KHAYIM HOYKHMAN (CHAIM HOCHMAN)

KHAYIM HOYKHMAN (CHAIM HOCHMAN) (October 31, 1908-July 24, 1988)

            He was born in Vertuzhen (Vertujeni), Bessarabia.  He studied in religious primary school, graduating from a Hebrew high school in Belz and the Soviet Pedagogical Institute in Kishinev.  He was employed in pedagogical work.  During WWII he was mobilized into a Soviet labor battalion.  In 1973 he made aliya to Israel.  He was a Hebrew and Yiddish writer.  He began writing for Unzer tsayt (Our time) in Kishinev (1925-1933), Folksblat (People’s newspaper), and Yidishe tsaytung (Jewish newspaper).  He published stories and miniatures in: the Romanian Shurot (Ranks) and Udim (Firebrands) in Belz, Min hatsad (On the side) in Kishinev, Nativ (Pathway) in Bucharest; and later in Bay zikh (At home), Davar (Word), Al hamishmar (On guard), and Moznaim (Scales) in Tel Aviv; Unzer tsayt (Our time) and Tsayt-fragn (Issues of the day) in Kishinev; Yerusholaymer almanakh (Jerusalem almanac); Besaraber yidn (Bessarablian Jews), Yidish-velt (Jewish world), and Naye yidishe tsaytung (New Jewish newspaper) in Tel Aviv; and Tsukunft (Future) in New York.  Among his books: Ben shine hagagal (Between the wheels’ teeth) (Tel Aviv, 1951/1952), 117 pp.; Shekiat merḥakim (The sinking of distances) (Tel Aviv, 1980), 87 pp., which was awarded the Fikhman Prize; Sufa vetafniyot (Storm and new turns) (Tel Aviv: Reshafim, 1985), 82 pp.

Source: Yerusholaymer almanakh 16 (1985), p. 227.

Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), cols. 205, 542.