Natan Yonatan
Encyclopedia
Natan Yonatan was an Israeli poet.
His poems have been translated from Hebrew and published in more than a dozen languages, among them: Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Yiddish.
in the Ukraine
in 1923. In 1925, his family immigrated to Mandate Palestine. They were among the early settlers (1935), of Kfar Ma'as
, an agricultural village near Petah Tikva
.
Yonatan was active in the Hashomer Hatzair
youth movement and in 1945 joined kibbutz
Sarid
in the Jezreel Valley
. He was a member of Sarid for 46 years. From 1991 until his death, he resided in the suburbs of Tel Aviv
.
He fathered two sons with his first wife Tzefira: Lior—who fell in action in the Yom Kippur War
at age 21—and Ziv, musician, composer and radio producer. Natan Yonatan was also father to his second wife Nili's daughter and grandson: Netta and Tom. While love and passion, as well as the Israeli landscape, permeate his work, the authenticity of Yonatan's poems mourning the loss of Lior – the terrible price of war – became this poet's hallmark.
He held degrees in Hebrew Literature and Comparative Literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
, Tel Aviv University
and Oxford University. He lectured internationally, as well as within the Israeli public school system. One of Israel’s most eminent teachers of creative writing, he was known for his generous spirit and desire to foster new poetic talent.
While serving as long-term Editor-in-Chief of the Sifriat Poalim publishing house, he was also the unanimously elected President of the Hebrew Writers Union and represented Israel
at literary conferences around the globe.
In 2005, he was voted the 104th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet
to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.
Yonatan published his first poem, “When Ships Put Out to Sea”, during the Second World War, in 1940 at age 16 before the establishment of the State of Israel, and soon became one of modern Israel's most read and beloved poets. Notwithstanding the subtle complexity of his use of Hebrew's many registers and intertexts, Yonatan’s lyricism lends itself to musical composition. Dozens of his poems have become traditional favorites, set to music by Israel's foremost songwriters and composers. Yonatan’s poems are sung and broadcast for national occasions, both festive and mournful.
His poems have been translated from Hebrew and published in more than a dozen languages, among them: Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Yiddish.
Biography
Natan Yonatan was born Natan Klein, in KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
in the Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
in 1923. In 1925, his family immigrated to Mandate Palestine. They were among the early settlers (1935), of Kfar Ma'as
Kfar Ma'as
Kfar Ma'as is a moshav in central Israel. Located to the south of Petah Tikva on the edge of the Ono Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Drom HaSharon Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 710....
, an agricultural village near Petah Tikva
Petah Tikva
Petah Tikva known as Em HaMoshavot , is a city in the Center District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv.According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, at the end of 2009, the city's population stood at 209,600. The population density is approximately...
.
Yonatan was active in the Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair is a Socialist–Zionist youth movement founded in 1913 in Galicia, Austria-Hungary, and was also the name of the group's political party in the Yishuv in the pre-1948 British Mandate of Palestine...
youth movement and in 1945 joined kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
Sarid
Sarid
Sarid is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located near Migdal HaEmek, it falls under the jurisdiction of Jezreel Valley Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 590....
in the Jezreel Valley
Jezreel Valley
-Etymology:The Jezreel Valley takes its name from the ancient city of Jezreel which was located on a low hill overlooking the southern edge of the valley, though some scholars think that the name of the city originates from the name of the clan which founded it, and whose existence is mentioned in...
. He was a member of Sarid for 46 years. From 1991 until his death, he resided in the suburbs of Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
.
He fathered two sons with his first wife Tzefira: Lior—who fell in action in the Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...
at age 21—and Ziv, musician, composer and radio producer. Natan Yonatan was also father to his second wife Nili's daughter and grandson: Netta and Tom. While love and passion, as well as the Israeli landscape, permeate his work, the authenticity of Yonatan's poems mourning the loss of Lior – the terrible price of war – became this poet's hallmark.
He held degrees in Hebrew Literature and Comparative Literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
, Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
and Oxford University. He lectured internationally, as well as within the Israeli public school system. One of Israel’s most eminent teachers of creative writing, he was known for his generous spirit and desire to foster new poetic talent.
While serving as long-term Editor-in-Chief of the Sifriat Poalim publishing house, he was also the unanimously elected President of the Hebrew Writers Union and represented Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
at literary conferences around the globe.
In 2005, he was voted the 104th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet
Ynet
Ynet is the most popular Israeli news and general content website. It is owned by the same conglomerate that operates Yediot Ahronot, the country's secondleading daily newspaper...
to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.
