The Treccani Italian Language Festival took place outside Italy for the first time. Organizers planned a special day in Tirana.

The festival focused on the Italian language. Its goal was to promote cultural exchange and expand Italian language knowledge in a country where Italian has deep historical roots.

The event in Albania concluded the 25th edition of the Italian Language Week in the World. The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) promoted it. This year, the theme was “Italophony: Language Beyond Borders.”

Alessandro Ruggera, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute, said the events began with a conference by Fabio Deotto. They concluded with a session by journalist Carmen Lasorella.

Italian Ambassador Marco Alberti spoke at the event held at the Center for Openness and Dialogue (COD). He said language is more than a communication tool. He emphasized that we must “present, use, and revalue language as a tool to transmit traditions, culture, values, and identity.”

Alberti explained that Italy’s Foreign Ministry chose Albania for this edition. “If we talk about Italophony, which is the main theme this year, which country is more Italophone than Albania? That is why we are here today with the Treccani Foundation,” he said.

The ambassador noted that language carries culture. It acts as a cultural code shared with Albania. He added that around 68,000 Albanian students study Italian. He praised their efforts. “Many Albanians learned Italian without formal teaching. They risked imprisonment at a time when learning a foreign language was forbidden. They watched Italian television to explore another world,” Alberti explained.

Giuditta Albanese from the Treccani Institute highlighted the festival’s mission. “We must return to the festival’s key word, listen to the youth, and do this even in Albania, a country with a rich linguistic history,” she said.

Michele Cortelazzo, a scholar at the Accademia della Crusca and professor of Italian linguistics at the University of Padua, gave a conference titled “Political Heteroglossia: How Foreign Leaders Speak Italian.” He noted a slight decline in Italian language learning abroad. He explained that market factors, such as the dominance of English, influence this trend. “However, Italian remains a language of culture and is highly valued in this sense,” he said.

The festival partnered with Rai Cultura and Rai Radio 3. It celebrated Italian as a tool for knowledge and the spread of learning.

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