Shin Shifra ( he, ש. שפרה); is the
pen name
A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name.
A pen na ...
of Shifra Shifman Shmuelevitch (1931 – 9 February 2012), a poet, translator, writer, editor and
literary academic. Shifra won multiple literature awards.
Biography
Shin Shifra, the fifth of eight children, was born in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
and raised in
Bnei Brak
Bnei Brak or Bene Beraq ( he, בְּנֵי בְּרַק ) is a city located on the central Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean Israeli coastal plain, coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an are ...
, in a veteran
Jerusalemite family. Her father was among the first new age Jewish teachers in
The Land of Israel. She studied at the Talpiot high school gymnasium for girls in Tel Aviv, and graduated from the Levinsky Seminar for Teachers in Jaffa. In addition, she studied
Kabbalah
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
,
Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy () includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or in relation to the religion of Judaism. Until modern ''Haskalah'' (Jewish Enlightenment) and Jewish emancipation, Jewish philosophy was preoccupied with attempts to reconcile ...
,
Hebrew literature
Hebrew literature consists of ancient, medieval, and modern writings in the Hebrew language. It is one of the primary forms of Jewish literature, though there have been cases of literature written in Hebrew by non-Jews. Hebrew literature was pro ...
,
Sumerian and
Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to:
* Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire
* Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language
* Akkadian literature, literature in this language
* Akkadian cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabi ...
. Her first poems were published in 1953.
Shifra was on the management board of the defunct
voluntary association
A voluntary group or union (also sometimes called a voluntary organization, common-interest association, association, or society) is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement, usually as volunteering, volunteers, to form a body (or organ ...
"Amanut La’am"; she established "The Center for Arab Children's Literature" in collaboration with The Arab Academic College for Education in Israel – Haifa, under the leadership of
Naim Araidi
Naim Araidi ( ar, نعيم عرايدي, he, נעים עריידי; April 2, 1950 – October 2, 2015) was an Israeli Druze academic and writer known for his poems in both Hebrew and Arabic.
Education
Araidi was born in Maghar, Israel and complet ...
. She taught creative writing for high school students, and
Ancient Near East
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran and northeastern Syria), ancient Egypt, ancient Iran ( Elam, ...
literature at the
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
and the
Levinsky College of Education
In 1964 she married the ex-
Lehi member Matityahu Shmuelevitch.
Shifra Shifman Shmuelevitch died in 2012, at the age of 80, and was buried at the
Yarkon Cemetery
Yarkon Cemetery ( he, בית העלמין ירקון) is the main cemetery for the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area of Israel. It is located within the Petah Tikva city limits, between the Yarkon River in the West, Highway 5 in the North, and the 491 r ...
alongside her husband.
Her personal archive is kept at the
Gnazim Archive
, image = Logognazim.jpg
, latin_name =
, motto =
, established = 1951
, type = Hebrew literature archive
, budget =
, debt =
, research_field = Hebrew literature
, director ...
of the
Hebrew Writers Association at the Tel Aviv central public library
Beit Ariela
Beit Ariela Shaar Zion Library is the central public library in Tel Aviv.
History Pre-State
The library was founded in 1886 in Jaffa at the initiative of the " Ezrat Israel" society ("Assistance to Israel") – the organization that helped to esta ...
.
Literary works
Shifra's greatest work, done in collaboration with Prof. Jacob Klein of the
Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University (BIU, he, אוניברסיטת בר-אילן, ''Universitat Bar-Ilan'') is a public research university in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is Israel's second-largest academic i ...
, is the
anthology
In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors.
In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...
of Ancient Near East poetry, on which they spent 15 years in its translation to Hebrew from
Sumerian and
Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to:
* Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire
* Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language
* Akkadian literature, literature in this language
* Akkadian cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo- syllabi ...
. It includes
epic poetry
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
...
,
myth
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...
s and
song cycle
A song cycle (german: Liederkreis or Liederzyklus) is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online''
The songs are either for solo voice ...
s such as the
Epic of Gilgamesh
The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poetry, epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh ...
,
Enûma Eliš and a
Tammuz
Dumuzid or Tammuz ( sux, , ''Dumuzid''; akk, Duʾūzu, Dûzu; he, תַּמּוּז, Tammûz),; ar, تمّوز ' known to the Sumerians as Dumuzid the Shepherd ( sux, , ''Dumuzid sipad''), is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with shep ...
-
Ishtar
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in S ...
song cycle.
This translation is quite unique in its coverage of works from the
Ancient Near East
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran and northeastern Syria), ancient Egypt, ancient Iran ( Elam, ...
