ARN B″R YEKHIEL-MIKHL HALEVI

ARN B″R YEKHIEL-MIKHL HALEVI

            He was born in Mikhalishok (Mikališkis), Vilna region, Lithuania, the son of the local rabbi.  He authored the commentaries “Moyshe arn” (Moses Aaron) and “Beys arn” (House of Aaron) in Judeo-German to Sidur tefilat nehora hashalem (Prayer book of great light), first edition (Berdichev, 1811); and of the commentary “Korbn arn” (Sacrifice of Aaron) in archaic Yiddish to the High Holy Day prayer book, first edition (Vilna-Hurodna [Grodno], 1832).  He was also the translator of Akdamut [an ancient Aramaic work of poetry] into archaic Yiddish (Vilna-Hurodno, 1824), and as he wrote in his preface to it: “In the language in which we have lived since our youth.”

Sources: A. Shekhter, in Kiryat sefer (Jerusalem) 1 (1932/1933), pp. 250-51; Ḥ. Liberman, in Kiryat sefer 11 (1933/1934), pp. 132-33.

Khayim Leyb Fuks