Eliezer Steinman ( he, אליעזר שטיינמן; born 1892, died 7 August 1970) was a Russian-born Israeli writer, journalist and editor.

Biography

Steinman was born in 1892 in Obodówka, part of the Sobański estate, a village in the

Podolia Governorate The Podolia Governorate or Podillia Governorate (), set up after the Second Partition of Poland, was a governorate (''gubernia'', ''province'', or ''government'') of the Russian Empire from 1793 to 1917, of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1 ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

, later part of Poland after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, now Obodivka in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. In his youth, while studying in Chişinău to obtain

semikhah Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 ...

to become a

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

, he began to publish his first stories. Starting in 1910, his works, in

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...

and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

, began to appear in newspapers such as ''"Rashaphim"'', ''"Ha-Shiluach"'' and ''"

Ha-Tsefirah ''Ha-Tsfira'' ( he, הצפירה) was a Hebrew-language newspaper published in Poland in 1862 and 1874–1931. History The first issue of ''Ha-Tsfira'' appeared in Warsaw, Congress Poland, in 1862, edited by Chaim Selig Slonimski. ''Ha-Tsfira'' w ...

"'' and he earned a living by teaching. During those years, he became associated with David Frischmann and

Hayim Nahman Bialik Hayim Nahman Bialik ( he, חיים נחמן ביאַליק; January 9, 1873 – July 4, 1934), was a Jewish poet who wrote primarily in Hebrew but also in Yiddish. Bialik was one of the pioneers of modern Hebrew poetry. He was part of the vangu ...

, who worked to obtain his release from service in the Imperial Russian Army. In 1917, following the

Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

, he adopted a communist ideology and asked to be allowed to develop Hebrew culture. He moved to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

and began to work for the Shtiebal publishing house and published his first novel. In 1919, he moved to Odessa and published the pamphlet ''"The Hebrew Communist"''. From 1920, Steinman was one of the regular writers for ''"Ha-Tsefirah"'' and for the Yiddush newspaper, ''"Der Mament"'' (''The Moment''). In 1923 to 1924, he published the magazine ''"Kolot"'' (''Voices''). In 1924, Steinman emigrated with his family to

Mandate Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 i ...

and began working for the Hebrew Writers Union. He became the first editor of the Hebrew literary magazine ''"Katuvim"'' in 1926, which was founded upon the initiative of

. The magazine took its name from the Katuvim group founded by Steinman,

Avraham Shlonsky Avraham Shlonsky (March 6, 1900 – May 18, 1973; he, אברהם שלונסקי; russian: Авраам Шлёнский) was a significant and dynamic Israeli poet and editor born in the Russian Empire. He was influential in the development of ...

and others to seek the renewal of Hebrew literature. From 1932 to 1933, Steinman was the sole editor of the magazine, which, however, lost the support of the Hebrew Writers Union. Throughout these years, Steinman continued his writing and published many books, including books of essays, novels, children's books and anthologies. He died 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 ...

in 1970.

Awards and honours

* In 1959, Steinman was the co-recipient (jointly with

) of the

Bialik Prize The Bialik Prize is an annual literary award given by the municipality of Tel Aviv, Israel, for significant accomplishments in Hebrew literature. The prize is named in memory of Israel's national poet Hayyim Nahman Bialik Hayim Nahman Bialik ...

for literature. * In 1963, he was awarded the Israel Prize, in literature.

Family

Steinman's sons are the writers,

Nathan Shaham Nathan Shaham (Hebrew: נתן שחם; January 29, 1925 – June 18, 2018) was an Israeli writer. Biography Born in Tel Aviv, Shaham was a member of Kibbutz Beit Alfa from 1945-2018, and served with the Palmach in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. He w ...

and David Shaham.

Published works

''To be completed''

Biography

Awards and honours

Family

Published works

References

See also