Enver Čolaković (27 May 1913 – 18 August 1976) was a Bosnian writer, journalist and translator, best known for his 1944 novel ''The Legend of Ali Pasha''. During the later stages of World War II, he served as a cultural attaché to the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

embassy in Budapest. After the war, he spent the rest of his life in

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 ...

, where he published several literary translations from Hungarian and

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Biography

Born in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

in 1913 to

Bosnian Muslim Islam is the most widespread religion in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was introduced to the local population in the 15th and 16th centuries as a result of the Ottoman conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Muslims make the largest religious co ...

father Vejsil-'' beg'' Čolaković and Hungarian mother Ilona (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Mednyanszki), Čolaković spent his childhood traveling around the region, and after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he settled in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

. He studied physics and mathematics in Budapest and history in Zagreb. Between 1931 and 1939, Čolaković wrote in the Hungarian and German languages. Between 1939 and 1941, his works were published by a number of magazines based in Sarajevo and Zagreb, such as ''Osvit'' (''Dawn''), ''Hrvatski misao'' (''The Croatian Thought''), ''Hrvatski narod'' (''The Croatian People''), ''Hrvatsko kolo'' (''The Croatian Circuit'') and ''Novi behar'' (''The New Blossom''). Čolaković also wrote a series of essays and reviews in which he advocated rights for

Bosnian Muslims The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who share a common ancestry, culture, history and the ...

. His comedy ''Moja žena krpi čarape'' was performed at the Sarajevo National Theatre in 1943 and later at the

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city in Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is the tr ...

Theatre in 1944. His novel ''The Legend of Ali Pasha'' (1944) was awarded Matica hrvatska (''Matrix Croatica'') Award. By the end of World War II, he was a recognized and well-known writer, written about by prominent critics such as Julije Benešić, Tom Smerdel, Ljubomir Maraković and Petar Grgec. They note the different linguistic substrates of his language – the Turkish, Greek, Spanish and Croatian lexicon. However, Čolaković's sound knowledge of Bosnia's Muslim, Catholic, Jewish and Orthodox communities is also evident. In 1944, he was appointed cultural attaché at the embassy of the Axis-allied

in Budapest. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he was arrested in Sarajevo, detained in Zagreb, and eventually released. By the decision of the new authorities, he was forbidden to publish his literary works and their translations for two decades. In a 1971 interview, Čolaković stated: "I began writing ''The Legend of Ali Pasha'' with a specific purpose - to preserve our Bosnian language. Not the language of denominations or peoples of Bosnia, but the language of Bosnia. I also wanted to re-create a historical period of Bosnia." He later worked as an editor at the Publishing Institute of Croatia until 1946. Between 1952 and 1954, he was an editor at the Croatian Lexicographical Institute. Since he could not publish original works, he translated literary works from other languages. He translated Hungarian, Austrian and Hebrew poetry. For his enormous body of translations of Hungarian and Austrian authors, he was awarded the Hungarian Petőfi Award and the

Austrian Decoration for Science and Art The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria, Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science a ...

in 1970. He translated the novels of Ervin Šinko and Gyula Illyés,

Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (, ; , ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, music pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music education. ...

oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...

'' Psalmus Hungaricus'' and

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's opera ''

Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (; "The Master-Singers of Nuremberg"), WWV 96, is a music drama, or opera, in three acts, by Richard Wagner. It is the longest opera commonly performed, taking nearly four and a half hours, not counting two breaks between acts, and is traditio ...

''. Together with his wife Stella Čolaković, he also created many classical music programs for radio broadcast. Čolaković was member of

Matica hrvatska Matica hrvatska () is the oldest independent, non-profit and non-governmental Croatian national institution. It was founded on February 2, 1842 by the Croatian Count Janko Drašković and other prominent members of the Illyrian movement during ...

Croatian Writers' Association Croatian Writers' Association (; abbreviated DHK) is the official association of Croatian writers. It was founded in 1900 in Zagreb with the goal "to unite writers and help them support one another, and promote Croatian literature regardless of po ...

, the Association of Literary Translators and the Yugoslav branch of the

International PEN PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association has autonomous Internati ...

. He was among writers who signed the Declaration on the Name and Status of the Croatian Literary Language. In 1968, he was one of the founders and members of the editorial board of the literary magazines '' Marulić'' and ''Hrvatski književni list (Croatian literary magazine)''. Enver Čolaković died in Zagreb on 18 August 1976 of a heart attack. A square and park in Zagreb and a street in Sarajevo, and several schools in Bosnia and Herzegovina are named after him. In 1970, Čolaković was awarded the

Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, 1st class The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science and Art" was established by the National C ...

Works

Author

*''Legenda o Ali-paši'', novel (Zagreb 1944, 1970, 1989; Sarajevo 1991, 1997, 1998, 2022) * ''Izabrane pjesme'', poems (Zagreb 1990) * ''Lokljani. Iz Bosne o Bosni'', short stories (Zagreb 1991) * ''Mali svijet: roman iz naše nedavne prošlosti'', novel (Zagreb 1991) * ''Bosni'', poems (Zagreb 1998) * ''Jedinac, roman u stihovima'', (Zagreb 2001; Sarajevo 2024) * ''Knjiga majci'', novel (Zagreb, 2013; Sarajevo, 2023) * ''Melun'', novel (Sarajevo 2023) * ''Spirale'', novel (Sarajevo 2025)

Drama

* ''Moja žena krpi čarape'', comedy, 1943.

Translations

* ''Gyula Illyés'', poems (Zagreb 1971) * Zoltán Csuka, ''Moje dvije domovine'', (Sarajevo 1972) * ''Zoltán Csuka'', poems (Zagreb 1975) * ''Zlatna knjiga mađarske poezije'', poems (Zagreb 1978)

Awards

* 1943

for the novel ''The Legend of Ali-Pasha'' * 1970 Petőfi Award for translations of Hungarian works * 1970

for translations of Austrian works

Footnotes

Reflist

* *

External links

*
Enver Čolaković, književnik koji je spojio dva svijeta – bosanski i mađarski
– '' Al Jazeera Balkans'' *
Enver Čolaković
– ''Lektire.hr'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Colakovic, Enver 1913 births 1976 deaths Writers from Budapest Croatian people of Hungarian descent Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb alumni University of Belgrade alumni 20th-century Croatian writers 20th-century Hungarian poets Yugoslav writers Translators from Hungarian Cultural attachés Recipients of the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, 1st class Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery