Arshi Pipa was born in Shkodër on July 28, 1920. He was an educator, publicist, poet, linguist, literary critic, translator and lecturer.

He was originally from Libohova but his family had settled in Shkodër. He took primary and secondary education in his hometown, first at the Saverian College and then for 8 years in the classical department at the Shkodër High School which he completed in 1938. At his father’s care about religious education, he attended also religious classes in the afternoons.

Then, he then studied Literature and Philosophy at the University of Florence, Italy. He returned to Albania and from 1941 to the end of 1944 taught the subject of philosophy in the State Lyceums of Tirana, Shkodër and Durrës.

Arshi Pipa and Mitrush Kuteli were the only non-communist members of the Albanian League of Writers, when it started publishing the organ “Bota e Re” /The New World/.

He participated in the First Congress of the League of Writers in October 1945, which was directed then by Skënder Luarasi.

Arshi Pipa was imprisoned in 1946 the regime for anti-state activity. He was released on April 26, 1956 and one night in the summer of 1957 he escaped with her sister, Fehime.

He settled in first Sarajevo until 1959 and then in the US where he lived and worked for a long time. He passed away in Washington on July 20 of 1997.

/a.p./