Tahir Efendi Jakova (1770–1850 or 1835), also known as Tahir Efendi Boshnjaku or The Great Efendi ( sq, Efendiu i Madh), was an Albanian religious leader of the Yakova region in

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

, as well one of the most known Albanian

bejtexhi The Bejtexhinj (in Albanian sing. ''bejtexhi'', pl. ''bejtexhinj''; from tr, beyte meaning "poem"), were popular bards of the Muslim tradition, literally meaning " couplet makers". It means the same in the Albanian literature, firstly muslim poe ...

. He lived and served as a clergyman in Yakova. The best known work from him, ''Emni Vehbije'' (The Offering) was published with Arabic alphabet in

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

in 1835. A reprint of it with

Latin alphabet The Latin alphabet or Roman alphabet is the collection of letters originally used by the ancient Romans to write the Latin language. Largely unaltered with the exception of extensions (such as diacritics), it used to write English and th ...

was done in 1907 in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

.Tahir Efendi Gjakova (in Albanian), 06 June 2014
/ref>

Life

Tahir Efendi is also referred as Tahir Efendi Boshnjaku (the Bosnian) because of his birthplace, the village of Lukare near Yeni Pazar, back then part of the

Sanjak of Novi Pazar The Sanjak of Novi Pazar ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Novopazarski sandžak, Новопазарски санџак; tr, Yeni Pazar sancağı) was an Ottoman sanjak (second-level administrative unit) that was created in 1865. It was reorganized in 1880 and ...

of the

Bosnia Eyalet The Eyalet of Bosnia ( ota, ایالت بوسنه ,Eyālet-i Bōsnâ; By Gábor Ágoston, Bruce Alan Masters ; sh, Bosanski pašaluk), was an eyalet (administrative division, also known as a ''beylerbeylik'') of the Ottoman Empire, mostly based o ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. He was a scion of the Saraçi clan, part of the Kastrati tribe. He is also known as the Great Efendi because he was the first müderris of the Small

Madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...

of Yakova, located in the "Mahmud Pasha" neighborhood. He started the position right after finishing his studies in Istanbul in 1807. He also served as imam, poet, missionary, and educator.
Tahir Efendi was also a sheikh of the

Bayramiye Bayrami, Bayramiye, Bayramiyya, Bayramiyye, and Bayramilik refer to a Turkish Sufi order (tariqah) founded by Hajji Bayram ''( Hacı Bayram-ı Veli)'' in Ankara around the year 1400 as a combination of Khalwatī, Naqshbandī, and Akbarī S ...

order of Sufism.

Poetry

His most known poetic work ''Emni Vehbije'', written in Northwestern

Gheg Albanian Gheg (also spelled Geg; Gheg Albanian: ''gegnishtja'', Standard sq, gegërishtja) is one of the two major variety (linguistics), varieties of Albanian language, Albanian, the other being Tosk Albanian, Tosk. The geographic dividing line betwee ...

. It contains advises and reminders in the context of the Islamic moral laws.''Kush ishte Tahir Efendi Gjakova? [Who was Tahir Efendi Jakova?]'' (in Albanian), Gazeta Dita Online, 18 June 2015
/ref> It was finished and published initially in 1835 in Istanbul. Seventy-two years later (1907), it was published with the Latin alphabet, adapted by müderris Ismail Haxhi Tahir Gjakova. It was publisher by the "Bashkimi" society and printed in the "Mbrothësia" publishing house of the Albanian activist Kristo Luarasi. Tahir Efendi wrote poetry also in Turkish,

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, and

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

.
He prefaced his verses with Arabic meters: a form of ''Raml'' (''Failatun, failatun, failat''), followed by the ''

basmala The ''Basmala'' ( ar, بَسْمَلَة, ; also known by its incipit ; , "In the name of Allah"), or Tasmiyyah (Arabic: ), is the titular name of the Islamic phrase "In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful" (Arabic: , ) ...

'', '' hamdala'', and the "Praise of the Prophet" (''Peygamber''). A lot of citations from the

Quranic The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...

verses and the Prophet's ''

hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approva ...

'' are invoked as well, providing various effects. A number of his works are lost, while some of the Arabic or Persian verses are discovered in the late decades. One recently found work of his is ''Hyda Rabbem'' (God is my Lord), written in lyrics, in Ottoman language and it dates to 1832. It is kept only in three copies, two of which were copied by Bajram Jusuf Doli, whereas one by Muhamed Tahir Jaka, also from Gjakova. Also of particular interest is the Yakova dialect of the

Gheg Gheg (also spelled Geg; Gheg Albanian: ''gegnishtja'', Standard sq, gegërishtja) is one of the two major varieties of Albanian, the other being Tosk. The geographic dividing line between the two varieties is the Shkumbin River, which winds ...

Albanian language he used.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Efendi Jakova, Tahir 18th-century Albanian people 19th-century Albanian people Albanian Sufis Albanian-language poets Turkish-language poets Persian-language poets Albanian Arabic-language poets 1770 births 1850 deaths People from Novi Pazar People from Gjakova Albanian religious leaders Albanian imams Kosovo Albanians Bayramiye order Divan poets from the Ottoman Empire Albanians in Serbia 18th-century Albanian poets 19th-century Albanian poets