Programme

October 3
Session I (09.00 – 12.30)
Aula Magna (University of Zadar)
Chair: Petar Vrankić

Greetings

Francesco Altimari (University of Cosenza)

Features of the Albanian dialect of Istria in the
manuscripts of Pietro Stancovich (1771-1851).

Mirta Tomas / Habuš Ivan Boško (University of

Zadar)
The identity of Borgo Erizzo in Shime
Deshpali’s poetry.

Discussion

Coffee Break

Andrey N. Sobolev (University of St Petersburg)

The language in Albanian-Slavic symbiotic
societies in the past and present.

Persida Asllani (University of Tirana)

The literary works of Shime Deshpali – memory
and remembrance of a diaspora.

Discussion

1
Session II (16.00 – 17.30)
Aula Magna (University of Zadar)
Chair: Francesco Altimari

Persida Lazarević Di Giacomo (University of

Studies Chieti)
With the people of Hormovë: The encounter
of Dositej Obradović with Albania and the
Albanians.

Andi Rëmbeci (University of Tirana)

The circulation of Enlightenment ideas in
Albania during the 18th century. Three
philosophical manuscripts written in Greek by
Teodor Kavaljoti (1718-1789); Jorgo
Sugdhuri (1645-1725); Anastas Papavasilopuli
(1670-1750).

Luçjan Bedeni (Marubi National Museum of

Photography)
For further information: [email protected], www.shejzat.com

The journey of Pietro Marubbi from Zadar to

Shkodër.

Discussion

2
Session III (09.00-12.30)

October 4
Aula Magna (University of Zadar)
Chair: Nedjeljka Balić Nižić

Lucia Nadin (Venice)

Flows and migrations of Albanian
clergymen to Venice in the 15th century.
The unknown role played by bodies for the
Church renovation and political strategies.

Petar Vrankić (University of Augsburg)

Croatian missionaries (Franciscans and
Dominicans) from Dalmatia and Bosnia serving
in Albania from the pre-Ottoman era to the
present day.

Discussion

Coffee Break

José M. Floristán (University Complutense,

Madrid)
An appeal of the people of Albania, Bosnia,
Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro to the
Spanish king Philip III for military help (1612-
1614).

Marco Moroni (Marche Polytechnic University,

Ancona)
Albanian migrations towards Romagna, Marche
and Abruzzo between the 14th and the 16th
centuries.

Discussion

3
Session IV (16.00-17.30)
Aula Magna (University of Zadar)
Chair: Matteo Mandalà

Italo Sarro (Rome)

Albanian refugees in Lazio and in Istria in
chronicles and history.

Ardian Ndreca (Urbaniana Pontifical University,

Rome)
An unknown manuscript from the end of the
19th century in the Archive of Propaganda Fide.

Giovanni Caniato (State Archive of Venice)

Border lands. Port structures and coastal
fortifications from Dalmatia to the Albania
Veneta in the Venetian archive records.

Discussion
For further information: [email protected], www.shejzat.com

In the afternoon: a guided tour in the

neighbourhood Arbanas, Zadar.

4
Session V (09.00 – 13.00)

October 5
Aula Magna (University of Zadar)
Chair: Lucia Nadin

Matteo Mandalà (University of Palermo)

Archaism in the Arbëresh symbolic system
– The case of the Lament over the death
of Lazarus.

Andrea Pelizza (State Archive of Venice)

Italian general Alberto Pariani (1876-1955) and
his personal archive regarding Albanian history.

Evalda Paci (Academy for Albanological Studies,

Tirana)
The history of the Albanian Catholic Church in
the notes of Msgr Karl Pooten. Prelates and
important ecclesiastic provinces.

Discussion

Coffee Break

Gëzim Gurga (University of Palermo)

Albanian Consuetudinal Laws in scientific
research, literary fiction and media portrayal.

Arben Ndreca (Rome)

Scanderbeg in the Pleasant Talk of Slavic
People and the immense contribute of Fr
Andrija Kačić-Miošić to the epic literature of the
Southern Slavs.

