ABE (ABA) KLIGER

ABE (ABA) KLIGER (July 27, 1892[1]-March 30, 1961)

            He was a poet and translator, born in Loytsk (Lutsk), Volhynia.  His father was a cantor.  He was the grandson of mystic.  In 1912 he made his way to Argentina and in 1914 to Paraguay.  In 1920 he reached Colorado in the United States, and in 1921 he settled in New York.  He debuted in print with poetry, contemporary images, and articles in the weekly newspaper Der fertheydiger (The defender), initially in Carlos-Casares and later in Buenos Aires.  In Argentina he wrote for: Di shtrahlen (The beams), the daily newspaper Der tog (The day (1914-1916), Di idishe tsaytung (The Jewish newspaper) and was one of its founders, Di prese (The press), the weekly Der avangard (The avant-garde) in 1915, Di gezelshaft (The society) in 1917, and Di naye tsayt (The new times) in 1918.  In America: Oyfsnay (Afresh), Hamer (Hammer), Di feder (The pen), and Tsukunft (Future).  Many of his poems also appeared in: the anthology Af di bregen fun plata (On the shores of the Plata [River]) (Buenos Aires, 1919); and Nakhmen Mayzil’s Amerike in yidishn vort (America in the Yiddish word) (New York, 1955).  In book form: Di legende fun di anden, lider (The legend of the Andes, poems) (Buenos Aires, 1919), 28 pp.; Lider (Poetry) (Buenos Aires, 1919), 34 pp.  His translations include: Dos getlekhe lid bhagavad-gito, poemen fun dveykes (The divine poem Bhagavad-Gita, poetry of religious ecstasy) (New York, 1955), 196 pp.; Der veg tsu layterung, budha lernt (The road to purification, the Buddha teaches) (New York, 1958), 208 pp.  These translations were praised by Yiddish critics.  He was one of the pioneers of Yiddish poetry and the published word in Argentina.  He also wrote in Spanish.  He died in New York.

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 3; Volf Bresler, ed., Antologye fun der yidisher literatur in argentine (Anthology of Jewish literature in Argentina) (Buenos Aires, 1944), p. 921; Z. Vaynper, in Yidishe kultur (New York) (March 1956); Y. Varshavski (Bashevis), in Forverts (New York) (May 18, 1958); Yankev Glatshteyn, in Tsukunft (New York) (October 1958); Y. Botoshanski, in Di prese (Buenos Aires) (June 6, 1961); Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York).

Berl Cohen

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[1] According to his autobiography; Zalmen Reyzen gives the year 1893.