Leyb Moiseyevich Kvitko (, ) (October 15, 1890 – August 12, 1952) was a prominent

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

poet, an author of well-known children's poems and a member of the

Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee The Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee, abbreviated as JAC, was an organization that was created in the Soviet Union during World War II to influence international public opinion and organize political and material support for the Soviet fight against ...

(JAC). He was one of the editors of ''Eynikayt'' (the JAC's newspaper) and of the '' Heymland'', a literary magazine. He was executed in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

on August 12, 1952, together with twelve other members of the JAC, a massacre known as the

Night of the Murdered Poets Night, or nighttime, is the period of darkness when the Sun is below the horizon. Sunlight illuminates one side of the Earth, leaving the other in darkness. The opposite of nighttime is daytime. Earth's rotation causes the appearance of ...

. Kvitko was rehabilitated in 1955. He was born in a Ukrainian

shtetl or ( ; , ; Grammatical number#Overview, pl. ''shtetelekh'') is a Yiddish term for small towns with predominantly Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish populations which Eastern European Jewry, existed in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust. The t ...

, attended traditional Jewish religious school for boys (

cheder A ''cheder'' (, lit. 'room'; Yiddish pronunciation: ''khéyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language. History ''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th century. L ...

) and was orphaned early. He moved to

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

in 1917 and soon became one of the leading Yiddish poets of the "Kiev Group". He lived in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

between 1921 and 1925 joining there the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (, ; KPD ) was a major Far-left politics, far-left political party in the Weimar Republic during the interwar period, German resistance to Nazism, underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and minor party ...

and publishing critically acclaimed poetry. He returned to the Soviet Union in 1925 and moved to

in 1936, joining the

CPSU The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1939. By that time he was primarily writing verses for children and his style fully corresponded to the canons of socialist realism. He has family who still live in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. Some family is also located in the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Gallery

Akh, az ikh ṿel oysṿaḳsn!, L. Ḳviṭḳo ; gemeln fun ḳinsṭler Y. Dayts.jpg, Children's book by Kvitko In vald L Kvitko tseykhenungen Y Ribak.jpg, ''In vald L Kvitko tseykhenungen Y Ribak'', children's book cover Me shlisṭ oys derfar, L. Ḳṿiṭḳo ; tseykhnungen, Y. Ribak.jpg A tsig mit zibn tsigelekh, ṭeḳsṭ L. Ḳṿiṭḳo; bilder A. Sudamara - א ציג מיט זיבן ציגעלעך, טעקסט ל. קװיטקא; בילדער א. סודאמארא (3859858454).jpg Di poṭshṭ, S. Marshaḳ fun Rusish L. Ḳṿiṭḳo; tseykhenungen M. Ḳoṭlyareṿsḳi - די פאטשט, ס. מארשאק; פונ רוסיש, ל. קװיטקא; צײכענונגענ, מ. קאטליארעװסקי (3859817560).jpg

References

External links

*
The Jewish Poet, Lev Kvitko

in Almanac "Yegupets", No 9,

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kvitko, Leib 1890 births 1952 deaths 20th-century Ukrainian poets 20th-century Ukrainian writers People from Podolia Governorate Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Russian children's poets Executed writers Yiddish-language poets Jewish anti-fascists Jewish socialists Jewish Ukrainian poets Jews executed by the Soviet Union Jews from the Russian Empire Soviet children's writers Soviet Jews Soviet male poets Soviet male writers Soviet rehabilitations Ukrainian anti-fascists Ukrainian children's writers Ukrainian male poets Ukrainian male writers