Professor Rexhep Qosja celebrates today the 87th birth anniversary. A well-known literary scholar, publicist and political and social activist, Prof. Qosja continues to remain active with his thoughts, writings but most of all with his civic sense confrontations.

His contribution has influenced Kosova’s critical thinking, not only in literature. Rexhep Qosja has been a prominent man in the difficult confrontations of international conferences and above all there was a man who laid the foundation for various national political and social issues of thought and Albanian literature.

Qosja was born on the 25^th of June 1936 in Vuthaj, Montenegro. He graduated in the language and literature department of the University of Prishtina in 1964. After graduating he worked as the editor-in-chief of the magazine “New Life” and started his study and pedagogical activity. He continued his postgraduate studies in Belgrade and in 1971 received the degree of “Doctor of Philological Sciences” with the thesis “Asdreni-life and works” (1972). For many years he was the director of the Albanology Institute of Prishtina.

As one of the most prominent personalities of Albanian culture and science, he has been elected a member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosova and an external member of the Academy of Sciences of Albania. As a researcher at the Albanology Institute of Prishtina and as the director of that Institute (1972-1981) he has given very important contributions and has published a large number of works and monographs, such as: “The Rare Pantheon” (1972), “The Writers and the Period” (1975). “Anatomy of culture” (1976), “From typology to periodization” (1979), “Morphology of a campaign” (1980), “New notions of Albanology” (1983), “The Great Message” (1986), ” Forbidden People” (1990).

He is an academic professor. He has also written novels and plays, as well as essay reviews. His pen includes “Naked Myths” (1978), “The Living Sphinx”, “Death comes to me from such eyes” (1974), etc.

/k.s./