Eqrem Çabej () (6 August 1908 – 13 August 1980) was an
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
n historical linguist and scholar who, through the publication of numerous studies gained a reputation as a key expert in research on
Albanian language
Albanian ( endonym: or ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is spoken by the Albanians in the Balkans and by the Albanian diaspora, which is generally concentrated in the Americas, Eur ...
, literature,
ethnology and
linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Ling ...
.
Educational background
He was born in
Eskişehir,
Hüdavendigâr vilayet
The Hüdavendigâr Vilayet ( ota, ولايت خداوندگار, Vilâyet-i Hüdavendigâr) or Bursa Vilayet after its administrative centre, was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire. At the beginning of the 20th c ...
and completed his elementary education in
Gjirokastër
Gjirokastër (, sq-definite, Gjirokastra) is a city in the Republic of Albania and the seat of Gjirokastër County and Gjirokastër Municipality. It is located in a valley between the Gjerë mountains and the Drino, at 300 metres above sea ...
, southern
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
, in 1921.
He then left Albania, at the age of 12, and moved to
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
to continue his studies: first in St. Pölten then in
Klagenfurt
Klagenfurt am WörtherseeLandesgesetzblatt 2008 vom 16. Jänner 2008, Stück 1, Nr. 1: ''Gesetz vom 25. Oktober 2007, mit dem die Kärntner Landesverfassung und das Klagenfurter Stadtrecht 1998 geändert werden.'/ref> (; ; sl, Celovec), usually ...
(1923–26), where he obtained his bachelor's degree. He went to University first in
Graz
Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popula ...
(1927) and later in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
(1930–33). Attending lectures of renowned language scholars such as
Paul Kretschmer, Karl Patsch,
Nikolai Trubetzkoy
Prince Nikolai Sergeyevich Trubetzkoy ( rus, Никола́й Серге́евич Трубецко́й, p=trʊbʲɪtsˈkoj; 16 April 1890 – 25 June 1938) was a Russian linguist and historian whose teachings formed a nucleus of the Prague Schoo ...
, and
Norbert Jokl, Çabej developed, under Jokl's guidance, an intense interest in the historical development of
Albanian language. Before returning to Albania at the end of 1933, he submitted, in the University of Vienna, the ''Italoalbanische Studien'' (''Italo-Albanian Studies'' in English) as his doctoral dissertation.
Career as an educator and scholar
Home after a 13-year absence, the 25-year-old Çabej returned to Albania and spent five years as a secondary school teacher in:
Shkodra,
Elbasan, Gjirokastër and
Tirana
Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
. After Albania's occupation by
Mussolini's Italy on 7 April 1939, he was sent away from Albania and confined to Rome, Italy. In 1942, he received an invitation to join the newly formed Institute of Albanian Studies, which he declined, and, in 1943, was offered the position of minister of education in the government headed by Prime Minister
Rexhep Mitrovica which he refused also. Returning to Albania in the spring of 1944, he continued to work as a teacher and, in 1947, was appointed as a researcher in Instituti i Shkencavet (The Institute of Sciences) in Tirana, the precursor institution of the
University of Tirana. From 1952 to 1967, he served as a professor of the history of
Albanian and historical
phonology
Phonology is the branch of linguistics that studies how languages or dialects systematically organize their sounds or, for sign languages, their constituent parts of signs. The term can also refer specifically to the sound or sign system of a ...
. In 1972, he became a founding member of
Academy of Sciences of Albania. He worked as a researcher at the Institute of Linguistics and Literature in Tirana until the end of his life.
Eqrem Çabej died in a clinic in Rome, Italy, a week after his 72nd birthday.
Works and tributes
Among Eqrem Çabej's numerous works dealing with Albanian and its history include:
* ''Hyrje në historinë e gjuhës shqipe'' (Introduction to the History of the Albanian language; Tirana 1958; reprinted 2008)
* "Parashtesat e gjuhës shqipe" (Prefixes in Albanian) in collaboration with Aleksandër Xhuvani, 1956
* "Prapashtesat e gjuhës shqipe" (Suffixes in Albanian) in collaboration with Aleksandër Xhuvani, 1962
* "Die älteren Wohnsitze der Albaner auf der Balkanhalbinsel im Lichte der Sprache und der Ortsnamen" ''Atti dil VII Congresso Internazionale di Scienze Onomastiche'' 7, 1962: 241–251. (Reprinted in Albanian "Vendbanimi i hershëm i shqiptarëve në Gadishullin Ballkan në dritën e gjuhës e të emrave të vendeve." in Rexhep Ismajli, et al., eds., ''Studime Shqiptare: Vepra të zgjedhura Prishtinë'', Akadëmia e Shkencave dhe e Artëve, 2008: 515–524.)