Discussion

Closing remarks: Ardian Ndreca & Matteo Mandalà

5
Albanian Sounds in Zara
Two Concerts

3 October 2019 at 19.30

Brothers Bersa Concert Hall

in Rector’s Palace University of Zadar

Bardh Jakova – accordeon

Suite from the opera “Mrika” by Prenkë Jakova
– Arrangement by Kolec Gajtani
Suite Classic Balkan – Medley

Zorja Trio – voices

Potpourri – Albanian and Croatian Songs

Paolo Marzocchi - piano

Five Albanian Folksongs

6
5 October 2019, 19.30

Brothers Bersa Concert Hall

in Rector’s Palace University of Zadar

Anna Stratigò
Voice and Guitar
Maria De Filippo
Voice

PARALITURGICAL SONG
Who is this lady? – only voices

A WAR SONG
Like the Wings (Hymn of Victory) –
accompanied on guitar

LOVE ARIAS
Aria e Skamandilit (The aria of the
handkerchief) – only voices
Moj ti zemër! (Oh my sweetheart!) – only voices

LOVE SONGS ARBËRIA- ALBANIA

Mixed Songs – accompanied on guitar
Aria Piruks – accompanied on guitar
Vemi na vemi – accompanied on guitar

7
SONGS TO THE VALLJA
Vallja from Acquaformosa – only voices
Vallja from Frascineto – only voices

NEW COMPOSITIONS
Don’t leave! - voice and piano

Balkan Bop Trio (Jazz)

Markelian Kapidani
Piano
Davide Liberti
Bass
Gaetano Fasano
Drums

8
 Symbiosis
on the shores of the
Adriatic sea
Encounters and dialogues
among cultures

Abstracts of the lectures to be held

Francesco Altimari (University of Calabria)

Features of the Albanian dialect of Istria in the

manuscripts of Pietro Stancovich (1771-1851).
Manuscripts of Istrian - born scholar Pietro
Stancovich (1771-1851) are treasured in the library
of the University of Pola. The few linguistic records
of the Albanian spoken in Istria that the scholar
noted down have been analysed in order to highlight
the characteristics of such Albanian dialect. Still
alive around the 1850s, the Albanian community in
Parenzo (Cro. Poreč), Istria was well-known.
From the analysis of the phonetic system of the
evangelical parable of the Prodigal Son written
in Istrian Albanian, and from the analysis of the
lexemes recorded comparatively with those in
other languages (in a dictionary which remained
incomplete), we might track back the origin of this
Albanian community to Hoti, generally speaking
Malësia e Madhe, on the border between Albania
and present-day Montenegro.
9
Persida Asllani (University of Tirana)

The works of Shime Deshpali – remembrance

and memory of a diaspora.
Diasporas constitute an invaluable literary and
cultural mulch of the Albanian literature. In the case
of the Arbëresh in Italy, for instance, their legacy
provided the necessary ground for the beginning
of the Albanian Awakening. However, the Arbanas
in Zara constitute a different facet of the same
phenomena. Though dating back to as far as about
300 years ago, the literary works created in this
milieu only appeared in the second half of the 20th
century.
Musician, poet and writer Shime Deshpali from the
Arbanas, along with playwright Josip Rela best
represent such diaspora in the Albanian literature
by bringing alive the spoken Albanian of Arbanas
mirrored from the detailed research in the spiritual
and psychological condition of the Albanian
community in Zara.
An educated musician, Deshpali’s poetry and his
prose as well lead towards an inner musicality. It
manifests a unique and unparalleled potential of
the Albanian language thanks to the subdialect of
Arbanas. So Deshpali’s works stand out among
other works in the Albanian literature in virtue of
their permeating musical undertones of the fragile
Arbanas subdialect asserting the collective memory
of this diaspora.

Luçjan Bedeni (Marubi National Museum of

Photography)

The journey of Pietro Marubbi from Zadar to

Shkodër.
A complete and accurate monograph on the history
of the first Albanian photo studio founded in Shkodër
10
by Pietro Marubbi seems to be inexistent.
What we know is more a family tale than information
from a book grounded on archival research. Such
gaps in the life of the artist are visible even in his
biography in the National Museum of Photography
“Marubi” in Shkodra.
Although the few published facts on his life scattered
in different records were gathered and taken in
consideration, his most recent biography still raises
a lot of questions.
The main purpose of research on the life and work
of Pietro Marubbi remains the revelation of one of
the less known moments in the artist’s life, that of
his journey from Piacenza, in Italy to Shkodra, in
Ottoman Albania.
The lecture gives an account of his stay in Zara. For
the first time, the documents published shed more
light on his sojourn here and the reasons which
pushed him into relocating from here to Shkodra.

Giovanni Caniato (State Archive of Venice)

Border lands. Port structures and coastal

fortifications from Dalmatia to the Albania
Veneta in the Venetian records.
Either illustrative or descriptive, Venetian records
treasured mainly in the State Archives of the old
capital of the Most Serene Republic bring alive
events of the past. In fact, they help reconstruct
the events of the geopolitics of the countries to the
east of the Adriatic Sea, and more generally, of
the countries by the Ionian Sea and of the Eastern
Mediterranean ranging from the 16th century to
the abdication of the Republic in 1797. The paper
introduces documents concerning above all the
coastal area of Southern Croatia, Montenegro and
Northern Albania.
11
José M. Floristán (University Complutense,
Madrid)

An appeal of the people of Albania, Bosnia,

Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro to the
Spanish king Philip III for military help (1612-
1614).
In 1612 the bishop of Vigevano, Lombardy forwarded
to the Spanish court in Madrid an appeal for military
support he had received through the Albanian
captain Giovanni Renesi from the people of Albania,
Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro for
an uprising against the Turkish Ottomans. Such
appeal was a continuation of the embassies which
had been already sent to several Christian princes
in the first decade of the 17th century. Patriarch
Jovan II of Peć and the voïvode Grdan of Nikšić
were apparently the main masterminds behind this
plan.

Gëzim Gurga (University of Palermo)

Albanian Consuetudinal Laws in scientific

research, literary fiction and media portrayal.
The Code of Albanian Consuetudinal Laws has
drawn the attention of foreign and Albanian scholars
for the past one hundred years. Inspired by different
interests, scholars have approached this subject
in different ways using various studying methods.
Such studies range from the ethno-cultural and
anthropological approaches of Positivist descent to
the politically correct Gender Studies of the present
day.
At the same time, literature, cinema, and theatre
have highlighted specific features of the Albanian
Consuetudinal Laws revealing a taste for the exotic.
The most salient are undoubtedly the vendetta and
12
the sworn virgins, upon which novel plots and films
have been based. The author analyses in this paper
the effects of such approaches and tries to measure
the distance between the aesthetical representation
of these phenomena and their anthropological aura.

Persida Lazarević Di Giacomo (University of

Studies “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara)

With the people of Hormovë: The encounter

of Dositej Obradović with Albania and the
Albanians.
In the fifth epistle of his autobiography Život i
priključenija (1788) – Life and Adventures, Serbian
illuminist Dositej Obradović (1739-1811) recalls
the making of landfall on the coast of Epirus of
the vessel he was on. Once landed, he started
making acquaintance of the people of Hormovë
and got to know better the geographical area. Of
such experience, Obradović gives a succinct and
varied but not prejudiced description. His encounter
with the Albanians witnesses to the intercultural
relationships among populations in the Balkan
peninsula in the second half of the 18th century.

Matteo Mandalà (University of Palermo)

Archaism in the Arbëresh symbolic system

– The case of the Lament over the death of
Lazarus.
Recent multidisciplinary studies on the Arbëresh
anthropologic legacy have resulted so far in a twofold
outcome. On the one hand, they have re-established
the connections with the results of previous studies
conducted by worthwhile anthropologists such as
Ernesto De Martino, while on the other, they have
13
brought together the scattered tiles of the mosaic of
the Arbëresh identity.
Some of these tiles are the paraliturgical customary
celebrations in the Oriental churches recalling the
ancient celebrations of the arrival of the spring,
otherwise known as the Great Time (Alb. Moti i
Madh).
An incomparable possibility for analysing
convergence and divergence with similar customs
especially popular with the Greeks and the Slavs,
such traditions bear witness to the Indo-European
roots of the Albanians.
Conceived as multidisciplinary research, this paper
analyses the paraliturgical tradition of the Lament
over the death of Lazarus. At present it exists in
the Arbëresh communities in Sicily but in the past
it was very popular with almost all the Arbëresh
communities in Southern Italy.

