Short Biography

I am a linguist, and my academic journey began in 2019 when I graduated in Albanian Language and Literature from the University of Tirana. With the support of a DAAD scholarship, I completed my Master’s degree in Albanology at LMU Munich in 2022. Since April 2025, I have been pursuing my Ph.D. in General Linguistics at the University of Hamburg. My doctoral research focuses on language policy and the standardization of Albanian. Using corpus-based and quantitative methods, I offer a new approach to studying the standardization process: not only describing language during the communist period- when standard Albanian was established - but also analyzing it systematically.  I currently serve as Lecturer in Albanian at two universities- the University of Regensburg and the University of Zurich. At Regensburg, I am a team member of the SeeFfield project (seeffield.app.uni-regensburg.de), where I am responsible for developing and strengthening Albanian Studies. My academic interests also include the didactics of Albanian for heritage speakers. I am proud to have designed and taught the first university-level course worldwide dedicated specifically to Albanian heritage speakers, offered at the University of Regensburg. In 2023, I published a monograph Censorship of Translated Literature in Totalitarian Albania: The Case of Robinson Crusoe. Beyond my primary focus on linguistics, I am also interested in censorship in totalitarian regimes and the mechanisms through which literature was controlled. Outside academia, I enjoy reading literature and traveling as much as possible.

Research Interests

• Language Policy and Planning in Totalitarian Albania
• Empirical Study of the Standardization Process of Albanian
• Corpus Linguistics and Quantitative Approaches
• Sociolinguistics
• Albanian as a Heritage Language and its Didactics
• Censorship of Literature in Totalitarian Albania

Project Team Member

Teaching

Examination Duties

Scholarships

Early Career Support

In Collaboration with a Team 

Journal

Publisher

Committee Work

Memberships

Languages

University of Zurich

University of Regensburg 

LMU Munich

University of Tirana/ Institute of European Studies

Charles University Prague

Second Reader – Master’s Thesis, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences (10.07.2025)
Provided written evaluation of the thesis and served as expert during the oral defense.

Candidate:

• Bljerina Memeti- Quels étaient les défis linguistiques des Albanais durant les dix premières années de leur séjour dans une région linguistique en Suisse? Quels sont les défis et les bonnes pratiques de la rédaction de textes pour les Albanais au niveau B1 de l’apprentissage d’une langue seconde?

Second Reader- Master’s Theses, M.A. Albanology, LMU Munich (14.07.2023)

Candidates:

• Plator Gashi – Turzismen in der altalbanischen Schriftkultur mit griechischem Alphabet – Kavalliotis' Protopeiria (1770), Beratiner Kodex (18. Jh.), Moschopolitis' Eisagogiki Didaskalia (1802)
• Ina Merlika – Mustafa Merlika-Kruja – Sein Beitrag zur albanischen Kultur- und Sprachwissenschaft

Second Reader- Bachelor’s Theses, B.A. Historical and General Linguistics, LMU Munich (21.07.2022)

 Candidates:

•  Sonja Krasniqi - Die Sprache von albanischen Jugendlichen in den sozialen Netzwerken
•  Sara Ymeri - Formen des Erwerbs der Elternsprache bei albanischstämmigen Kindern und  Jugendlichen in Deutschland

*peer-reviewed

Monographs and Edited Volumes

In Press

Omari, Anila / Sinani, Shaban / Hala, Ledio (eds.):
Studime albanologjike në indoeuropianistikë, filologji dhe gjuhësi kontakti. Vëllim në nderim të prof. Bardhyl Demirajt. [Albanological Studies in Indo-European Studies, Philology and Contact Linguistics: Volume in Honor of Prof. Bardhyl Demiraj.]
(Expected 2026, to be published by the Academy of Sciences of Albania)

Published

* Hala, Ledio:
Censura e letërsisë së përkthyer në Shqipërinë totalitare. Rasti: Robinson Kruzo.
[Censorship of Translated Literature in Totalitarian Albania: The Case of Robinson Crusoe.]
Tirana 2023: Institute for Albanian and Protestant Studies

Kryeziu, Jorina / Hosaflook, David / Hala, Ledio (eds.):
Krestomaci (in two volumes).
[Chrestomathy – The First Albanian Literary Anthology, written by Gjerasim Qiriazi, Gjergj Qiriazi, and Sevasti Qiriazi (Vol. 1, 1902; Vol. 2, 1907). Newly edited and published in today’s alphabet.]
Tirana 2023: Institute for Albanian and Protestant Studies

