Antun Paško Kazali

Who was Antun Paško Kazali?

Antun Paško Kazali was a Croatian folk-writer, poet and translator. Born in Dubrovnik, he went to school in Dubrovnik, studying philosophy and theology in Zadar. He was a parish priest in Ošlje near Ston and chaplain in Šipan. As a parish priest he often came into conflict with church authorities. He spent his most creative period in Zadar, starting in 1855. He was professor at the gymnasium in Zadar, teaching Latin, Greek and Croatian, and in 1862 became a professor at Rijeka/Fiume gymnasium. The last ten years of his life were spent in Dubrovnik.

He has written Spjev Zlatka, Trista VICA widow, A voice from the wilderness and Grobnik. Several other works are in manuscript and the best known is Spjev Ćoso, an autobiographical poem. He was an associate and writer for the Zora Dalmatinska journal, and edited the newspapers Zadar Glasnik Dalmatinski and Smotritelj Dalmatinski. He spoke 11 world languages. The special value of his literary work is recognized in Croatian national maritime terminology.

He died in Dubrovnik.