Gjerasim Qiriazi (in English Gerasim Kyrias) (18 October 1858 – 2 January 1894) was an

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

Protestant preacher, Bible translator and distributor, educator, and activist of the

Albanian National Awakening The Albanian National Awakening ( or ), commonly known as the Albanian Renaissance or Albanian Revival, is a period throughout the 19th and 20th century of a cultural, political, and social movement in the Albanian history where the Albanian ...

. In the early 1890s he founded the Albanian Evangelical Protestant community and the first Albanian school for girls in

Korçë Korçë (; sq-definite, Korça) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, eighth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population of the city is 51,152 and 75,994 of Korçë municipal ...

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

, then part of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Biography

Qiriazi attended a Greek school of his native

Manastir Bitola (; ) is a city in the southwestern part of North Macedonia. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba, Nidže, and Kajmakčalan mountain ranges, north of the Medžitlija-Níki border crossin ...

, Macedonia. He then went to

Samokov Samokov ( ) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town in Sofia Province in the southwest of Bulgaria. It is situated in Samokov Valley between the mountain ranges of Rila, Vitosha and Sredna Gora, 55 kilometres from the capital Sofia. Due ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, to attend the Collegiate and Theological Institute. After he finished his studies, in 1883, he started to work for the

British and Foreign Bible Society The British and Foreign Bible Society, often known in England and Wales as simply the Bible Society, is a non-denominational Christian Bible society with charity status whose purpose is to make the Bible available throughout the world. The ...

. On November 15, 1884, while traveling to

Lake Ohrid Lake Ohrid is a lake which straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern part of North Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of Europe's deepest and oldest lakes, with a unique aquatic ecosystem of worldwide importance, with more th ...

, he was kidnapped by bandits, who held him for ransom for over a year. This episode was narrated by Gjerasim in ''Captured by Brigands'' and published after his death in English in 1901. In 1889, he commissioned the printing of the book of

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

and the

Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells the story of who the author believes is Israel's messiah (Christ (title), Christ), Jesus, resurrection of Jesus, his res ...

Tosk Tosk ( sq-definite, toskërishtja) is the southern group of dialects of the Albanian language, spoken by the ethnographic group known as Tosks. The line of demarcation between Tosk and Gheg (the northern variety) is the Shkumbin River. Tosk is ...

, and the Gospel of Matthew in Aromanian, which were printed by "Dituria" in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

on behalf of BFBS. In 1891, the first Albanian school for girls in Korçë was founded by Qiriazi and his sister,

Sevasti Qiriazi Sevasti Qiriazi-Dako (Sevasti D. Kyrias) (ca. 1871–1949) was an Albanians, Albanian patriot, educator, Protestant missionary, author, pioneer of Albanian female education, and activist of the Albanian National Awakening. Life and early career ...

. He also had a younger sister,

Parashqevi Qiriazi Parashqevi Qiriazi (Paraskevi D. Kyrias) (27 May 1886 – 17 December 1970) was an Albanian teacher of the Qiriazi family who dedicated her life to the Albanian alphabet and to the instruction of written Albanian language. She was a woman partic ...

, who started to work at the girls' school () when she was only 11. He died at an early age from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

Works

In addition to ''Captured by Brigands'', Qiriazi wrote an Albanian language grammar, poetry, songs and school books. A selection of his writings was published by his brother, Gjergj, in the collection ''Hristomathi a udhëheqës për ç'do shtëpi shqiptari'' (Monastir, 1902). Both brothers co-wrote the song collection ''Kënkë të shenjtëruara'' (Monastir, 1906).

Published works

*“Captured by Brigands: an Albanian Experience”, ''The Sunday Home Family Magazine for Sabbath Reading'' (London: Religious Tract Society, 1893–1894), pp. 277–280, 310–212, 344–347, 357–359, 379–381, 401–404, 428–430, 444–445, 459–461, 493–494, 551–553, 568–571, 590–591, 605–607, 619–620, 667–669. *''Captured by Brigands''. London: Religious Tract Society, 1901 (repub. 2016, IAPS, ). Albanian versions: ''Pengu i kaçakëve'' (trans. Edmond Seferi). Tiranë: Kartë e Pendë, 1993; Tiranë: Vernon, 2016 (). *''Kënkëtore: Hymna për ndë Falëtoret të Ungjillorëvet'' (

hectograph The hectograph, gelatin duplicator or jellygraph is a printing process that involves transfer of an original, prepared with special inks, to a pan of gelatin or a gelatin pad pulled tight on a metal frame. While the original use of the technol ...