Hosaflook, David / Hala, Ledio / Toska, Teuta (eds.):
Udhëtari nga kjo botë në tjetrën.
[The Pilgrim’s Progress – The Famous Christian Literary Work by John Bunyan, translated into Albanian by Gjergj Qiriazi in 1927. Edited, adapted into modern Albanian, and republished.]
Tirana 2019: Institute for Albanian and Protestant Studies

Articles

In Press

Hala, Ledio:
Sociolinguistika historike e shqipes përmes veprës së Bardhyl Demirajt. [The Historical Sociolinguistics of Albanian through the Work of Bardhyl Demiraj.] In: Studime albanologjike në indoeuropianistikë, filologji dhe gjuhësi kontakti. Vëllim në nderim të prof. Bardhyl Demirajt. [Albanological Studies in Indo-European Studies, Philology and Contact Linguistics: Volume in Honor of Prof. Bardhyl Demiraj.]
Expected 2026, Academy of Sciences of Albania

Published

*Hala, Ledio.
Einfache Wahrheiten über die Rettung des Geistes (Monastir 1909) – Die erste Broschüre des albanischen Protestantismus. [Simple Truths about the Salvation of the Spirit (Monastir 1909) – The First Brochure of Albanian Protestantism.] In: Zeitschrift für Balkanologie, 2024.

Jusufi, Lumnije / Hala, Ledio.
Die Qiriazi-Schwestern. [The Qiriazi Sisters.] In: Ariadne: Protagonistinnen und Protagonisten der Frauenemanzipation in islamischen Ländern seit dem 19. Jahrhundert, 80/2024. Available at: https://addf-kassel.de/publikationen/ariadne/wohlauf-denn-meine-schwestern-1

Hala, Ledio
Shqipja në dorëshkrimin "Kënkëtore: Hymna për ndë falëtoret të ungjillorëvet" (Korçë, 1893) të Gjerasim Qiriazit. 
[Albanian Language Features in the Manuscript "Kënkëtore: Hymna për ndë falëtoret të ungjillorëvet" (Korçë, 1893) by Gjerasim Qiriazi.]
In: Proceedings of the International Seminar on Albanian Language, Literature and Culture, Vol. 40, Prishtina 2022, pp. 142–170.

Conference and Presentations

Jubani, Aljula / Hala, Ledio. Albanian as an Active Factor in Balkan Linguistics: Aleksandar Belić’s Approach.
In: International Scientific Conference: Albanological Studies among the South Slavs, organized by the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo and the Academy of Sciences of Albania, 27–28 October 2025.

Hala, Ledio. The Vocalic Cluster -ue in Nomina Agentis in Standard Albanian: A Corpus-Based Analysis.
In: 10th Albanian Evening in Prague: Whose Albanian? Stories of a Language from Albania to Kosovo and Beyond. Organized by Charles University Prague, University of Regensburg, and the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, 30 May 2025.

Jorgaqi, Kristina / Hala, Ledio. Albanian as a Heritage Language in German-speaking Areas: Germany & Switzerland. In: 2nd Symposium of Albanian Studies: Language Ideologies and Attitudes of Albanian Heritage Speakers Worldwide – Approaching a New Field. Organized by University of Regensburg, University of Zurich, and University of Hamburg, 26 May 2025, Regensburg.

Hala, Ledio. Language Learning: Heritage and Inclusion. In: 2nd Southeast European Studies Forum.
Organized by SeeFField Project, Prishtina, 19–22 March 2025.

Hala, Ledio. The Process of Standardization of Albanian: A Corpus-Based Perspective.
In: Spotlight on… Albanian: A PROLang Panel on Researching Albanology, UCL London, 21 January 2025.
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/arts-humanities/events/2025/jan/spotlight-albanian

*Hala, Ledio. "I Speak Without Grammar": Transferring the Ideology of Standardization to Albanian Heritage Speakers in Germany. In: Ideoling: International Symposium on Language Ideology and Attitudes, organized by Universitat de les Illes Balears, Palma de Mallorca, 17–19 October 2024.
https://gresib.uib.cat/2023/12/11/3977/

Hala, Ledio. Transferring the Ideology of Standardization to Albanian Heritage Speakers in Germany.
In: International Summer Seminar for Albanian Language, Literature, and Culture, Prishtina, 19–30 August 2024.

