{"id":19,"date":"2026-04-20T07:24:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T07:24:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/avdomedjedovic.me\/?page_id=19"},"modified":"2026-05-20T08:55:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T08:55:48","slug":"avdo-medjedovic-guslar-biografija","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/avdomedjedovic.me\/en\/avdo-medjedovic-guslar-biografija\/","title":{"rendered":"The life of a guslar who surpassed epic poetry"},"content":{"rendered":"
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From the small village of Obrov near Bijelo Polje to world scholarship<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Avdo Me\u0111edovi\u0107 was born around 1875 in the village of Obrov near Bijelo Polje (present-day Montenegro). He came from a Muslim Bosniak family with Orthodox Serbian origins (the Rov\u010dani lineage). The family traditionally engaged in the butcher\u2019s trade\u2014his father was \u0106or Huso Huseinovi\u0107, a well-known guslar from Kola\u0161in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Origins and roots<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

From a small environment to a great legacy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avdo Me\u0111edovi\u0107 was born in the village of Obrov, near Bijelo Polje, during the time of the Ottoman Empire. He came from a Muslim family which, according to available data, had Orthodox origins connected to the Rov\u010dani tribe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The family worked as butchers, which shaped his early life and social position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Early life<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Without school, but not without knowledge<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a young man, he worked as a butcher and had no formal education. Throughout his life he remained illiterate, but possessed exceptional linguistic abilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He spoke Serbo-Croatian, learned Turkish during military service, and had basic knowledge of the Albanian language. His knowledge came not from books, but from experience and environment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Military service<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Experience that shapes a person<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He spent a significant part of his life in the army:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • served at the Bulgarian border<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • stayed in Thessaloniki, where he attained the rank of sergeant<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • was wounded during conflicts<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    He spent 45 days in hospital, where one bullet was removed while another remained in his arm\u2014a lasting reminder of that period of his life.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Family life and guslar skill<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

    After returning from the army, he married at the age of 29, had three sons, and lived on the family estate in Obrov near Bijelo Polje. He was introduced to the gusle from childhood. He learned from his father \u0106or Huso, and later from masters \u0106or Huso Husovi\u0107 and Nezir Kalji\u0107. Parry and Lord described him as the \u201cmost versatile and most skilled\u201d guslar they had ever recorded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cAvdo had a strong voice, but according to Lord also weaker diction\u2026 However, in talent and endurance he surpassed all other singers.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u2014 Albert B. Lord<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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    Death and legacy<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

    He died in 1955, leaving behind a rich oral heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Albert Lord described him as:
    \u201cthe last great epic singer of the Balkan tradition\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    His significance today goes beyond the local context and represents a key point in the understanding of oral literature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Iz malog sela Obrov kraj Bijelog Polja do svjetske nauke Avdo Me\u0111edovi\u0107 ro\u0111en je oko 1875. godine u selu Obrov kraj Bijelog Polja (dana\u0161nja Crna Gora). Poticao je iz muslimanske bo\u0161nja\u010dke porodice koja je imala pravoslavno srpsko porijeklo (rov\u010danska loza). Porodica se tradicionalno bavila kasapskim zanatom \u2013 otac mu je bio \u0106or Huso Huseinovi\u0107, poznati […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-19","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nAvdo Me\u0111edovi\u0107 \u017eivot posljednjeg velikog epskog pjeva\u010da Balkana<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Avdo Me\u0111edovi\u0107 bio je legendarni guslar iz Bijelog Polja. 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