Congress of Manastir

The core commission of the Congress:

1. Gjergj Fishta 2. Mid'hat Frashëri 3. Luigj Gurakuqi 4. Gjergj Qiriazi 5. Dom Ndre Mjeda 6. Grigor Cilka 7. Dhimitër Buda 8. Shahin Kolonja 9. Sotir Peci 10. Bajo Topulli 11. Nyz'het Vrioni

Photo by Kel Marubi

The Congress of Manastir was a meeting held in the city of Manastir (now Bitola) from November 14 to 22, 1908. Its purpose was to create a standard version of the Albanian alphabet. November 22 is now celebrated as Alphabet Day in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and among Albanians living abroad. Before this Congress, the Albanian language used six or more different alphabets and other variations.

Participants

Main delegates of the Congress, from top to bottom:

Row 1: Sami Pojani, Zenel Glina, Selman Elbasani, Simon Shuteriqi, Azis Starova, Mati Logoreci, Dhimitër Buda, Adham Shkaba Stratobërdha.
Row 2: Rrok Berisha, Bajo Topulli, Thoma Avrami, Leonidha Naçi, Sotir Peci, Shefqet Frashëri, Luigj Gurakuqi, Shahin Kolonja, Akil Efthim Korça, Zenel Poda.
Row 3: Nyz'het Vrioni, Dhimitër Mole, Gjergj Qiriazi, Gjergj Fishta, Mid'hat Frashëri, Dom Nikoll Kaçorri, Dom Ndre Mjeda, Fehim Zavalani.
Row 4: Refik Toptani, Çerçiz Topulli, Mihal Grameno, Friend of Çerçiz Topulli, Member of Manastir Club.
Notes: Missing in the photo are the following delegates: Hil Mosi, Grigor Cilka, Hafëz Ibrahimi, Emin Beu, Rauf Beu, Selaudin Prizreni. Names in italic are non-delegates.

The congress was organized by the Union Association (Albanian: Bashkimi) literary group at the home of Fehim Zavalani, which was their main location. Important people from the cultural and political scenes of Albanian areas in the Balkans and the Albanian diaspora attended. There were fifty delegates from twenty-three cities, towns, and cultural groups, with thirty-two having the right to vote and eighteen being observers.. Below is the list of the participants with the right to vote: Below is the list of voting participants.

1. Sami Pojani
2. Zenel Glina
3. Leonidha Naçi
4. Simon Shuteriqi
5. Dhimitër Buda
6. Azis Starova
7. Adham Shkaba
8. Mati Logoreci
9. Rrok Berisha Gjakova
10. Bajo Topulli
11. Grigor Cilka
12. Sotir Peci
13. Shefqet Frashëri
14. Luigj Gurakuqi
15. Shahin Kolonja
16. Ahil Eftim Korça
17. Hilë Mosi
18. Nyz'het Vrioni
19. Dhimitër Mole
20. Gjergj Qiriazi
21. At Gjergj Fishta
22. Midhat Frashëri
23. Nikoll Kaçorri
24. Ndre Mjeda
25. Fehim Zavalani
26. Refik Toptani
27. Çerçiz Topulli
28. Mihal Grameno
29. Parashqevi Qiriazi
30. Havez Ibrahimi
31. Rauf Beu
32. Selahedin Beu

Proceedings

The first secular school in the Albanian language, founded in 1887 in Korçë. The picture is from 1899.

The talks in the first two days about the alphabet were general and helped set a serious mood for the work ahead. The representatives knew it was important to stay united, no matter which alphabet was picked. Gjergj Fishta, who supported the Bashkimi alphabet, said, “I am not here to defend any alphabet, but to join you and pick the one that Congress thinks is best for helping our people.” The audience was very moved by Fishta's words. Hodja Ibrahim Effendi, a Muslim clergyman, quickly went to Fishta and hugged him, crying.

At the start of the Congress, the delegates chose a group of eleven members (four Muslims, four Orthodox, and three Catholics) to make decisions before the other delegates arrived. Gjergj Fishta was made the chairman, Parashqevi Qiriazi the chairwoman, and Mit'hat Frashëri the vice-chairman. Luigj Gurakuqi became the secretary, and the other five members were Bajo Topulli, Ndre Mjeda, Shahin Kolonja, Gjergj Qiriazi, and Sotir Peçi. Mit'hat Frashëri was also chosen as the chairman of the Congress. The delegates promised to accept the committee's decision. The committee discussed the idea of a common alphabet for three days and agreed that nothing would be shared until they made a final decision.

