Pandeli Sotiri

Background

Sotiri was born in 1843 in the village of Selckë in the Lunxhëri region, Janina Vilayet of Ottoman Empire (now Pogon municipality, Gjirokastër District, Albania).

Career

Sotiri was one of the most important Rilindas figures that contributed in the propagation of the Albanian language. He also worked on one of the versions of the Albanian alphabet. The Congress of Monastir based Albanian"s alphabet mostly on Sotiri"s precedent work.

In 1884 he took over the publishing of the first magazine entirely written in Albanian, the magazine Drita, which had first been published by Petro Poga.

However Sotiri had to issue a new permit and to change the name of the magazine into Dituria (meaning "knowledge" in English). In early 1887 Sotiri was issued the permit to open the first Albanian school of modern times in Korçë.

On March 7, 1887 the school (Albanian: Mësonjëtorja) opened in the building offered by the Terpo brothers, an Albanian patriotic family. As a result, the Mësonjëtorja was left in the hands of Thanas Sina who was assistant director

Views

Sotiri was part of the Central Committee for Defending Albanian Rights created in Istambul in 1877, and its branch Society for the Publication of Albanian Writings (Albanian: Shoqëri e të shtypurit shkronjavet shqip), Istambul, 12 October 1879.

Connections

teacher:

Koto Hoxhi