Mehmed-beg Kapetanović Ljubušak (19 December 1839 – 29 July 1902) was a Bosnian writer and public official.

Biography

The Kapetanović family originates from one of the branches of the

Croat The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

noble family of Cvitković-Zdilar from

Imotski Imotski () is a small town on the northeastern side of the Biokovo massif in the Dalmatian Hinterland of southern Croatia, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The town has a generally mild Mediterranean climate which makes it a popular ...

. His paternal ancestor Jozo Cvitković was involved in an uprising there and escaped to

Ljubuški Ljubuški is a city in the West Herzegovina Canton, a federal unit of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Kravica (waterfall), Kravica cascades lie within the city, near the settlement of Studenci, ...

, where he converted to Islam and became Sulejman Bey Kapetanović. He briefly served as the replacement for the vizier of Bosnia after Namik Pasha was expelled and replaced by Ibrahim Pasha in 1831. Mehmed Kapetanović attended the

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...

and studied oriental languages. Kapetanović arrived in Sarajevo in 1878, where he became the mayor in 1893, holding the office until declining health forced him to resign in 1899. He died in Sarajevo in 1902. During the late 19th century, Kapetanović actively collected Bosniak folk treasures in Bosnia, Herzegovina, and neighbouring regions. He published several books, the most famous being ''Narodno blago'' (English: "The National Wealth") from 1887. In 1891, Kapetanović founded the influential political journal ''Bošnjak'' ("Bosniak"), which gathered several Bosniak intellectuals of its time. Kapetanović became the mayor of Sarajevo in 1893 following the 1892 death of the first mayor Mustafa Fadilpašić. The most significant project during Kapetanović's governance was the delivery of electricity to the city. Specifically, on 1 May 1895, Sarajevo had electric lighting for the first time. Until then, the street lights were oil lanterns. On that same day, Sarajevo became one of the first European cities to install electric tram-trains, replacing horse-drawn vehicles. Kapetanović survived a stroke in July 1898. His health rapidly declined; by April 1899, he had stepped down as mayor. He died on 29 July 1902 at the age of 62. His son Riza-beg Kapetanović died 24 December 1931.

Main works

*''Risale-i ahlak'' (''Treatise on Morals'', 1883) *''Sto misle muhamedanci u Bosni?'' (''What Do Mohammedans in Bosnia Think?'', 1886) *''Narodno Blago'' (''The National Wealth'', 1887) *''Boj pod Banjomlukom 1737'' (''The Banja Luka Battle, 1737'', 1888) *''Budućnost ili napredak muhamedanaca u Bosni i Hercegovini'' (''Future or Progress of the Mohammedans in Bosnia and Herzegovina'', 1893)

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kapetanovic, Mehmedbeg 1839 births 1902 deaths Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims Bosniak writers Bosnia and Herzegovina writers Mayors of Sarajevo Bosnia and Herzegovina politicians Ottoman Bosnian nobility 19th-century Bosnia and Herzegovina writers Writers from Austria-Hungary