* ''"
Meshari
''Meshari'' ( Albanian for "Missal") is the oldest published book in Albanian. The book was written by Gjon Buzuku, a Catholic cleric in 1555. The book contains 188 pages and is written in two columns. ''Meshari'' is the translation of the main ...
" i
Gjon Buzuku
Gjon Buzuku (15 March 1499 – 9 October 1577) was an Albanian Catholic priest who wrote the first known printed book in Albanian.
Gjon Buzuku according to the elders wrote the Missal in the village of Brisk Posht in the Shestan - Krajë region, ...
t'' (The Missal of Gjon Buzuku) a critical edition (Tirana 1962–68)
* "Einige Grundprobleme der alteren albanischen Sprachgeschichte," ''Studia Albanica'' 1 (1964): 69–89.
* ''Fonetika historike e shqipes'' (Historical Phonology of Albanian). Tirana 1968.
* ''Shumësi i singularizuar në gjuhën shqipe'' (The Singularized Plural in Albanian) 1967.
* "Mbi disa izoglosa të shqipes me sllavishten", ''Studime Filologjike'' 2 (1976): 63–74.
* ''Studime etimologjike në fushë të shqipes'' (Etymological Studies in Albanian). 7 vols. Tirana: Akademia et Shkencave e Republikës Popullore të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dhe i Letërsisë, 1976–2014.
** Vol. II: A–B. – 1976, 617 p.;
** Vol. I: ''Hyrje'' (Introduction) – 1982, 343 pages;
** Vol. III: C–D. – 1987, 565 p.;
** Vol. IV: Dh–J. – 1996, 624 p.;
** Vol. VI: N–Rr. – 2002, 522 p.;
** Vol. VII: S–Zh. – 2006, 434 p.;
** Vol. V: K–M. – 2014, 478 pages – )
His articles and monographs were collected into the 9-volume ''Studime gjuhësore'' (Linguistic Studies).
Prishtina
Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians an ...
: 1976–7. The
Eqrem Çabej University
Ekrem is a Turkish form of the Arabic given name Akram, meaning "kind," "generous," or "benevolent." Sometimes rendered Eqrem in Albania. Notable people with these names include:
Ekrem
* Ekrem Akurgal (1911–2002), Turkish archaeologist
* E ...
in Gjirokastër is named in his honor.
See also
*
Shaban Demiraj
Shaban Demiraj (1920–2014) was an Albanian albanologist, linguist, professor at the University of Tirana from 1972–1990, and chairman of the Academy of Sciences of Albania during the period of 1993-1997.
Life
Demiraj was born on 1 January ...
*
Androkli Kostallari
Androkli Kostallari (1922–1992) was an Albanian linguist and scholar. He was one of the central figures of the Albanian language studies and founding member and director of the Albanian Institute of History and Linguistics, and later Institute ...
*
Mahir Domi
Mahir Domi (1915–2000) was an Albanian linguist, professor, and academic. He was one of the organizers and main participants of the Albanian Orthography Congress, and member of the follow up commission responsible for deploying the orthographi ...
*
Idriz Ajeti
Idriz Ajeti (26 June 1917 – 13 February 2019) was an Albanologist from Kosovo and one of the main researchers and authorities on the Albanian language studies of post World War II. He was involved for a long period in the academic life of the ...
References
Further reading
*
Akademia e Shkencave e Shqipërisë
The Academy of Sciences of Albania ( sq, Akademia e Shkencave e Shqipërisë), founded in 1972, is the most important scientific institution in Albania. In the 1980s, several research institutes began at the University of Tirana were transferred ...
(2008) (in
Albanian), Fjalor Enciklopedik Shqiptar 1 (Albanian encyclopedia),
Tirana
Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
,
*
*
*
*Wąsik, Zbigniew (1985). ''Profesor Dr Eqrem Çabej (1908–1980), wybitny filolog, twórca współczesnego językoznawstwa albańskiego'' ''
rofessor Dr. Eqrem Çabej (1908–1980), Renowned Philologist, Creator of Modern Albanian Linguistics', Acta Universitatis Wratislaviensis 1985/IX, pages 99–114.
External links
Eqrem Çabej biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cabej, Eqerem
1908 births
1980 deaths
People from Eskişehir
People from Hüdavendigâr vilayet
Albanian lexicographers
Albanologists
Linguists from Albania
Albanian philologists
Albanian schoolteachers
20th-century Albanian historians
20th-century linguists
20th-century philologists
20th-century lexicographers