Gli studi albanologici in Italia, Ernesto Koliqi e le iniziative culturali italiane verso l’Albania

This article describes the efforts of the well-known Albanian writer and scholar Ernesto Koliqi (1903-1975) to promote Albanological studies in Italy as a tool to counter Communism ideology and support Italian influence in Albania during the Cold War. The difficult diplomatic relations between Rome and Tirana did not make this task easy. The initiatives carried out by Koliqi with the support of the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs had a clear political meaning. Based upon unpublished sources, the article shows the close connections between culture and politics in the field of Albanian Studies during the second half of the Fifties and the close ties between the Italian Government and the Albanian political groups of exiles in Italy, such as the National Independent Block (Blloku kombëtar indipendent, BKI), whose Koliqi was one of the most prominent members.