Fulvio Cordignano, Italian researcher, was born in Mugia, Italy . In Mugia he studied literature (1908) and philosophy (1909–1911). In the years 1912–1916, he taught in Shkodër and in the years 1917–1920, after being ordained a priest on December 23, 1918, he studied theology in Catholic institutions abroad. In 1924 he went to Shkodër, where he taught philosophy and literature. From 1926 to 1941, he served as a missionary and traveled widely in the north of Albania. These years gave him the opportunity to get to know Albanian folklore and customs. He returned to Italy in 1942 and served in Padua until 1949, in Palermo in 1950 and finally in Gorizia in 1951. He died a year later in Rome. Father Cordignano was a passionate researcher and collector of Albanian folklore; over the years he built an impressive library, archive and museum. Impressive are his publications in the field of Albanianology. Among his main monographs are: “Lingua Albanese; grammatica, saggi di letteratura, fraseologia e proverbi “(Albanian language: grammar, literary examples, phraseology and proverbs”; Milan, 1931); ” L’Albania attravers l’opera e gli scritti di un missionario italiano , il Domenico Pasi SJ 1847–1914 (“Albania through the works and writings of an Italian missionary, Domeniko Pasi SJ 1847–1914″; Rome, 1933, 1934); ” Dizionario albanese-italiano e italiano-albanese” (“Dictionary Albanian-Italian and Italian-Albanian”; Milan, 1934); ” La poesia epica di confine nell’Albania del Nord , 1-2 ” (“The border epic poetry of Northern Albania, 1-2”, Venice, 1943). He was also the author of numerous scientific articles on the northern Albanian culture published in Italian and Albanian periodicals. He passed away in Rome, in 1952. (In the photo: Cover of the book “Albania through the works and writings of an Italian missionary, Domeniko Pasi SJ 1847-1914”.)
Text: Robert Elsie, Historical Dictionary of Albania; second edition , “Scarecrow Press” United Kingdom, 2010, pages 92–93.
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