Sami bey Frashëri (Turkish: Şemseddin Sami Bey; June 1, 1850 – June 18, 1904) or Şemseddin Sâmi was an Albanian writer, lexicographer, philosopher, playwright and a prominent figure of the Albanian National Awakening, together with his two brothers Abdyl and Naim. He also supported Turkish nationalism against its Ottoman counterpart, along with secularism (anti-clericalism or laicism) against theocracy. Frashëri was one of the sons of an impoverished bey from Frashër (Fraşer during Ottoman rule) in the District of Përmet. He gained a place in Ottoman literature as a talented author under the name of Şemseddin Sami Efendi and contributed to the Ottoman Turkish language reforms. Frashëri's message, however, as declared in his book "Albania - What it was, what it is, and what will become of it", published in 1899, became the manifesto of the Albanian National Awakening. He discussed the prospects for a united, free and independent republic of Albania. In this way, beginning with a demand for autonomy and struggle for their own alphabet and education, Frashëri helped the Albanian National Movement develop its claim for independence. His lifetime goal, as that of many other members of the Albanian renaissance, was the development and improvement of Albania's culture and eventual establishment of an independent country.
Life
Sami Frashëri was born in 1850 in the village of Frashër in the Ioannina Eyalet, Ottoman Empire (modern Albania) to a distinguished Muslim Albanian family of Bektashi religious affiliations. Sami, alongside his brothers Naim Frashëri, Abdyl Frashëri and 5 other siblings were the children of Halit Bey (1797–1859) and their paternal family traditions held that they were descendants of timar holders that hailed from the Berat region before coming to live in Frashër. Halit belonged to the Dakollari branch of the Frashëri family. They were descendants of Ajaz Bey from Gramsh who in 1650–60 was given the command of Frashër. Ajaz Bey's grandfather, Hamza Bey had lost his lands in Tomorrica in 1570 when he rebelled and was exiled but the family's fortunes changed with the rise of Köprülü Mehmed Pasha who intervened on their behalf and they were pardoned. Their mother Emine Hanım (1814–1861) was descended from Imrahor Ilyas Bey, a distinguished 15th-century Ottoman Albanian commander from the Korçë area (Panarit). Sami began his studies at the Bektashi tekke in Frashër. Halit Bey and Emine died in 1859 and 1861 respectively. His older brother Abdul became head of the household and moved the whole family to Yanina. There Sami attended the Greek language Zosimea high school. During that time he came in touch with western philosophy and studied Latin, ancient and modern Greek, French and Italian. He also attended a local Muslim school and learned through lessons from teachers Turkish, Arabic, and Persian. Frashëri was a bright student and finished an eight-year schooling program by graduating at the end of seven years. His reflections of the Zosimea later in life was that it was "the perfect high school". Having received a broad education in a diverse socio-cultural and religious environment at the Zosimea and through private tutors, he gained the linguistic tools to emotionally and intellectually travel between cultures during his lifetime. In 1872 Sami and his brother Naim migrated to Istanbul and both got a job working for the Ottoman bureaucracy and as he admired French culture became involved in translating French language novels such as Les Misérables into Ottoman Turkish, later writing some short stories, plays and novels of his own. He was briefly posted in Tripoli, Libya and in 1874 returned to Istanbul becoming a writer for a newspaper. Later in 1877 he went on another short assignment being posted briefly at Rhodes. Returning to Istanbul he remained in the capital for the remainder of his life. Frashëri emerged as an accomplished Ottoman-Albanian intellectual with a reputation of having an inquisitive and sharp intellect. He assisted in founding and serving as chief editor for several journals and newspapers. In Ottoman Turkish he wrote more than a dozen books like Insan (Human Being), Medeniyet-i Islamiye (Islamic Civilisation) and Kadınlar (Women). He compiled a French-Turkish (1882) and Turkish-French (1884) dictionary, an Arabic language dictionary (1898) and a two volume Ottoman Turkish dictionary (1899-1901) along with a six volume encyclopedia Kâmûsü'l-A'lâm (1899-1899). Additionally Frashëri authored other publications in the Albanian language that included a pamphlet on the alphabet question, a reader, a grammar and a political treatise on the Albanian question titled Albania: What she has been, What she is, What she shall be.
Involvement in the Albanian national movement
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