Heritage
126 years since Naim Frashëri's death: Academy of Sciences commemorates the national poet
The poet of the National Renaissance died on Oct. 20, 1900, in Istanbul; his work remains a foundation of Albanian literature and education.
By ANN Newsroom · Newsroom
October 20, 2026, 11:30 · Updated 12:23 · 2 min read
In brief
- The Academy of Sciences commemorated Naim Frashëri on the 126th anniversary of his death, on Oct. 20.
- The poet, born in Frashër, in the Përmet area, in 1846, died in Istanbul on Oct. 20, 1900.
- Besides poetry, Naim left school textbooks and works that helped awaken national consciousness.
The Academy of Sciences of Albania on Tuesday commemorated Naim Frashëri, the national poet, on the 126th anniversary of his death. Naim died on Oct. 20, 1900, in Istanbul, far from his birthplace, after spending many years serving the Albanian cause through literature and education.
The commemoration recalled the poet's extensive body of work, in which love for the homeland, the Albanian language, nature and history take center stage. According to the Academy, his work played an important role in awakening national consciousness and in the development of Albanian literature, making him one of the brightest figures of the National Renaissance.
From Frashër to Istanbul
Naim Frashëri was born in 1846 in Frashër, in the Përmet area, where he also received his first schooling. In 1865 the family moved to Ioannina, where he and his younger brother, Sami, completed the Greek “Zosimaia” high school. After working briefly in Istanbul, he fell ill with tuberculosis and returned to Albania, where he served as a civil servant in Berat and as a customs officer in Saranda from 1872 to 1877. It was then that he wrote his first poems in Albanian.
Under the influence of the League of Prizren, one of whose leaders was his elder brother, Abdyl, and of the Istanbul Society, headed by Sami, Naim devoted himself entirely to literature and the national cause. He was among the main publishers of the magazine “Drita” and later of “Dituria” (1885).
Poet and teacher of the nation
His works include “Ëndërrimet” (Tahayyulat), published in Istanbul, “Bagëti e bujqësi” (Bucharest, 1886) and “Luletë e verësë” (Bucharest, 1890). In education, Naim wrote textbooks for the first Albanian schools, such as “E këndimit çunavet këndonjëtoreja,” “Istori e përgjithëshme për mësonjëtoret të para” and “Vjersha për mësonjëtoret të para,” published in Bucharest in 1886, the same year that “Dëshira e vërtetë e shqiptarëve” also appeared.