Awards
- In 1946, Yonatan was awarded the Bialik PrizeBialik PrizeThe Bialik Prize is an annual literary award given by the municipality of Tel Aviv, Israel for significant accomplishments in Hebrew literature. The prize is named in memory of Hayyim Nahman Bialik. There are two separate prizes, one specifically for "Literature", which is in the field of fiction,...
for literatureHebrew literatureHebrew literature consists of ancient, medieval, and modern writings in the Hebrew language. It is one of the primary forms of Jewish literature, though there have been cases of literature written in Hebrew by non-Jews...
. - In 1960, he was awarded the Lamdan PrizeLamdan PrizeThe Lamdan Prize was an Israeli prize awarded annually, from 1954 to 1983, for literary works for children and youth.The prize was presented by the Ramat Gan Municipality in conjunction with the Hebrew Writers Association in Israel and was founded in the name of the Israeli poet and author Yitzhak...
for children's literature.
Works
Writings; books
- Dusty Paths (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1951
- To the Fallow Land (poems for children), Sifriat Poalim, 1954
- Once We Loved (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1957
- Between Spring and a Cloud (stories for teens), Sifriat Poalim, 1959
- Once-Loved Dusty Paths (selected poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1960
- Poems Along the Shore (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1962
- Lilac (stories for children), Sifriat Poalim, 1963
- Poems of Dust and Wind (poems for teens), Sifriat Poalim, 1965
- Till the End of Indian Summer (American travelogue), Sifriat Poalim, 1968
- Poems at Sea-Dusk (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1970
- More Stories Between Spring and a Cloud (stories for teens), Sifriat Poalim, 1971
- Poems (Dedicated to Lior) (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1974
- Stones in the Darkness (selected poems translated into English, trans. Richard Flantz and others), Sifriat Poalim, 1975
- Poems This Far (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1979 Salt and Light (selected poems translated into Russian), Sifriat Poalim, 1980
- Pocket Collection (selections from 40 years of poetry), Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 1982
- Shores (100 poems set to music, including both words and musical notation), Keter, 1983
- Other Poems (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1984
- Itzik Manger—Selected Poems (translations from Yiddish to Hebrew), Keter, 1987
- Poems on the Mountain Ranges (poems), Zmora-Bitan, 1988
- Poems with Love (collected love poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1990
- Poems on Earth and Water (collected poems about the land), Sifriat Poalim, 1993
- Veiled Faced is Time (poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1995
- Salt and Light (selected poems translated into Bulgarian), Sifriat Poalim, 1995
- Poetry’s Grace (collected poems on the art of poetry), Sifriat Poalim, 1996
- Gleanings and Forgotten Sheaves (selected poems), Sifriat Poalim, 1997
- Poems on “Sefer Hayashar” (poems inspired by the Bible and other traditional Jewish sources, with landscape photography), Or-Am, 1998
- Poems Cloaked in Evening (poetry anthology selected and edited by Natan Yonatan, published two days after his death), Yediot Ahronot, 2004.
- Within the Song to Live (Hebrew-English anthology, trans. Janice Silverman RebiboJanice RebiboJanice Silverman Rebibo is a Boston-born Israeli poet who began writing in Hebrew in the mid-1980s.Janice Silverman Rebibo’s poems have been admired for having, “a new strength and the kind of courage that comprises a strategic breakthrough, a stance of both audacity and humor that adds something...
and others, music CD, composer: Gidi KorenGideon KorenGideon Koren M.D., FACMT, FRCP is a Canadian pediatrician, clinical pharmacologist, and toxicologist. Dr. Koren is also a noted composer of Israeli popular music.-Professional contributions:...
, performed by The Brothers and the Sisters), Gefen Jerusalem & NY, 2005. ISBN 9652293458
External links
- Website dedicated to Natan Yonatan
- Yonatan at the Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature
- The Jewish Agency for Israel mourns Yonatan’s passing
- In Memory of Natan Yonatan
- Review of Yonatan's Poems Cloaked in Evening
- Within the Song to Live by Natan Yonatan, audio clips and reviews
- First Anniversary of Natan Yonatan's passing
- Natan Yonatan on The Next Fifty Years
See also
- List of Bialik Prize recipientsBialik PrizeThe Bialik Prize is an annual literary award given by the municipality of Tel Aviv, Israel for significant accomplishments in Hebrew literature. The prize is named in memory of Hayyim Nahman Bialik. There are two separate prizes, one specifically for "Literature", which is in the field of fiction,...