Marco Moroni (Polytechnic University of Marche,

Ancona)

Albanian migrations towards Romagna, Marche

and Abruzzo between the 14th and the 16th
centuries.
After the prolonged plague epidemics of the second
half of the 14th century, a continuous migration flow
started from the Balkan peninsula, and Albania
too, towards Italy. In its beginning, the Italian
regions targeted were Puglia, Abruzzo, Marche and
Romagna. Later on, other flows would head for the
Ionian coast of Italy and Sicily.
After having analysed the features and the
peculiarities of the Albanian migrations, this paper
focuses on the integration of the newly-arrived.
At the end, special attention is devoted to the
strategies of adaptation favouring the integration of
14
the Albanian migrants in the Italian society in the
15th and the 16th centuries.

Lucia Nadin (Venice)

Flows and migrations of Albanian clergymen to

Venice in the 15th century. The unknown role
played by bodies for the Church renovation and
political strategies.
Studying the presence of Albanian clergymen
amongst the ranks of the Venetian clergy during the
15th century has led to unknown before and rather
specific results. In the beginning, the exchange of
clergymen between the two Adriatic coasts was
direct and inspired by projects of ecclesiastical
renovation set in the urban background of the
turmoil caused by the Western Schism.
In addition, author Nadin thinks that the period of
the intense migrations triggered by the progress
of the Ottoman conquest in Europe must also be
interpreted as part of shrewd plans devised by well-
organised structures of Venetian politics.

Arben Ndreca (Rome)

Scanderbeg in the Pleasant Talk of Slavic

People and the immense contribute of Fr
Andrija Kačić-Miošić to the epic literature of the
Southern Slavs.
Razgovor ugodni slovinskoga naroda (1756; 1759)
remains to this day the most important work by Fr
Andrija Kačić-Miošić. The title Pleasant talk of Slavic
people introduces the theme of folk songs and tales.
However, in the second edition of this collection, a
large number of songs is devoted to Gjergj Kastrioti
– Scanderbeg, a real historical figure. This is when
15
the character of Scanderbeg first appeared in the
Croatian and later on in the Serbian literatures.
Widely celebrated in the Venetian, Italian and
Spanish territories, the figure of Scanderbeg had
become by now part of the literature of the Southern
Slavs as well – a debt largely owed to Kačić-Miošić.
The lecture attempts to focus on the reasons why
Kačić-Miošić chose to bring Scanderbeg’s deeds
alive. It also explores the events and the data that
possibly rekindled and maintained high the interest
of the Croatian poet in this prince and the Albanian
resistance against the Ottomans.

Ardian Ndreca (Urbaniana Pontifical University,

Rome)

An unknown manuscript from the end of the

19th century in the Archive of Propaganda Fide.
In his lecture, author Ndreca analyses an unknown
manuscript by Anton Melgushi Pepaj, a priest from
Mirdita. It was back in the 1870s when he sent
Propaganda Fide a collection of meditations and
church hymns adapted in Albanian from the works
of the renowned Italian Jesuit Paolo Segneri.
The first part of this manuscript contains 31
meditations; the second and the third parts consist
of teachings of Christian Doctrine and devotional
songs. Only recently discovered, the manuscript
is of an extraordinary importance, as it displays
a consolidated written Albanian as well as a high
register of the vocabulary used.
Lastly, the manuscript also tells that Rev. Melgushi
Pepaj was well aware that he was on a mission for
the enlightenment of his compatriots.

