Skënder Luarasi
| Skënder Petro Luarasi | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
January 19, 1900 Luaras, Ottoman Empire |
| Died | January 27, 1982 (aged 82) Tirana, Albania |
| Nationality | Albanian |
| Occupation | Writer, translator, biographer, critic |
Skënder Luarasi (1900-1982) was an Albanian scholar, writer and anti-fascist activist.
Luarasi was born in Luaras of Kolonjë region (back then Ottoman Empire, today's Albania) on 19 January 1900. He was the son of Albanian patriot Petro Nini Luarasi, descendant of the Kostallari family of the Luaras village, and Lino Sevo. Though Luarasi was a Protestant, he named his son Skënder to refer to the Albanian National Hero Scanderbeg. The poet Naim Frashëri was his godfather.
Luarasi performed the first studies in Albanian language schools of Negovan and Korçë (1909-1911). After the death of his father by poisoning, he was sent to Robert College of Istambul (1912-1913). Luarasi would continue his studies at Easton Academy in US (1914-1916), International College in Springfield, MA in US (1916-1918), Classis Gymnsium in Freistadt, Austria, (1922-1926) and graduated from the Faculty of Philology at University of Vienna, Austria in 1930. During his return in Albania (1920-1922) he worked as a teacher in the schools opened by American Red Cross in Elbasan District.
Luarasi started his literary activity since 1917. During the 30s he would distinguish himself as teacher, critic, journalist, translator, playwright, and director and cooperator of several press periodicals. He was editor-in-chief of the periodicals Studenti ("The Student"), 1920 in US, Djalëria ("Boyhood"), Austria, 1927-1928, and the magazine Vullnetari i Lirisë ("Volunteer of Freedom"), Spain, 1937, together with Petro Marko. The last was a 20-page periodical of Albanian volunteers participating in the Spanish Civil War as anti-fascists.
During the years 1930-1936 Luarasi taught at the Technical School of Tirana, Vlora, and Shkodra, until he left for Spain to join the International Brigades. He had been previously arrested and imprisoned three time by the Zogist regime.
During the Italian and German Occupation he was arrested and interned in several concentration camps, including Vernet, Gurs, St.Cyprien, etc.
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