Congress of Elbasan
The Congress of Elbasan (Albanian: Kongresi i Elbasanit), also known among Albanians as the Congress of the Albanian schools (Kongresi i shkollave shqipe), was held from 2 to 8 September 1909 in Elbasan, today's Albania, back then part of the Vilayet of Monastir of the Ottoman Empire. The congress, sponsored by the local Bashkimi literary club, was attended by 35 delegates from central and southern Albania.
Group photo of the participant at the congress | |
| Native name | Kongresi i Elbasanit |
|---|---|
| Date | September 2–8, 1909 |
| Venue | Godina historike e Shkollës së Kalasë |
| Location | Elbasan, Ottoman Albania |
| Also known as | Congress of the Albanian schools |
| Cause | To address issues linked to culture and education |
| Organised by | Lef Nosi |
| Outcome | The congress paved the way for secular education in the Albanian inhabited territories, it set the task of preparing educational staff, organized schools and provided funds for their maintenance, set the rules of school management with principals and elders and united all Albanians regardless of religion and province. |
The congress aimed to address issues linked to culture and education. The delegates came to a decision that the Manastir club had to introduce the Albanian language in all schools in Albania. The Congress of Manastir had chosen the Latin script as the one to be used to write the language. In addition, the delegates decided to request all the Albanian journalists and publicists to use only the dialect of Elbasan. A very important result of the congress was the establishment of a school for teachers, known as Shkolla Normale e Elbasanit. The school was decided to be in Elbasan as well, and started with six classes on December 1, 1909.