Genre: Poetry Historical

Author: Gjergj Fishta

Description: is the Albanian national epic poem, complete and published by the Albanian friar and poet Gjergj Fishta in 1937. It consists of 30 songs and over 17,000 verses. Lahuta e Malcis was heavily inspired by northern Albanian oral verse composed by the traditional cycle of epic songs and by the cycles of historical verse of the 18th century. It contains elements of Albanian mythology and south Slavic literary influences, indeed Fishta was under influence of Croatian Franciscan friars as a student in monasteries in Austria-Hungary. In the poem the struggle against the Ottoman Empire became secondary and as a central theme substituted with fighting Slavs (Serbs and Montenegrins), whom he saw as more harmful after the recent massacres and expulsions of Albanians by them.