The Academy of Sciences of Albania announced today the passing of Mario Brunetti, the drafter of the law for the protection of minority languages in Italy, the proposer and implementer of the legal status of the Arbëresh language in schools, also known as the “defender of the language of our forefathers.”

Mario Brunetti had a career spanning over 70 years as a jurist, publicist, politician, and a prominent activist of traditional and modern Italian left-wing politics, a deputy, and the author of numerous academic, cultural, and literary works.

Brunetti actively participated in the anti-fascist struggle and was one of the distinguished representatives of Italian anti-fascism; he was a special friend of Albania during both periods of its modern history.

He was honored with high recognitions by the Albanian state, primarily for his role as a key figure in the recognition of the legal status of the Arbëresh language in Italy. Although he was not of Arbëresh origin, it was said of him, “he became more Arbëresh than us.”

The Academy of Sciences of Albania had the honor and pleasure of inviting and hosting Mario Brunetti as a lecturer and speaker at scientific conferences, including the 75th anniversary of liberation commemorated in 2019.

In his later years, despite being around 90 years old, Mario Brunetti initiated the honoring of another important figure in the Italo-Albanian world, Antonio Gramsci, an anti-fascist activist with European recognition, a theorist, aesthete, and proud of his Albanian heritage.

Within the framework of the “Gramscian Itinerary” initiative, founded by him, the Academy of Sciences collaborated over the years with Mario Brunetti in Albania and among Arbëresh communities. He was regularly present and active in events organized by Arbëresh scholars who led and continue to lead Albanian language departments in Cosenza and Palermo, such as academics Francesco Altimari and Matteo Mandalà.

/a.c/