Asher Barash

Asher Barash (1889-1952) was born in Lopatin, Galicia. He was well-acquainted with modern Hebrew literature from an early age. Nonetheless, most of his early writings – he began writing at age 13 – were in Yiddish, German and Polish. At the age of 16, Barash left home and traveled through Galicia, working as a teacher. He began publishing in Hebrew in 1908, and in 1914 moved to Eretz Israel. In Israel he taught Hebrew and literature, mostly in secondary school in Tel Aviv. Once in Israel, he composed poems and prose for adults and children, wrote criticism, translated, and edited several publications. He was active in organizing the Hebrew Writers Association and also established the bio-bibliographical institute, Genazim, which now bears his name. In his work he describes the world he left behind, as well as the first days of Tel Aviv. He also wrote historical stories based on events in Jewish History. He was awarded the 1940 Bialik Prize.