Nonda Bulka, satirical writer and educator, was born in Leusë of Përmet. He attended the National Lyceum (French) in Korça and pursued higher studies in literature at the University of Toulouse (France), but had to interrupt them due to scholarship cuts and returned to Albania. He worked as a literature teacher at the Lyceum of Korça. After liberation, he taught literature in high schools and lectured in the French department at the University of Tirana. In the early 1930s, he began publishing satirical writings in the contemporary press under the pseudonym Chri-Chri, which he collected in the book “Kur qan e qesh bilbili” (When the nightingale cries and laughs) (1934). Nonda Bulka was one of the main representatives of the literary generation of the 1930s. Through his fiercely spirited creations, he echoed the issues of Albanian society at the time and international events, expressing dissatisfaction with social inequalities and injustices, and exposing the moral degeneration of ruling circles. A significant place in his writings was taken by criticism of aggressive imperialist policies and fascism on the eve of World War II. He advocated for a realistic literature with social content. After liberation, Nonda Bulka continued to publish “Skica dhe tregime” (Sketches and Stories) (1950), volumes of poetry “Në dritën e yllit” (Starlight) (1952), “Soditje,” (Musings) “Bij të shkrepit” (Sons of the rock) (1963), “Fabula” (Fables) (1965), “Legjenda e një fisi” (The legend of a clan) (1966). As a poet, he sang about partisan heroism, efforts to build a new life, patriotism, and more. Nonda Bulka also engaged in translations from world literature; he translated Balzac’s novel “Eugénie Grandet,” Gorky’s “My Universities,” stories by Maupassant, Dostoevsky, and others into Albanian. (In the photo: Nonda Bulka with his wife.)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 1 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2008, page 327.
Photo: © https://www.voal.ch/nonda-bulka-jam-arber-nga-alfred-papuciu/kulture/letersi/
Graphic processing: AHCF