The Congress could not pick one alphabet, so they decided to use both the Istanbul and Bashkimi alphabets with some changes to make them more similar. The Istanbul alphabet quickly fell out of use after Albania became independent. The Bashkimi alphabet became the basis for the official alphabet used for the Albanian language today. Some people were unhappy that the Congress chose two alphabets instead of one, but Gjergj Fishta pointed out that the German also has two scripts. After some discussion, everyone agreed to use both alphabets. They also decided that each local Albanian authority should send monthly reports to the Union Association about what was happening in their areas. Another meeting was planned in Ioannina on July 10, 1910.

Original letter of the final decision of the Congress with signatures from all the delegates.

On November 20, as the congress was ending, three members of the Albanian community from Istanbul arrived to join the meeting and help other Albanian groups. At first, they wanted to protect the Albanian writing by using an Ottoman Turkish alphabet, but Hodja Vildan changed his mind. He criticized Sultan Abdul Hamid and emphasized the need for Albanians to unite for their independence and identity. Vildan believed they should use a Latin script as a way to progress. However, he had different views on writing direction and religion. He continued to promote these ideas in the other places the three members visited.

Legacy

The hotel owned by Fehim Zavalani, where the congress was held in Manastir (Today the Museum of the Albanian Alphabet in Bitola)

The use of the Latin alphabet for the Albanian language was seen as a key step for uniting Albanians. Some Albanian Muslims and religious leaders opposed this change, fearing it would weaken connections with the Muslim world. The Ottoman government was also worried because Albanians were the largest Muslim group in their European territories, aside from Istanbul. They thought the Albanian national movement showed that not only Christians felt connected to the nation, and that Islam alone couldn't keep Ottoman Muslims together.

In 1909, the Ottoman Empire held a meeting in Debar to get Albanians to identify as Ottomans and to support an Arabic-based alphabet. Many Albanians rejected this idea, taking control of the meeting. While this was happening, some members of the CUP in Tirana protested against the Latin alphabet and said that most Albanians preferred the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. The Union Association did not stop the protest and instead arranged another meeting in Elbasan with 120 people.

Because of disagreements over the alphabet and other policies, relations between Albanian leaders and the Ottoman authorities worsened. Although Albanian nationalist groups were initially allowed to operate, the Ottomans eventually took steps to suppress Albanian nationalism, leading to two Albanian revolts in 1910 and 1912.

The Congress of Manastir was a significant event for Albanians, second only to the League of Prizren. It was important not just for the decisions made, but also because those decisions were meant to be followed by the Ottoman authorities. In 2008, celebrations were held in Bitola, Tirana, and Pristina to mark the 100th anniversary of this congress, and schools in Albania, Kosovo, and Albanian areas in North Macedonia dedicated their first class to honor it.

See also

• Congress of Elbasan
• Congress of Dibra
• Second Congress of Manastir

Sources

• Duijzings, Gerlachlus (2002). "Religion and the politics of 'Albanianism': Naim Frasheri's Bektashi writings". In Schwanders-Sievers, Stephanie; Fischer, Bernd J. (eds.). Albanian Identities: Myth and History. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. pp. 60–69. ISBN 9780253341891.
• Gawrych, George (2006). The Crescent and the Eagle: Ottoman rule, Islam and the Albanians, 1874–1913. London: IB Tauris. ISBN 9781845112875.
• Lloshi, Xhevat (2008). Rreth Alfabetit te Shqipes [About the Albanian Alphabet]. Logos. ISBN 9789989582684.
• Nezir-Akmese, Handan (2005). The Birth of Modern Turkey: The Ottoman Military and the March to WWI. London: IB Tauris. ISBN 9781850437970.
• Osmani, Tomor (1999). "Historia e alfabetit" [History of the Alphabet]. Udha e shkronjave shqipe [The Pathway of the Albanian Letters] (in Albanian). pp. 461–496.
• Poulton, Hugh (1995). Who are the Macedonians?. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 9781850652380.
• Saunders, Robert A. (2011). Ethnopolitics in Cyberspace: The Internet, Minority Nationalism, and the Web of Identity. Lanham: Lexington Books. ISBN 9780739141946.
• Shaw, Stanford J.; Shaw, Ezel Kural (1977). History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey: Volume 2, Reform, Revolution, and Republic: The Rise of Modern Turkey 1808-1975. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521291668.
• Skendi, Stavro (1967). The Albanian national awakening. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400847761.

External links

• Official informational video of the festivities for the 100th anniversary of the Congress of Manastir on YouTube