Shaul Chernihovskiy Jewish poet Date of Birth: 20.08.1873 Country: Israel

Biography of Shaul Chernihovsky

Shaul Chernihovsky was a Jewish poet who wrote in Hebrew. He was born in Mikhailovka, Taurida Governorate, and was proficient in Russian, German, Greek, and Latin languages. As a high school student, he translated the works of Pushkin into Hebrew. At the age of 15, he continued his education in Odessa. With the support of Joseph Klausner, he began publishing his poems. He then traveled to Heidelberg and Lausanne, where he studied medicine. Upon his return, he worked as a doctor in Melitopol and the Kharkov Governorate. In 1910, he moved to St. Petersburg. During World War I, he also served as a doctor in a hospital. After the war, he returned to Odessa and practiced medicine privately. In 1922, he emigrated from Russia and settled in Berlin.

In 1931, Chernihovsky moved to Eretz Israel and participated in the compilation of a Dictionary of Medical and Natural Science Terms (Latin-Hebrew-English). He worked as a doctor in a school and became a representative of Hebrew literature in the international PEN Club in 1936. He wrote poetry in Hebrew (at that time, Hebrew was not yet fully restored as a spoken language and was often referred to as "Ancient Hebrew"). His poetry celebrated inner rebirth through Zionism and the liberation of the Jewish soul. In addition to lyrical poems, he wrote ballads, idylls, and sonnets. He also wrote a series of historical ballads and a poem, "Baruch from Mainz," which described the history of Judaism and anti-Semitism. Some of Chernihovsky's works were translated by Vladislav Khodasevich. His sonnets show the influence of symbolism from the "Silver Age" of Russian poetry. He also translated "The Iliad," "The Odyssey," and "The Tale of Igor's Campaign" into Hebrew.

Alongside H.N. Bialik, Chernihovsky introduced syllabo-tonic meter into Hebrew poetry, replacing the traditional syllabic meter. This was influenced by Russian poetry. He extensively used hexameter. However, for contemporary Hebrew speakers, Chernihovsky's meter is often difficult to comprehend because the stresses in modern Hebrew are different from the language in which the poet wrote. The language itself has changed significantly, becoming a living means of communication.