SALOMON KAHAN

SALOMON KAHAN (June 2, 1896-March 4, 1965)

            He was born in Bialystok.  He emigrated to Mexico City in 1921 and graduated from university there.  He worked as a journalist and music critic.  For a short time he was a music correspondent for the New York Times.  He was a guest professor of Yiddish and Hebrew literature and music at a university in Mexico City.  In Mexico, he contributed to: Di shtime (The voice) and Der veg (The way) which he edited for several years.  He also published in: Tsukunft (Future), Gedank un lebn (Idea and life), and Der kontinent (The continent), among others.  He wrote about music and general topics as well.  In 1935 he edited the journal Kamf (Struggle)—three issues appeared.  His books include: Yidish-meksikanish (Jewish-Mexican) (Mexico City, 1945), 302 pp.; Meksikaner viderklangen, publitsistishe un literarish-kritishe fartseykhenungen (Mexican echoes, journalistic and literary-critical notes) (Mexico City, 1951), 289 pp.; Meksikanishe refleksn (Mexican reflections) (Mexico City, 1954), 306 pp.; Muzikalishe eseyen (Musical essays) (Mexico City, 1956), 299 pp.; Literarishe un zhurnalistishe fartseykhenungen (Literary and journalistic notes) (Mexico City, 1961), 389 pp.  His pamphlets would include: Tsu di yidishe student, tsu di yidishe eltern (To Jewish students, to Jewish parents) (Mexico City, 1937); Ben-tsien goldberg, kinstler fun yidisher publitsistik (Ben-Tsien Goldberg, artist of Yiddish journalism) (Mexico City, 1950), 28 pp., second edition (1956); Dzhan dyui, fonen-treger fun progresiver dertsiung (John Dewey, flagbearer of progressive education) (Mexico City, 1952), 47 pp.; Briv vegn der meksikaner yidisher studentshaft (Letter on the Mexican Jewish student body) (Mexico City, 1953), 32 pp.; Khayim grinbergs gaystike farvandshaftn (Khayim Grinberg’s spiritual wanderings) (Mexico City, 1953), 31 pp.; Byalistok (Bialystok) (Mexico City, 1959), 22 pp.  In Spanish he published books about music, and he wrote a great deal for the Spanish-language press.  He translated into Spanish Heinrich Graetz’s history of the Jews in ten volumes: Historia del Pueblo de Israel (Mexico City: La Verdad, 1938-1942).  “Salomon Kahan,” noted Yankev Glatshteyn, “was one of the most prominent journalists in the Mexican Jewish community.”  He died in Mexico City.

Sources: Zalmen Zilbertsvayg, Leksikon fun yidishn teater (Handbook of the Yiddish theater), vol. 6 (Mexico City, 1969); N. B. Minkov, in Tsukunft (New York) 3 (1955); Foroys (Mexico City) (November 1961); Yankev Glatshteyn, Mit mayne fartog-bikher (With my daybreak books) (Tel Aviv, 1963), pp. 413-18; Y. Glants, in Der veg (Mexico City) (April 13, 1965); Y. Rapoport, Fragmentn fun a lebn (Fragments of a life) (Melbourne, 1967), pp. 79-86; Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York).

Moyshe Rubunshteyn