Eliezer Blum

Eliezer Blum (1896–1963), known by the pen name B. Alquit (also spelled Alkvit), was a Polish-born American Yiddish poet, short story writer, critic, and translator associated with the modernist In-Zikh (Introspectivist) movement. His work appeared in major Yiddish literary periodicals, and he published collections of poetry and prose as well as translations. He contributed to New York’s Yiddish literary community through creative writing, criticism, and editorial work.

Early life

Blum was born in 1896 in Chełm, Poland, and emigrated to the United States in 1914. He wrote for Yiddish newspapers and journals including Die Zukunft, Freie Arbeiter Shtimme, and the Jewish Morning Journal, where he served on the editorial staff. He was married to the poet and translator Etta Blum, who translated several of his works into English.

Literary career

In-Zikh movement

Blum was identified as one of the principal writers of the In-Zikh school, along with Jacob Glatstein, Aaron Glanz-Leyeles, Zisha Landau, David Ignatoff, Menashe Unger, and N. B. Minkoff. A 1923 studio portrait of the group includes Blum (back row, second from left), photographed with Glatstein, Ignatoff, Unger, Landau, Minkoff, and Glanz-Leyeles.

Poetry

Blum’s poetry appeared in leading Yiddish modernist journals and was later included in major anthologies such as A Treasury of Yiddish Poetry and Sing, Stranger: A Century of American Yiddish Poetry.

His poetry collection Lider was published in 1964 by CYCO (Central Yiddish Cultural Organization).

Short stories

Blum published short fiction in Yiddish newspapers and journals. His major prose work, Oyfn veg tsum Perets Skver (On the Way to Peretz Square), a 328-page collection of short stories, was published by CYCO in 1960.

Translation work

Blum translated Arthur Schnitzler’s novella Kasanovas aheymker into Yiddish in 1926.

His Yiddish stories were translated into English by Etta Blum in the volume Revolt of the Apprentices and Other Stories (Thomas Yoseloff, 1970).

Critical writing

Blum wrote literary criticism for journals including In Zikh. His critical essays have been cited in later scholarship on Debora Vogel and American Yiddish modernism.

Memorial and community writing

Blum contributed a Yiddish-language article to the Chełm memorial volume (Yizkor-bukh Chelm) published in 1954 by the former residents’ society of Chełm.

Works

Books (Yiddish)

• Oyfn veg tsum Perets Skver (New York: CYCO, 1960), 328 pp.
• Lider (New York: CYCO, 1964), 99 pp.
• Kasanovas aheymker (translation from Schnitzler, 1926).

In English

• Revolt of the Apprentices and Other Stories (trans. Etta Blum), Thomas Yoseloff, 1970.

Contributions to Anthologies

• Poems in A Treasury of Yiddish Poetry
• Poems in Sing, Stranger: A Century of American Yiddish Poetry

Essays

• “Moonlit Nights” (Yiddish: Mondeshe Nokhn) in Yizkor-bukh Chelm (Johannesburg, 1954), pp. 371–372.

Archival materials

Research materials and records related to Blum are held in the archives of the Center for Jewish History.

Legacy

Blum is remembered as part of the core of the In-Zikh movement and as a contributor to the development of American Yiddish modernism. His works are preserved in major literary collections, including the Yiddish Book Center. His publications with CYCO and his inclusion in anthologies continue to be cited in scholarship on Yiddish modernism.