Giuseppe Gangale, one of the first contributors to preserving Arbëresh identity, passed away. He was born in 1891. He was among the first scholars of minority cultures in Italy and Europe, an anti-fascist, theologian, and ethnologist. He attended the Arbëresh high school of St. Adrian in San Demetrio Corone, which is considered a cradle of culture and liturgy of the Orthodox Christian rite of the Arbëresh in Calabria. He participated in World War I (1915–1918) and later moved to Florence, where he graduated in philosophy (1921), specializing further in the history of religions under the direction of Vittorio Machioro. Gangale showed a keen scientific interest in studying the Arbëresh language and is considered one of the founders of Arbëresh linguistics, conducting field research. He visited around forty Arbëresh communities, further narrowing the focus of his study to seven of them. Through these centers, he sought to establish the cultural, ethnological, and linguistic perimeter of a disappearing Arbëria, but with a “genuine” heritage to be preserved steadfastly. (In the photo: Giuseppe Gangale)
Text: Center of Studies and Publications for Arbëresh
Photo: © https://diasporashqiptare.al/
Graphic processing: AHCF
