Albanologist

Albanology is the science that studies Albanian language, culture and History of Albania.

Johann Erich Thunmann in the 18th century was probably the first Albanologist. He supported the theory of the autochthony of the Albanians and also presented the Illyrian origin theory. Later on Gustav Meyer proved that Albanian was part of the Indo-European family.

In the 20th century such studies were deepened by Norbert Jokl, Milan Šufflay, and Franz Nopcsa von Felső-Szilvás, as well as Karl Reinhold, and Eqrem Çabej.

The studies of Albanology were more institutionally supported in Albania starting in 1940 with the opening of the Royal Institute of the Albanian Studies, which had preceded the Academy of Sciences of Albania, opened in 1972. Meanwhile, during the 1960s, the Albanology Institute of Pristina was also reconstructed in Kosovo, then part of Yugoslavia. The institute emerged from its core founded in 1953.

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