Hala, Ledio. Between Words and Worlds: Language Ideologies among Albanian Heritage Speakers.
In: Albanian Studies Symposium: Exploring the Future of Interdisciplinary Research, organized by the Institute of Slavic Studies, University of Regensburg, 7 June 2024.

Hala, Ledio. The Advancement of Albanian Standardization during the Era of Communist Albania.
In: Institute of Ethnology and Middle East & Balkan Studies, Charles University, Prague, 19 March 2024.

Hala, Ledio. Censorship of Translated Literature in Totalitarian Albania: The Case of Robinson Crusoe.
In: Institute of Ethnology and Middle East & Balkan Studies, Charles University, Prague, 19 March 2024.

Hala, Ledio. Acquisition of Albanian by Heritage Speakers: Theoretical and Methodological Approaches.
In: Roundtable on Multilingualism in the City in the Context of Albanian Linguistics – Proposals for New Theoretical Approaches, organized by the Institute of Slavic Studies, University of Regensburg, and the Institute of Linguistics, University of Elbasan, 5 March 2024.

Hala, Ledio. Albanian Language Teaching and Studies in German Universities: Navigating Challenges, Celebrating Successes, and Sharing Best Practices. In: Albanian Studies in the Global Context, organized by ProLang and SeeFField, UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES), London, 30 January 2024.

Hansen, Björn / Hala, Ledio. Albanian for Heritage Speakers at the University of Regensburg: Challenges and Perspectives.In: Seminar XLI International for Albanian Language, Literature, and Culture, Prishtina, 24 August 2023.

Reviews

In print

Monica Genesin/ Karl Gerhard Hempel/ Thede Kahl (Hg.) Endangered language varieties in Italy and the Balkans. Vienna: Austrian Academy of Sciences Press 2024. Südosteuropa Mitteilungen, 2025.

Published

Voss, Christian/ Jusufi, Lumnije/ Reuter, Evelyn: Innovative Paths of Albanology. Peter Lang 2023. In: Südosteuropa Mitteilungen. Heft 03-04, 2023.

Public Outreach and Media Contributions

Hala, Ledio.
Nga brohoritjet te realiteti: shqipja përtej kufijve. [From Cheers to Reality: Albanian Beyond Borders.] Peizazhe të Fjalës, 6 January 2025. Available at: https://peizazhe.com/2025/01/06/nga-brohoritjet-te-realiteti-shqipja-pertej-kufijve/

Hala, Ledio.
Të emërtosh luftën: Strategji semantike në politikat gjuhësore të emërtimit të luftës në Izrael. [Naming the War: Semantic Strategies in the Language Politics of War Naming in Israel.] Peizazhe të Fjalës, 29 December 2023.Available at: https://peizazhe.com/2023/12/29/te-emertosh-luften/

Vehbiu, Ardian / Hala, Ledio.
Çabej: Tani kemi një akademi. [Çabej: Now We Have an Academy.]Peizazhe të Fjalës, 4 June 2023. Available at: https://peizazhe.com/2023/06/04/cabej-tani-kemi-nje-akademi/

Sejdiu, Lindita / Hala, Ledio.
Seminari i Albanologjisë. [The Albanology Seminar.] Interview, ABC News Albania, 21 August 2025. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O0bn-3S-OY&ab_channel=ABCNewsAlbania

Hala, Ledio.
Mësimi dhe përditshmëria e shqipes në Regensburg. [Teaching and Everyday Life of Albanian in Regensburg.] Podcast Episode, Balkan Callings – Voices from the Region, 25 October 2024. Available at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6e6Oxj8S9lg5t7UUVFCYt1

Hansen, Björn / Hala, Ledio.
Studimet shqiptare në Gjermani. [Albanian Studies in Germany.]
TV Interview, Shqip by Rudina Xhunga.
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8rxFzFD-q4&t=403s

Conforti, Emilia / Hala, Ledio.
Shqipja si gjuhë e huaj dhe gjuhë e trashëguar. [Albanian as a Foreign and Heritage Language.]
TV Interview, Mysafiri i mëngjesit, RTK – Radio Television Kosovo.
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzrUP6no-tc&t=381s