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By:
Col. Mehmeti
- December 30, 2020 23:18
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He was one of the linguists who received the "baptism of fire" in dialectological research in the field. Mehmet Çelik's name is associated with in-depth studies of southern Gege dialects in the area of Central Albania, in the villages of Këraba, Kavaja and Durrës.
On Wednesday, at the age of 84, he passed away in his apartment in Tirana. The news was announced by the Department of Linguistics at the University of Elbasan "Aleksandër Xhuvani".
"The respected professor Mehmet Çeliku is no longer among us. But his example, his inexhaustible energy for scientific research, his dedication to Albanian linguistics, his love for Albanian, his skills as a teacher for tens of years will always inspire all those who knew him and collaborated with him: students, teachers, journalists , publishers, pedagogues, professors, language lovers", the statement said.
Tragic year for albanological sciences as well
For colleagues from the academic world, friends and students, Çelik was one of the researchers with outstanding contributions to Albanian linguistics. Author of over 200 texts on the Albanian language, he was also noted for his half-century career in Albanian higher education.
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The well-known Albanian linguist, Mehmet Çeliku, dies at the age of 84
The director of the Institute of Linguistics and Literature, Valter Memisha, has estimated that 2020 was a tragic year for Albanian sciences as well. According to him, researchers and professors such as Jorgji Gjinari, Remzi Përnaska, Giani Bellusci, Giuseppe Gradilone, Rolf Ködderitzsch and Ludmil Stankov passed away this year.
The year 2020 has closed with another sad news for the world of Albanianology. The long-time linguist and professor from Elbasan, Mehmet Çeliku - author of over two hundred texts on the language - has died at the age of 84. His colleagues have appreciated him as a continuation of the linguistic tradition of Elbasan, which started with the Anonymous of Elbasan, continued with Theodhor Haxhifilipi, Konstantin Kristoforidi and continued later with Aleksandër Xhuvani, Kostaq Cipo and Mahir Domin
"But today I have to share with you another shocking and sad news with pain, another outstanding personality of linguistics, education and our national culture, prof. dr. Mehmet Celiku", Memisha wrote on his Facebook account as he expressed his condolences to the family of the deceased.
The linguist and pedagogue Aristotel Spiro has called the death of Çelik as very bitter news at the end of this year for the Albanian language community.
"His thought and work will continue to be part of the Albanian linguistic discourse", wrote Spiro.
"Strict Professor of Syntax"
The former deputy of the Democratic Party, Luciano Boçi, has joined the condolences, who said that Professor Çeliku did not stop the scientific production at any moment.
"The 'strict' professor of Syntax, but loved by everyone, shaped over the years thousands of students and teachers, scattered all over Albania and the Albanian territories, who took from him the passion for work and the love for the Albanian language". wrote Boçi. "An icon of honesty, of hard work, of a typical scientist, of a man devoted to his family, of a model citizen, Met Celiku has left an indelible mark on everyone who has worked with him, known him and met him".
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According to the official biography published by "Aleksandër Xhuvani" university, Mehmet Celiku was born on January 15, 1936 in Elbasan. He completed his primary and secondary education in his hometown, and then continued his studies in language and literature at the University of Tirana. After graduation, he started working as a scientific associate at the Institute of Linguistics and Literature, near the Academy of Sciences of Albania, and in 1973 he joined the University of Elbasan, at that time the Higher Pedagogical Institute "Aleksandër Xhuvani".
Profile as a dialectologist
With his academic profile as a dialectologist, for 15 years of work at this institution, he researched over a hundred inhabited points and studied the Southern Gehrish and transitional dialects. He was one of the co-authors of the second volume of "Grammar", published by the Academy, as well as an external lecturer at the University of Tirana.
After being appointed as a lecturer at the Higher Pedagogical Institute, in Elbasan, he assumed the position of head of the Department of Language, Literature and Foreign Languages, which he was in charge of for almost two decades, until 1992.
With a 41-year commitment within the University, he taught subjects such as morphology, syntax, dialectology, standard Albanian, as well as organized special courses in the field of linguistics.
From 1992 to 1996, Çelik was rector of the University of Elbasan.
"Professor M. Çeliku worked overtime, working days and days off. Head of the Grammar and Dialectology Department, prof. M. Domi appreciated his scientific work outside of regular hours in the office, in the library and at home", says a biography prepared by his colleague, Valter Memisha.
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Mehmet Celiku also played a role in the unification of the Albanian language, giving valuable contributions to the problems related to the standard.
Appreciated with titles and acknowledgments such as "Outstanding Worker of Science and Technology" (1987), "Teacher of the People" (1993) and "Honorary Citizen" of Elbasan (2006), Çelik's scientific activity is summarized in about 200 articles published, such as books, monographs, summaries, university texts, articles, reports and statements. Çelik was buried on Wednesday afternoon in Sharra cemetery in Tirana.
