Albanian Poet Wins Balkan Poetry Festival

TIRANA, March 14, Albanian poet Xhevahir Spahiu has won the Balkan Poetry Festival held last Saturday in the city of Elbasan, central Albania. Some 100 poets from Greece, Bulgaria, FYROM, Croatia, Kosovo and Albania participated in the 10th edition of the “Elbasan Roses” festival, a traditional annual event held to celebrate the pagan Summer Day festival marking the end of winter. Divided in groups, the poets read their poems to the public in the local Skampa theatre.
A tree named after Spahiu was symbolically planted in the “poets’ garden” at the Municipality of Elbasan.
The head of Elbasan’s Writers’ club, Milianov Kallupi described the annual festival held as part of Summer Day celebrations, as a day of violets and roses, the rebirth of nature and human spirit. The prize also corresponded to the 65th birth anniversary of Spahiu.
Meanwhile, in another cultural event held in Elbasan as part of Summer Day celebrations, the Dibra ensemble won the national folklore song competition which brought together 13 groups from Albania, Kosovo, and Montengero.