Aleksander Ossypovich Zederbaum (Yiddish:אַלעקסאַנדער הלוי אָסיפאָוויטש צעדערבוים; August 27, 1816,Zamość – September 8, 1893,Saint Petersburg) was aPolish-RussianJewish journalist who wrote primarily inHebrew. He was founder and editor ofHa-Melitz, and other periodicals published inYiddish andRussian.
Aleksander Zederbaum | |
|---|---|
 Aleksander Zederbaum, 1885 | |
| Born | (1816-08-27)August 27, 1816 Zamość,Congress Poland |
| Died | September 8, 1893(1893-09-08) (aged 77) Saint Petersburg,Russian Empire |
| Language | Hebrew,Yiddish,Russian |
Biography
editA son of poor parents, Zederbaum was apprenticed to a tailor. He succeeded in acquiring a knowledge ofHebrew literature, and of theRussian,Polish, andGerman languages. He married inLublin, and in 1840 left forOdessa, then a centre of theHaskalah movement. He obtained there a commercial position, made the acquaintance of theMaskilim of the city, and in his leisure hours continued to work for his self-education. Later he opened a clothing-store, and was himself cutter in his tailoring-shop.
In 1860 Zederbaum succeeded in obtaining the government's permission to publishHa-Melitz, the first Hebrew periodical issued in Russia; and three years later he began publishing the pioneer Yiddish journalKol Mevasser. After an existence of eight years the latter paper was suppressed by the government, whereupon Zederbaum went to Saint Petersburg, obtaining permission to transfer the headquarters ofHa-Melitz to that city. He was also granted permission to do his own printing, and to publish, besidesHa-Melitz, a Russian weekly (Vyestnik Ruskich Yedreed), which, however, enjoyed only a short existence, as did also the "Razsvyet," which he started a few years later. In 1881 he founded theVolksblatt, a daily Yiddish journal which existed for eight years, although Zederbaum was its editor for only a few years. In 1884 Zederbaum invited rising Yiddish authorMordecai Spector to join him as an assistant editor of the paper, after publishing his breakthrough novelDer Yidisher Muzhik (The Jewish Farmer). The two worked together until 1887.[1]
Zederbaum was the author of "Keter Kehunnah" and "Ben ha-Metsarim," but neither of these works met with any success. His chief significance lies in the fact that he was a champion of the Haskalah. HisKol Mevasser offered an opportunity for many of the best jargon-writers to develop their talents; and among these may be mentionedYitzkhok Yoel Linetzky,Mendele Mocher Sforim,Mordecai Spector, andSholem Aleichem.
Zederbaum exercised considerable influence in government circles, and it was due to his intercession that an impartial judgment was obtained for many Jewish families accused ofblood libel inKutaisi; he disclosed also the ignorance of the Russiananti-SemiteHippolytus Lutostansky, whose pamphlets threatened to become dangerous for the Russian Jews. The Palestine Association of Odessa owed its existence to Zederbaum's activity.
References
edit- ^Moshe Starkman."Spector, Mordecai".Encyclopaedia Judaica - Encyclopedia.com.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Jacobs, Joseph; Hurwitz, S. (1906)."Zederbaum, Alexander Ossypovitch". InSinger, Isidore; et al. (eds.).The Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 12. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. p. 650.