REUVENI, AHARON

REUVENI, AHARON (1886–1971), Hebrew writer; brother of Izhak *Ben-Zvi, second president of the State of Israel. Born in Poltava, Ukraine, Reuveni went to the U.S. in 1904, returned to Poland in 1906, was exiled to Siberia in 1908, escaped the following year, and reached Palestine in 1910. Active in public affairs, Reuveni published in a wide variety of fields: articles for the press, poems, novels, essays on Hebrew and general literature, studies on social and biblical subjects, and research in early history of the Jewish people and Ere? Israel.

Collections of his works include Sippurim (3 vols., 1928, 1951, 1954), a collection of his short stories, among the first to describe the period of the Second Aliyah; Kol Sippurei A. Re'uveni (1967); and Shirim (1965), a collection of his poems. Reuveni's novels are a trilogy on Jerusalem during World War i, Bereshit ha-Mevukhah; Ha-Oniyyot ha-A?aronot; and Shammot (first published in the 1920s and again in 1954 as a single book, Ad Yerushalayim); I??avon (1930); and Gilgul Neshamot (1966). Among his studies of the ancient world and the Bible are Shem, ?am ve-Yafet (1932), Kadmut ha-Ivrim (1962), and David ha-Melekh (1965). Reuveni's Ir Yerushalayim was published in 1987, preceded by Yalkut Sippurim, a collection of stories edited (with an introduction) by H. Bar-Yosef (1980). A. Pilovski edited Reuveni's Yiddish stories in Gezamelte Derzeylungen (1991). Reuveni translated many works from English and French.

bibliography:

Kressel, Leksikon, 2 (1967), 809–10. add. bibliography: N. Zach, "Omanut ha-Roman shel A. Reuveni," in: Haaretz (30 Tishrei 1968); A.H. Elhanani, Arba'ah she-Sipperu: Burla, Agnon, Reuveni, Hazaz (1978); Y. Oren, "Paytan ha-Sevel ha-Enoshi," in: Yedioth A?aronoth (November 28, 1980); N.H. Toker, "Al A. Reuveni," in: Moznayim, 53:1 (1981), 80–82; G. Shaked, Ha-Sipporet ha-Ivrit, 2 (1983), 139–153; N. Loebenstein-Sadan, "Ha-Roman I??avon me'et A. Reuveni," in: Alei Sia? 17–18 (1983), 72–84; A. Pilovski, Sipporet Ivrit Mekorit o Tirgum mi-Yidish? in: Tarbiz, 52:4 (1983), 523–637; R. Kartun-Blum, "Ha-Kol ?afui ve-ha-Reshut Netunah: Nashim bi-Ye?irat A. Reuveni," in: Iton 77, 86 (1987), 22–23; Y. Schwarz, Omanut ha-Sippur shel Aharon Reuveni (1989); idem (ed.), Miv?ar Ma'amrei Bikoret al Ye?irato (including bibliography, 1992); idem, Li?yot kedei Li?yot: Aharon Reuveni – Monografyah (1993); N. Loebenstein-Sadan, Aharon Reuveni, Monografyah (1994); Y. Ben-David, "Bigenut ha-Mevukhah: Ha-Terilogiyah ad Yerushalayim," in: Ahavah mi-Mabat Sheni (1997), 82–94.

[Getzel Kressel]