| Luigj Gurakuqi | |
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| Born | February 19, 1879 Shkodër, Albania (then Ottoman Empire) |
| Died | 2 March 1925 (aged 46) Bari (Italy) |
| Pen name | Jakin Shkodra and Lekë Gruda |
| Occupation | writer, journalist, politician |
| Ethnicity | Albanian |
| Period | 1900-1925 |
| Literary movement | Albanian National Revival |
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Luigj Gurakuqi (February 19, 1879 – March 2, 1925) was an Albanian writer and politician. He was an important figure of the Albanian National Awakening and was honoured with the People's Hero of Albania medal.
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Born in Shkodër on February 19, 1879, Gurakuqi started his studies there, and he finished them at the University of Naples in Italy, where he was also a student of Jeronim De Rada. He was also a poet and published under the pen name Jakin Shkodra and Lekë Gruda. He published articles in Albania, Drita (magazine), Kalendari-kombëtar, Liria e Shqipërisë, and La Nazione Albanese.
In 1908, Gurakuqi returned to Albania and took an important role in the Albanian movement for independence. He participated in a meeting of Albanian leaders in Manastir, (Bitola, present-day Republic of Macedonia), was the first principal of Aleksandër Xhuvani University, and was the right-hand man of Ismail Qemali in the Albanian Declaration of Independence in 1912, and one of the leaders of the northern uprisings of 1911-1912.
In 1924 Gurakuqi was one of the leaders of the revolution that overthrew the regime of Ahmet Zogolli and established a democratic government. Fan S. Noli became the new Prime Minister, while Luigj Gurakuqi was part of the new cabinet as Minister of Economy and Finance.[1] After the restoration of the Zogist regime Gurakuqi went to Italy, where he was assassinated in a cafe of Bari on March 2, 1925 by agents of Zog.[1]
Luigj Gurakuqi was awarded the titles Hero i Popullit (Hero of the People) and Mësues i Popullit (Teacher of the People). The Luigj Gurakuqi University of Shkodra, established in 1957 was named after. A statue of him stands in the center of Shkodër.[1]
This article was based partly on facts from [1] and [2].
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