16
Evalda Paci (Centre for Albanological Studies,
Tirana)

The history of the Albanian Catholic Church in

the notes of Msgr Karl Pooten. Prelates and
important ecclesiastic provinces.
This paper focuses on the contribution of Msgr Karl
Pooten to the identification of the dioceses and to the
administrative subdivision of the Albanian Catholic
Church. Such notes represent a chronological slice
of the history of the Albanian church. They touch on
very important events in the life of the local church
including synods, councils and the pastoral and
intellectual activity of different prelates. Cited by
Msgr Pooten, prelates such as Pjetër Budi, Frang
Bardhi or Pjetër Bogdani marked the history of the
Albanian Catholic church after the death of Gjergj
Kastrioti Scanderbeg.
Another outstanding prelate that Msgr Pooten
focused on in his notes was Msgr Vincent Zmajević.
Apostolic visitor to Albania and supervisor of the
Council of Albania (1703), the figure of Zmajević is
one of the most cited in the notes of Msgr Pooten
along with additional information about his origin,
the family he was born into etc.
Author Paci maintains that the notes by Pooten
deserve to be studied more in-depth because of
their wealth of information about names of places
and the register of the language used.

Andrea Pelizza (State Archive of Venice)

Italian general Alberto Pariani (1876-1955) and

his personal archive regarding Albanian history.
Alberto Pariani (1876-1955) was a high-ranking
Italian military officer who fought both in the First
and the Second World Wars. After the First World
17
War he was assigned different tasks to Albania
including that of the re-organisation of the army of
the small Balkan country.
From 1936 to 1939 he marshalled the Headquarters
of the Italian Army and was Deputy War Minister.
One of the main collaborators of Benito Mussolini,
he carried out a deep reform in the Italian Army.
After being discharged on the verge of the outbreak
of the Second World War, Pariani was called back
into duty by Mussolini in the spring of 1943 and
appointed Viceroy to Albania.
Because of having joined the Italian Social Republic,
he was convicted in the aftermath for collaboration
with the Fascists but then acquitted. Soon after that,
he devoted himself to the local politics of Malcesine
in the province of Verona. Pariani led this township
from 1952 until his death. In 1971 his personal
archive was handed over to the State Archive of
Venice as a bequest. Enriched by notes reflecting
personal considerations on historical events, his
diaries mirror the activity of this important figure in
the Italian Army.

Andi Rëmbeci (History Department, University of

Tirana)

The circulation of Enlightenment ideas in

Albania during the 18th century. Three
philosophical manuscripts written in Greek by
Teodor Kavaljoti (1718-1789); Jorgo Sugdhuri
(1645-1725); Anastas Papavasilopuli (1670-
1750).
Studying manuscripts in Greek from the 18th
century at the Central State Archive in Tirana can
be highly beneficial to understanding the dynamics
of the development of several intricate cultural
movements in the Balkan peninsula during the
18
Ottoman rule.
This lecture focuses on three authors from that
time. The first is Teodor Anastas Kavaljoti, author
of Physics (Φυσική πραγματεία) and Metaphysics
(Μεταφυσική), both forming part of the Codex
Beratinus. The diffusion of Kavaljoti’s codices in
Romania, Albania and Greece demonstrate the
popularity of the New Academy of Voskopoja.
Not less important is Introduction to Logic (Εἰσαγωγὴ
Λογικῆς) by Jorgo Sugdhuri. Published in Vienna
(1792), this work is incomplete in the Codex
Beratinus. The ubication of copies of this book
speak loudly about the diffusion and the importance
it enjoyed.
After this work, in the Codex Beratinus follows
the General Compendium of the Application of
Logic by Anastas Papavasilopuli (Σύνοψις γενικὴ
τῆς λογικῆς ἕλξεως). The purpose of this book
sprang from the conviction that the diffusion of
knowledge along with philosophical thoughts would
have a bearing on the life of the individual and of
the community. Transposing such ideas into the
Ottoman territories did in fact influence the formation
of the nations in the Balkan region after the long
Sultanic isolation from the rest of Europe.
The lecture highlights the most salient features of
each of the abovementioned works.

