NOYEKH (NOAH) GOLDBERG

NOYEKH (NOAH) GOLDBERG (February 15, 1902-1968)

            He was born to extremely poor parents in a village near Bobruisk, Byelorussia.  In 1906 he father left for the United States and brought his mother there, but Noyekh remained in Russia and was later mobilized into the Russian army.  In 1924 he left via Poland for Argentina, and from there joined his parents in America.  He began writing in 1934.  He published poems in Amerikaner (American), and later he placed stories in: Frayhayt (Freedom), Hamer (Hammer), Signal (Signal), Tsukunft (Future), Forverts (Forward), Proletarisher gedank (Proletarian idea), Di feder (The pen), Idisher kemfer (Jewish fighter), Yidish kultur (Jewish culture), Kiem (Suvival) in Paris), Tog (Day), Di prese (The press) in Buenos Aires, Di idishe velt (The Jewish world), Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor), Idishe lebn (Jewish life), and Af dos nay (Afresh).  Among his books: Poshete mentshn (Simple folk), stories (Los Angeles, 1942), 182 pp.; A likht geyt oyf (A light rises), “a novella of a Jewish farmer’s life in America” (New York: Dovid Ignatov Fund, 1948), 240 pp.  He was also a contributor to three issues of the monthly journal Idishe lebn (New York, 1939).  He was living in California, where he was a member of the editorial council of the quarterly Kheshbn (Accounting) in Los Angeles.  Most recently published: Oyf tsevorfene vegn (Along scattered roads) (Buenos Aires, 1957), 254 pp.; Vildgroz, ekzotishe novele (Wild grass, an exotic novel) (Buenos Aires: Yidbukh, 1964), 413 pp.  He died in New York.

Sources: Y. Botoshanski, in Di prese (Buenos Aires) (July 26, 1940; August 14, 1950); Shmuel Niger, in Tog (New York) (December 21, 1940); H. Rogof, in Forverts (New York) (June 6, 1943); A. Glants-Leyeles, in Tog (October 11, 1949); Y. Varshavski, in Forverts (December 25, 1949); Yankev Glatshteyn, in Idisher kemfer (New York) (September 20, 1950); Z. Vaynper, in Yidishe kultur (New York) (August 1953); Shloyme Slutski, Avrom reyzen biblyografye (Avrom Reyzen bibliography) (New York, 1956), nos. 5309, 5310.

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 135.]