Asaf Duraković (16 May 1940 – 16 December 2020) was a Croatian

medical Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

doctor. He is also known for his

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

and verses. Duraković was born in

Stolac Stolac ( sr-Cyrl, Столац) is an ancient city located in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the region of Herzegovina. Stolac is one of the oldest cit ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and educated at the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb (, ) is a public university, public research university in Zagreb, Croatia. It is the largest Croatian university and one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe. The University of Zagreb and the Unive ...

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

where he earned both master's and doctoral degrees. During this time he worked at the Ruđer Bošković Institute. Afterwards he continued with post-doctoral work at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

. In 1968 he migrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, where he attended

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood, Ontario, Ainslie Wood and Westdale, Ontario, Westd ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

. He worked at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

, the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

, and

University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded in 1850 and moved into its current campus, next to the Genesee River in 1930. With approximately 30,000 full ...

(UofR). He has been associated with the ''Croatian Literary Journal''. Duraković is one of the co-founders of the Croatian Islamic Centre in Etobicoke, Toronto, the construction of which was finished on June 23, 1973. Its mosque is the oldest in Toronto. The minaret is Ottoman-style and it is the oldest minaret in Ontario. In 1990, Duraković was one of the founders of the Croatian Muslim Democratic Party, formed in

. Dr. Duraković was a retired Colonel in the US Army Reserve. He worked at the VA hospital in Wilmington, Delaware. Dr. Duraković also founded the World Life Institute, an international non-profit humanitarian organization based in Orleans County, New York. In addition, other World Life organizations inspired by Dr. Duraković have been established worldwide. World Life organizations can be found in Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Great Britain and South Africa.

Works

Poetry

*''Dark Sea-Weeds'' *''Smoke and Mist'' *''Paths of Ahasver''

Politics

*''From Bleiburg to Muslim Nation'' (Vedrina, Toronto, 1972) *''Status of Moslim People in Croatian National Community'' (Vedrina, Toronto, 1973)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durakovic, Asaf 1940 births 2020 deaths Croatian physicians Croatian poets Croatian male poets Croatian Muslims People from Stolac Croatian nuclear medicine physicians Yugoslav expatriates in England Yugoslav military doctors University of Washington faculty University of Rochester faculty Yugoslav expatriates in Canada Yugoslav expatriates in the United States

Works

Poetry

Politics

See also

References