). Korçë: 1893. *''Mësime të vëjyerë a fjalë shpirtërishte, të folura në mësonjëtoret shqipe të çupavet ndë Korçë'' (predikime). Kostandinopojë: A.H. Bojaxhiani, 1896. Republished 2017 (Tirana: ISSHP) as ''Mësime të vyera'' (ed. Teuta Toska) (). *''Hristomathi më katër pjesë: gjëra të ndryshme e të vëgjejtura për këndim edhe për dobi të mësonjëtorevet shqipe, a udhëheqës për ç’do shtëpi shqipëtari, të gatuara edhe një pjesë nga dialogët të kthyera, prej një mëmëdhetari'' (edited and expanded by Gjergj Qiriazi). Sofia: Mbrothësia, 1902 (vol. 1) and 1907 (vol. 2) (

posthumous publication Posthumous publication refers to publishing of creative work after the creator's death. This can be because the creator died during the publishing process or before the work was completed. It can also be because the creator chose to delay publica ...

). Republished 2023 (Tirana: ISSHP) as ''Krestomaci: udhëheqës për çdo shtëpi shqiptari'' ( and ). *''Katiqism i vogël, me prova nga Shkresa e Shenjtëruarë'' (translation of the

Westminster Shorter Catechism The Westminster Shorter Catechism is a catechism written in 1646 and 1647 by the Westminster Assembly, a synod of English and Scottish theologians and laymen intended to bring the Church of England into greater conformity with the Church of Scot ...

with the

Apostles' Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". "Its title is first found c.390 (Ep. 42.5 of Ambro ...

). Manastir: Shtypëshkronja “Tregtare Nërkombëtare”, 1912 (posthumous publication).

Legacy

In the Evangelical Protestant community

When Gjerasim Qiriazi founded an Evangelical Brotherhood in 1891 for Albanians, Albanian-inhabited territories were still under Ottoman rule. Now that Albania and Kosovo are

sovereign states A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...

, Protestant communities there, such as the Evangelical Brotherhood of Albania (VUSH), the

Kosovo Protestant Evangelical Church The Kosovo Protestant Evangelical Church (KPEC; ) is a Protestant church network based in Pristina, Republic of Kosovo, Kosovo. It is one of the four protected major religions in the Kosovo Law of Religious Freedoms. Between 10,000 and 15,000 K ...

(KPUK) (founded in 1992 and 2005 respectively)—and other Albanian Evangelical entities—regard Gjerasim Qiriazi as their spiritual founder.

Cinema

The Korça School for Girls was immortalized in Albanian cinema by the beloved film ''

Mësonjëtorja Mësonjëtorja or the Albanian School was the first secular school in the Albanian language in Ottoman Albania. It was opened in Korçë during the late Ottoman period. The school building serves as a museum and is located on the north side of ''B ...

'' (The School) (1979). The character inspired by Gjerasim Qiriazi was "Stefan Bardhi" and was played by actor Gulielm Radoja. Consistent with the official atheistic and censorial policies of the

People's Socialist Republic of Albania The People's Socialist Republic of Albania, () was the Marxist-Leninist state that existed in Albania from 10 January 1946 to the 29 April 1991. Originally founded as the People's Republic of Albania from 1946 to 1976, it was governed by the P ...

, all religion was portrayed as anti-Albanian and the school was identified as completely non-religious (''laike''). 2017 Sola Reformation Stamp Luther Qiriazi Family

2017 Sola Reformation Stamp Luther Qiriazi Family

Commemorative items

* In 2017 Gjerasim Qiriazi's image was among those featured on a

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...

by the Post of Kosovo in honor of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation and its Albanian counterpart.

In academia

* On 26 October 2016 the

University of Korça A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

hosted an academic conference honoring Gjerasim and Sevasti Qiriazi and the Girls School on the 125th anniversary of its founding. * On 14–16 January 1994 in Tirana, in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Gjerasim Qiriazi's death, the Evangelical Brotherhood of Albania, in cooperation with Albania's State Archives and the League of Writers, sponsored an academic symposium with ten Albanian and foreign guest speakers (professors and institutional representatives).

Namesake schools, institutions, etc.

* Th
GDQ International Christian School
in Tirana. * In Tirana there is a road named "Rr. Gjerasim Qirjazi" 'sic'' * In 2023 the government of

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

approved the establishment of a regional department of the Institute of Spiritual and Cultural Heritage of the Albanians in Monastir, which will be named after the Qiriazi family.

Awards

* ''Mësuesi i Popullit'' (Teacher of the People) (Albania), 1987. * ''Urdhri i Lirisë i Klasit të Parë'' (First Class Order of Freedom) (Albania), 1992. * ''Nderi i Kombit'' (Honor of the Nation) (Albania), (2017).

References

External links

Development of the Protestant church amongst Albanians (Kosova Protestant Evangelical Church)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Qiriazi, Gjerasim Converts to Protestantism from Eastern Orthodoxy People from Bitola 1858 births 1894 deaths 19th-century Albanian educators Albanian Protestants Albanian evangelicals Activists of the Albanian National Awakening People from Manastir vilayet 19th-century Albanian clergy Gjerasim