, vs. the vast majority of ancient literature translations to Hebrew, that covers works of
Western culture
Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''.
image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
. The translation reveals the common base of the ancient near east mythology and the
Genesis creation narrative
The Genesis creation narrative is the creation myth of both Judaism and Christianity. The narrative is made up of two stories, roughly equivalent to the first two chapters of the Book of Genesis. In the first, Elohim (the Hebrew generic word ...
and
flood narrative, and brings to light a unique feminine narrative.
In her last years, Shifra published adaptations for children and young adults of the Sumerian and Akkadian cultural heritage. In "The Epic of Gilgamesh", she chose to present the stories of the myths via a fictitious Assyrian narrator, Kerdi-Nergal, who recites tales to
King Ashurbanipal.
The common thread connecting Shifra's translations and many of her other works is the geographical location affinity linking the Land of Israel to the Middle East. She recalled that her initial interest in the literature of the Ancient Near East was sparked by her delving into the works of
Nisim Aloni
Nissim Aloni ( he, נסים אלוני, 24 August 1926 – 13 June 1998) was an Israeli playwright and translator.
Biography
Aloni was born Nissim Levi to poor Bulgarian Jewish immigrant parents in Mandate Palestine. His family lived in Florenti ...
. This connection was central to the ideology of the
Canaanism
Canaanism was a cultural and ideological movement founded in 1939 that reached its peak in the 1940s among the Jews of Mandatory Palestine. It has had significant effect on the course of Israeli art, literature and spiritual and political thoug ...
movement, with whose members she was closely associated, especially to
Yonatan Ratosh
Yonatan Ratosh () was the literary pseudonym of Uriel Shelach ( he, אוריאל שלח) (November 18, 1908 – March 25, 1981), an Israeli poet and journalist who founded the Canaanite movement.
Biography
Uriel Heilperin (later Shelach) was ...
and
Aharon Amir
Aharon Amir ( he, אהרן אמיר, January 5, 1923 – February 28, 2008) was an Israelis, Israeli Hebrew poet, a literary translator and a writer.
Biography
Aharon Amir was born in Kaunas, Lithuania. He moved to Palestine with his family in ...
. Shifra attested that Ratosh had edited her early poems. Shifra was also on the editorial team of Ratosh's periodical "The New Keshet".
Shifra's poetry was translated into several languages, and her original works and translations were published in periodicals and literary supplements.
Works
Translations
''In Those Far Days'' – an anthology of Sumerian and Akkadian poetry, translated into Hebrew by Shifra and Prof. Jacob Klein, published in 1996 by
Am Oved
Am Oved ("A Working People") is an Israeli publishing house.
History
Am Oved was founded in 1942 by Berl Katznelson, who was its first Editor in Chief. It was created as an organ of the Histadrut, Israel's federation of Labor, with a goal of publi ...
and The Israeli Center for Libraries' project for translating Exemplary Literature to Hebrew.
Poetry
Poetry books published in Hebrew:
''A Womanʹs Song'', Machbarot Lesifrut, 1962
hir Isha
''The Next Step'', Machbarot Lesifrut, 1968
a-Tzaʹad Ha-Ba
''Desert Poems'', Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 1972
hirei Midbar
''Drimias Memorial Candles (Poems 1973–1985)'', Am Oved, 1987
atzavim Nerot Neshama
''A Woman Who Practices How to Live'', Zmora-Bitan, 2001
sha She-Mitʹamenet Be-Lichyot: Shirim 1986–1999
''Whispering Silk'', Zmora-Bitan, 2007
eshi Lachashta Li
Prose
Prose Books published in Hebrew:
Adult's Books
''The Sand Street (stories)'', Hakibbutz Hameuchad/ Yedioth Ahronoth, 1994
ehov Ha-Hol
''Woman Is Just an Arena (stories)'', Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 2012
sha Hi Rak Zira
Children and Young Adults
''The Epic of Gilgamesh (young adults)'', Am Oved, 2000
lilot Gilgamesh
''The Tales of Anzu the Great Eagle (children)'', Am Oved, 2009
lilot Anzu Ha-Nesher Ha-Gadol
''The Descend of Ishtar to the Underworld (young adults)'', Am Oved, 2012
lilot Inanna-Ishtar Ba-Shʹol
Non-fiction
Non-fiction books published in Hebrew:
* ''From the Oven to the Pool (non-fiction)'', Sifriat Proza Meida, 1982
ein Tanur Li-Vreicha* ''From Ancient Stories to Kings and Prophets (non-fiction)'', Am Oved, 2003
e-Alilot Reshit Ad Melachim U-NeviʹimThis is a text book for high school students.
