Seminar on Albanian Language, Literature, and Culture, with the main themes of “Albanian in Danger” and “Albanian Literature and Interculturalism”, began its proceedings on August 14.
The seminar, which is the largest and most important gathering for Albanology, has attracted the attention of hundreds of Albanian and foreign scholars in the field.
The seminar will continue its sessions until August 25.
The director of the seminar, Bardh Rugova, told Radio Free Europe that 120 participants will learn the Albanian language.
“Albanian has an unfavorable status in countries where it is a minority, and speakers of the second and third generation of Albanian in the diaspora are gradually becoming semi-speakers. Albanian departments worldwide, influenced by the Bologna System and a change in paradigm, and perhaps the definition of academia itself, are decreasing and shrinking, and we are not doing anything,” Rugova said.
According to him, even in Kosovo, instead of projects to enhance the value of Albanology, efforts are often focused on their degradation. The seminar, he said, is an event that occasionally raises alarms about this issue.
Qerim Qerimi, the rector of the University of Pristina “Hasan Prishtina”, emphasized that the organization of this seminar is not only special for the university but for all of Kosovo.
“I have a deep belief that the presentations and discussions during the sessions that will be held in the next two weeks will highlight important study issues and will showcase astonishing research results, highlighting our scientific achievements, which I believe are entirely comparable and measurable with others,” Qerimi stressed.
At the opening ceremony, Minister of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation Arbërie Nagavci emphasized that her institution is committed to offering continuous support for organizing such events.
“Our language, although it may seem like the language of a small country, continues to be of interest to researchers and linguists all over the world,” she declared.
In an impact characterized by globalization and technological advancements, the importance of language preservation has never been more critical, said the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Kosovo, Nicholas Abbott.
Speaking to Radio Free Europe, seminar director Bardh Rugova revealed that the largest number of participants are from Poland, Austria, Germany, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Romania, Serbia, the United Kingdom, Greece, and Arbëresh from Italy.
The arrival of “an Arnaut from Syria” is also expected, he told Radio Free Europe.
During the seminar, foreigners will be able to participate in courses at three levels for learning the Albanian language.
The seminar will feature presentations, scientific references, lectures by international scholars and Albanologists from various countries.
Throughout this year, the organizers have also given importance to didactic and cultural activities, starting with visits to cultural and scientific institutions, collections of folk costumes and filigree, concerts by Arbëresh singers, Arbëresh dramas, excursions, and traditional foods.
The Language Seminar was established in 1974, but its activities were interrupted in 1991 by the then-Serbian authorities.
The seminar resumed its work in Pristina in 2000 after two of its sessions in 1995 and 1996 were held in Tirana.
