YITSKHOK-AYZIK KAMINER

YITSKHOK-AYZIK KAMINER (May 1834-April 5, 1901)

            He was born in Levkyev (Levkiv), near Zhitomir.  He received his medical degree from Kiev University.  He was a Hebrew poet, satirist, and journalist.  Earlier a socialist, he later became a “lover of Zion.”  He was one of the first Hebrew writers who considered it important to create a Yiddish literature.  In 1888 he sent Sholem-Aleichem a “Brief tsum heroysgeber” (Letter to the publisher) for the latter’s planned Folks-biblyotek (People’s library), published as a kind of programmed anthology, to which Kaminer contributed.  He also placed work in Linetski and Goldfaden’s Yisroelik and in M. Radkinson’s Yiddish-language Kol leam (Call to the people).  He died in Berne.

Sources: Getzel Kressel, Leksikon hasifrut haivrit (Handbook of Hebrew literature), vol. 2 (Merḥavya, 1967); Sefer hashana (Yearbook) (Warsaw, 1901/1902), vol. 3, pp. 46-68; Sh. L. Tsitron, Dray literarishe doyres (Three literary generations), vol. 2 (Vilna, 1921), pp. 113ff; M. Vinchevsky, Erinerungen (Experiences) (Moscow: Shul un bukh, 1926), pp. 72-75; Shmuel Niger, Dertseylers un romanistn (Storytellers and novelists), vol. 1 (New York: Tsiko, 1946), pp. 102-3, 105; Niger, Bleter geshikhte fun der yidisher literatur (Pages of history from Yiddish literature) (New York, 1959), pp. 392-93.

Eliezer-Refoel Malachi