* ''Words as Magic and the Magic in Words (non-fiction)'', Ministry of Defense, 2008
a-Milim Ke-Chishuf, Ve-Ha-Kishuf She-Ba-MilimThese are transcriptions of Shifra's discourses on literature of the Ancient Near East, first broadcast as a "University on the Air" course on the Israeli
Army Radio
Army Radio ( he, גלי צה"ל lit. IDF waves) or Galei Tzahal, known in Israel by its acronym Galatz ( he, גל"צ), is a nationwide Israeli radio network operated by the Israel Defense Forces. The station broadcasts news, music, traffic reports ...
.
Editing
''Jewish Literature in the Hebrew Language'' – by Yonatan Ratosh; introduction, notes and references by Shin Shifra, Hadar 1982
''The Beginning Days'' – by Yonatan Ratosh; edited by Shin Shifra, Hadar 1982
Works set to music
*
Gil Shohat
Gil Shohat ( he, גיל שוחט, born 7 September 1973) is an Israeli classical music composer, Conducting, conductor, pianist and lecturer.
Biography
Gil Shohat was born in Tel Aviv. His mother is ''Ha'aretz'' theatre critic Tzipora (Tzipi) Shoh ...
, ''Michal'' ''–'' a song cycle for
Soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
and
chamber orchestra
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numbe ...
.
* Gil Shohat, ''Bathsheba'' – an
oratorio
An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...
(premiered on 23 April 2005 in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
, United States).
* Gil Shohat, ''A Mother and Son'' – a
fantasia
Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...
in two parts for Children's
choir
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
and percussion.
*
Sara shoham, ''Mother of Mercy'' ''–'' for choir, written for the
Li-Ron Choir
Li-Ron Choir (Hebrew: מקהלת לי-רון) is an Israeli award-winning choir. Its repertoire includes classical music, folk songs, Jewish and Israeli music.
History
Li-Ron Choir was established in 1980 at the Gordon School in Herzliya by Ronit ...
.
*
Hagar Kadima, ''A Waltz to She Who Binds Her Soul to Love'' – for soprano,
clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
, violin, cello and piano.
*
Haim Rachmani, ''Simple'' – sung by Talia Eliav, from her album "Kod HaZikaron" (the memorial code).
*
Haim Tukachinsky, a song cycle for voice and piano, composed in 2008.
Awards
* 1987, 1989, 1997 –
Prime Minister's Award
* 1992 – the
prize, for the anthology "The Road of Sand" (רחוב החול).
* 1997 – the Leah Goldberg prize, also for "The Road of Sand".
* 1998 – the
Tchernichovsky Prize
Tchernichovsky Prize is an Israeli prize awarded to individuals for exemplary works of translation into Hebrew.
History
The Tchernichovsky Prize is awarded by the municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo. for translation, for "In Those Far Days".
* 2001 – the Yehuda Amichai poetry prize, for "A Woman Who Practices How to Live".
* 2001 – the Zeev Prize for Children and Young Adult Literature, for "The Epic of Gilgamesh (young adults)".
* 2002 – an honorary citation from the
International Board on Books for Young People The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) is an international non-profit organization committed to bringing books and children together. The headquarters of the IBBY are located in Basel, Switzerland.
IBBY history
In 1952, Jella Lepm ...
, also for "The Epic of Gilgamesh (young adults)".
* 2004 – President's Prize for Literature (Israel), for her life works.
* 2007 – the
Brenner Prize
The Brenner Prize is an Israeli literary prize awarded annually by the Hebrew Writers Association in Israel and the Haft Family Foundation.
It was founded in the name of the author Yosef Haim Brenner
Yosef Haim Brenner ( he, יוֹסֵף חַ ...
, for her life works.
* 2010 –
The EMET Prize for Art, Science and Culture
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
Pseudonyms
Shifra published an article titled "No Intercourse, and With No Delight – on the Problem of the Alien Lover in Israeli Literature" in the May 1972 edition of the periodical "Aleph", under the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
"Yosef Dotan".
Further reading
Shin Shifra, "In the Meadow in the Soft Grass", in "Whence did I Inherit my Poetry – writers and poets on their sources of inspiration", edited by Ruth Kartun-Blum, Yedioth Ahronoth Books, 2002, pp. 129–147
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shifra, Shin
Sumer
Assyriologists
Academic staff of Tel Aviv University
EMET Prize recipients
Brenner Prize recipients
Hebrew-language writers
Israeli women poets
Israeli poets
Translators to Hebrew
Burials at Yarkon Cemetery
1931 births
2012 deaths
20th-century translators