Ibrahim Rugova was born on December 2, 1944 in the village named Cerrcë, in the municipality of Istog. On January 10, 1945 the Yugoslav communists shot his father Ukë and grandfather Rrustë Rugova, who had been famous fighter against Chetnik bands who were penetrating into Kosovo during World War II.
Ibrahim Rugova finished elementary school in Istog and secondary school in Peja in 1967. He graduated form the Faculty of Philosophy – Department of Albanian Language and Literature in Prishtina. During the academic year 1976-77 he stayed in Paris, at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, under the supervision of prof. Roland Barthes, where he attended his scholarly interests in the study of literature with a focus on literary theory. He defended his doctorate dissertation in the field of literature at the University of Prishtina, in 1984. In 1996 Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was elected correspondent of the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Kosovo. At the beginning he was editor of the student newspaper “Bota e Re” (New World) and of the scientific journal “Dituria” (Knowledge) (1971-72), which were published in Prishtina. A while he worked for the newsletter “Fjala” (The Word). Then, for nearly two decades, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova conducted his own scientific activities at the Institute of Albanology as literature researcher. For a time he was chief editor of the magazine “Gjurmime Albanalogjike” (Albanological Tracking) of this Institute. With literary creativity he was engaged from the early sixties.
Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, in 1988, was elected chairman of the Kosovo Writers’ Association, which became a powerful core of the Albanian movement, which challenged the Serbian and Yugoslav communist rule in Kosovo.
As a famous intellectual who gave voice to this intellectual and political movement Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was elected on December 23, 1989, from the founding, president of the Democratic League of Kosovo, the first political party in Kosovo which directly challenged the ruling Communist regime. DLK, under the leadership of Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, quickly became the leading political force in Kosova, gathering most of the people around him. In cooperation with other Albanian political forces in Kosovo as well as with the Assembly of Kosovo of that time, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova and the DLK concluded the legal framework for the institutionalization of the independence of Kosovo. The Declaration of Independence (2 July 1990), declaration of the Republic of Kosovo and approval of its constitution (7 September 1990), the national referendum for the independence and sovereignty of Kosovo, held in late September 1991, was the prelude for the first multiparty elections for the Assembly of Kosovo, held on May 24, 1992. Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was elected President of the Republic of Kosovo. Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was reelected President of the Republic of Kosovo in the elections held in March 1998.
Under the leadership of Dr. Ibrahim Rugova the DLK won the majority of votes in the first local internationally-sponsored elections in post-war Kosovo in October 2000, the first national elections in 2001 and the second local elections in 2002. DLK also won the national elections in 2004.
Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was elected President of Kosovo in March 2002 and was reelected in 2004
Dr. Ibrahim Rugova passed away on 21 January 2006 in Prishtina and was buried in Sunny Hill with the highest honors of the people Kosovo.
At the death anniversary of Ibrahim Rugova, on January 21, 2007, the President of Kosovo, Dr. Fatmir Sejdiu, awarded the historical President of Kosovo with the Order “Hero of Kosovo”, the highest distinction in our country given to Kosovar and Albanian historical figures who have done “acts of courage for the freedom and independence of Kosovo.”
Ibrahim Rugova ka botuar këto vepra:
– Prekje lirike (Lyrical touch), Rilindja, Prishtina, 1971,
– Kah teoria (Towards theory), Rilindja, Prishtina, 1978,
– Bibliografia e kritikës letrare shqiptare (bibliography of the Albanian literary criticism) 1944-1974, Institute of Albanalogy, Prishtina, 1976 (together with Isak Shema),
– Kritika letrare (Literary Criticism) (from De Rada to Migjeni), Rilindja, Prishtina, 1979 (together with Sabri Hamiti),
– Strategjia e kuptimit (The strategy of understanding), Rilindja, Prishtina, 1980
– Vepra e Bogdanit (The work of Bogdani) 1675-1685, Rilindja, Prishtina, 1982,
– Kahe dhe premisa të kritikës letrare shqiptare (Directions and premises of the Albanian literary criticism) 1504-1983, Institute of Albanalogy, Prishtina, 1986
– Refuzimi estetik (Esthetical refusal), Rilindja, Prishtina, 1987,
– Pavarësia dhe demokracia (Independence and democracy), Fjala, Prishtina, 1991,
– Çështja e Kosovës (The Kosovo issue), Dukagjini, Peja, 1994,
– Kompleti i veprave të Ibrahim Rugovës në tetë vëllime (The set of works of Ibrahim Rugova in eight volumes), Faik Konica, Prishtina, 2005
International awards and titles of Ibrahim Rugova:
– In 1995, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was awarded the peace award Paul Litzer Foundation in Denmark.
– In 1996, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was declared Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) of the University of Paris VIII, Sorbonne, France.
– In 1998, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was awarded the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize.
– In 1999, Dr. Rugova took the Peace Prize of the city Mynster, Germany, and was declared honorary citizen of the Italian cities: Venice, Milan and Brescia.
– In 2000, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova received the prize for peace of the Democratic Union of Catalonia “Manuel Carrasco of Formiguerra” in Barcelona, Spain.
– In 2004 Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was awarded the European Award, Honorary Senator of the pan-European Foundation Coudenhove-Kalergi.
– He was also honored from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (USA), “Friend of the United States of America.”
– In 2004, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was declared Honorary Doctorate (Honoris Causa) of the University of Tirana.