Italo Sarro (Orvieto)

Albanian refugees in Lazio and in Istria in

chronicles and history.
The economic crisis which swept across Albania
between the end of the 14th century and the
beginning of the 15th century caused waves of
migration. What exacerbated such crisis was
the Ottoman conquest of the country. The new
19
occupants did not merely aim at the complete
subjugation of the Albanians but also pushed for
their conversion into Islam.
In order to achieve their purpose, the Ottomans
demolished churches, used their power and
systematic violence against the Roman Catholic
clergy and the believers. Another powerful weapon
in their hand was taxation, at times unlawfully
reiterated and very often at the discretion of the
local Ottoman dignitaries. Many Albanians complied
with such abuse and converted into Islam, others
preferred to flee the country in search of liberty
and a better life. However, this happened gradually
spanning centuries of Ottoman dominion.
In his lecture, scholar Italo Sarro dwells on the
detrimental journey of 32 households from Shkodra
in 1756 which were greeted in Pianiano, in the Papal
State and on the migration of another 18 households
from Hoti. Forced by the ravaging wars in 1833 they
demanded and attained the right to migrate to Istria,
back then part of the Habsburg Empire.

Andrey N. Sobolev (University of St Petersburg)

The language in Albanian-Slavic symbiotic

societies in the past and present.
The paper will discuss the mechanisms and
outcomes of the language contacts between the
local dialects of Albanian and Slavic in the framework
of some major theoretical issues of the Balkan
contact linguistics. The regions of ongoing contact
in Eastern Albania (Gollobordë area) and Southern
Montenegro (Mrkovići area) produced special
mutual  contact-induced changes at all structural
levels of Albanian and Southern Slavic dialects.
Contact-induced variation through time and space
reveals the general paths of language convergence
20
in the Balkan peninsula and the restrictions that
apply to such convergence.

Mirta Tomas / Habuš Ivan Boško (University of

Zadar)

The identity of Borgo Erizzo in Shime Deshpali’s

poetry.
The language and the literature of a nation define
its identity. However, historical and cultural
contingencies have not favoured the Albanian
dialect of Borgo-Erizzo to fashion an abundant
literary production.
Among the few literary works in this dialect stand
out Dawns and Dusks in Arbanas (Agimet e
parambromjet të Arbëneshit) and The truth (E
vërteta) by pedagogist, musician and composer
Shime Deshpalji.
In them attentive readers can detect the sentiments
of the poet towards his hometown and its inhabitants
as well as the peculiarities of the lifestyle of the
bygone days and of the then people. A sharp
observer, Deshpalji’s verses exude his capacity for
criticism on different aspects of artistic creativity
and that of the community he lived in. Written in
an Albanian mixed with the dialect of Borgo-Erizzo
and translated in Italian and Croatian, this lecture
analyses his poems revealing the flair of his verses
and the accolades he has long deserved.

Petar Vrankić (University of Augsburg)

Croatian missionaries (Franciscans and
Dominicans) from Dalmatia and Bosnia serving
in Albania from the pre-Ottoman era to the
present day.
The beginning of the relationship between the
21
Catholic church in the Croatian territories and the
Catholic church in the Albanian lands dates back to
the Middle Ages.
Tradition has it that Franciscans first appeared in
Albania when St Francis of Assisi on his journey
back from Siria (1219) stopped in Lezha and founded
here the first Franciscan monastery. Researchers
believe that the Franciscans monasteries on the
Adriatic and Ionian coasts in Albania formed part
of the Custodia Ragusina until 1402, and only
later became part of the independent Custodia
Dyrachina. On the other hand, the monasteries in
the Albanian mainland belonged to the independent
Franciscan province called Provincia Macedoniae.
In 1484 the Custodia Dyrachina joined the Provincia
Macedoniae. After the Ottoman conquest, this
Province was changed into Custodia Albaniae.
The number of the Albanian Franciscans grew fast
and not only their monasteries in their homeland but
also other monasteries in Dalmatia and Puglia were
full of Albanian friars.
In Dalmatia the Dominicans founded their first
monastery in Dubrovnik in 1215 whereas in Albania
in 1278, initially in Durrës and then in Shkodra and
Lezha.
However, during the Ottoman rule the number of
priests and monks in Albania dwindled. So, at the
end of the 18th century and throughout the 19th
century, many Croatian Catholic missionaries were
sent to serve in Albania.

22