Shoḥat, Eliezer
SHOḤAT, ELIEZER
SHOḤAT, ELIEZER (1874–1971), Second Aliyah pioneer, a founder of *Ha-Po'el ha-Ẓa'ir. Born in Liskova, Belorussia, Shoḥat settled in Ereẓ Israel in 1904. He began work in Petaḥ Tikvah as one the first laborers of the Second Aliyah and founded Ha-Po'el ha-Ẓa'ir along with eight other pioneers (1905). He was one of the first Jewish laborers to enter Galilee (1906), became a founding member (1907) of Ha-Ḥoresh (the first Jewish laborers' association in Galilee), a worker at Umm Juni (Deganyah) in 1910, a founder of the Galilee labor federation (1911), a member of the labor group at Merḥavyah in 1911 (which resulted in his imprisonment at Acre), and a founder of the first moshav ovedim, Nahalal (1921). He was a member of the Asefat ha-Nivḥarim. Shoḥat elaborated the labor movement ideology based on Jewish national and moral values. He compiled and edited labor movement literature, notably Pirkei Ha-Po'el ha-Ẓa'ir (13 vols., coedited with Ḥayyim Shurer), and edited the writings of labor leaders, including three volumes of the writings of A.D. *Gordon (coedited with S.H. *Bergman). His articles, speeches, and letters were published in Bi-Netivei Avodah (19672). He was a brother of Israel *Shochat.
bibliography:
S. Sheva, Shevet ha-No'azim (1969).
[Yosef Shapiro]