MOYSHE TSUKERMAN (M. ZOUKERMANN) (1863-1916)
The son
of Avrom Tsukerman, he was born in Oshmene (Oshmiany), Vilna district,
Lithuania. In 1870 he moved with his
parents to Warsaw where he received a Jewish and a general education,
specializing in foreign languages. In
1885 he left for Paris and studied humanities for a time at the Sorbonne. From 1890 until his death, he owned a Jewish
print shop, publishing house, and book and religious text business in the
Jewish quarter in Paris [the Marais]. He
published Jewish books and religious texts.
He was editor and publisher of the daily newspaper Di parizer algemeyne yidishe tsaytung (The general Jewish newspaper
of Paris) (1892), which he virtually filled out all by himself with current
affairs and translations from light French literary sketches and stories. He was the author of a Yiddish textbook for
French and English, published in Warsaw.
He later published Der praktisher
frantsoze (Practical French), “a new auxiliary method for Jews in a short
time to learn to read, write, and speak French, without the need for a teacher,
adapted according to an entirely new, easy system” (Paris, 1892), 118 pp. Tsukerman was the first Yiddish translator of
Jules Verne’s books, among them: Der
meshugener in zibeten himmel (The madman in seventh heaven [original: Un Drame dans
les airs]) (Paris, 1895), 38 pp.; and Doktor oks (Dr. Ox [original: Une fantaisie du docteur Ox]) (Paris, 1895). He
also translated Edward Bellamy’s Iber
hundert yor (Over 100 years [original: Looking
Backward]) (Paris, 1894), 199 pp., with Tsukerman’s annotations. All of these books were published in large
printings. He died in Paris.
Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 3, p. 724; Z. Shaykovski, Yidn in frankraykh (Jews in France), vol. 2 (New York, 1942), p.
263; Dr. Yankev Shatski, Geshikhte
fun yidn in varshe (History of Jews in Warsaw), vol. 3 (New York,
1953), see index. Information about his
father derived from Maks Sh. in Paris.
Khayim Leyb Fuks
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