MEYER KOTIK

MEYER KOTIK (b. April 21, 1908)

            He was born in Markulesht (Mărculeşti), Bessarabia.  He completed his legal studies in Brussels.  He served as secretary general of Labor Zionists-Zionist Youth in Romania.  From 1941 he was living in the land of Israel.  He began writing in 1931 with political articles in the daily newspaper Unzer tsayt (Our time).  He later published in Tsayt-fragn (Issues of the times) in Kishinev, Unzer vort (Our word) in Paris, and elsewhere.  In 1934 he was editing the weekly Erd un arbet (Land and labor) in Kishinev, and he later co-edited the remembrance volume Markuleshti, yad lemoshava yehudit bebesarabiya (Mărculeşti, a monument to the Jewish community in Bessarabia) (Tel Aviv, 1977), 272 pp.  In pamphlet form: Der historisher kongres, di dergreykhungen fun 19tn tsienistishn kongres (The historical congress, the accomplishments of the nineteenth Zionist congress) (Kishinev-Bucharest: Erd un arbet, 1935/1936), 48 pp.; Der ershter yidisher velt-kongres, opshatsungen un perspektivn (The first world Jewish congress, evaluations and perspectives) (Paris-New York, 1937), 38 pp.  In Hebrew: Gola bemaakava (Exile in struggle) (Tel Aviv, 1944), 212 pp.; Mishpat shvartsbard (The trial of [Sholem] Schwartzbard) (Ḥadera, 1972), 238 pp.; Mishpat beylis (The trial of [Mendl] Beilis) (Tel Aviv, 1978), 288 pp.; Parashat dreyfus (The Dreyfus case) (Tel Aviv, 1982), 328 pp.

Sources: Y. Rabi, in Al hamishmar (Tel Aviv) (September 15, 1972); L. Kupershteyn, in Davar (Tel Aviv) (December 13, 1978); G. Kressel, in Al hamishmar (January 19, 1979); M. Pruzanski, in Moznaim (Tel Aviv) (1979).

Ruvn Goldberg

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 471.]