The Centre for Arbëresh Studies and Publications commemorated linguist and Albanologist Antonino Guzzetta on the 104th anniversary of his birth. Born on October 14, 1922, in Piana degli Albanesi, Sicily, Guzzetta devoted his career to preserving and promoting the Albanian language and Arbëresh culture.

Guzzetta graduated from the University of Palermo’s Faculty of Literature and Philosophy. In 1974, he became a professor of Albanian language and literature at the Oriental Institute of Naples. A year later, he took charge of the Institute of Albanian Language and Literature at the University of Palermo, where he served until 1997. He also taught at the University of Calabria from 1987 to 1990.

Beyond academia, Guzzetta led the Rosolino Petrotta International Centre for Albanian Studies. From 1968, he organised 23 international congresses and published their proceedings. He also founded the Albanica series, which grew to more than 20 volumes.

His research covered Albanian linguistics, literature and the Arbëresh community in Italy. Among his notable works were studies on 15th-century Albanian traces in Venetian documents, Ernest Koliqi’s poetry and prose, Byron’s connection to Albania, and the Arbëresh community’s identity and heritage.

Guzzetta died in July 2017. In recognition of his contribution to Albanian studies, he received numerous international honors, including Albania’s Naim Frashëri Order in 1992.