Gründung der „Israeli Association of the Friends of Stefan Zweig“

Vor kurzem erfolgte in Israel die Gründung der „Israeli Association of the Friends of Stefan Zweig“. Wir gratulieren der neuen Gesellschaft sehr herzlich, wünschen einen guten Start und freuen uns auf die  Zusammenarbeit.

Die Gesellschaft selbst schreibt anlässlich ihrer Gründung:

Good news from Israel – A new Israeli Association of the Friends of Stefan Zweig has been established

Stefan Zweig authored more than 150 works, including poems, short stories, plays, biographies, history books, novels, legends, book reviews, articles and other essays. He also wrote tens of thousands of letters to various people during his lifetime. Despite the fact that Stefan Zweig’s works have been translated into the Hebrew language for over 100 years, many of his works and very few of his letters have been published in the Hebrew language. Actually, fewer than 45 of his works have been translated into Hebrew. Not all his biographies were translated and published in Hebrew, and none of his books of poetry were ever translated into Hebrew. The play ‚Jeremiah‘ which he published in 1917 was translated only once into Hebrew, in 1929.

In November 2021 the world marked Zweig’s 140^th birthday and in February 2022 it will be 80 years since his suicide. Out of great esteem and appreciation for his cultural-literary contribution and heritage, and out of a sense of the need to preserve, commemorate, make accessible and instill Zweig’s values for Hebrew language readers, we decided to found the Israeli Association of the Friends of Stefan Zweig.

Friends‘ Association Goals are:

• To preserve and commemorate Zweig’s cultural-literary contribution and legacy for Hebrew-language readers.
• To promote the publication of Hebrew translations of his writings, works, and studies about his work.
• To encourage Israeli research about his works and heritage.
• To make his life, writings, and works accessible to the Hebrew-speaking audience through a variety of artistic ways.
• To develop and promote local and international connections and collaborations concerning his works and heritage.
• To encourage and develop a reading culture and Israeli discourse among young people through familiarity with the works of Zweig and others writers in Hebrew.

Mr. Shay (Shako) David, one of the founders and the general manager of the association, said: “One of the main goals of the Friends Association is to bring to Hebrew readers not only Zweig’s literary works, but also the story of his life, work and legacy. Besides publications, we hope to accomplish this through collaborations, cultural events, and professional workshops.”

Prof. Mark H. Gelber, a worldwide distinguished scholar, an expert on Stefan Zweig, and a member of the Association’s public committee, said: “I sincerely welcome the initiative to establish an Israeli Association of Friends of Stefan Zweig. Given the multilingual nature of Israeli society, it is a fact that Zweig has been read and continues to be read in a multiplicity of different languages, not merely in Hebrew, German, French, English, Arabic, Russian, Spanish, and others. But now, with the establishment of the Israeli Association, his Hebrew language readership stands to gain access to many more of his writings in updated Hebrew translations. This is a very positive development in Israeli culture. I am committed to support this initiative in any way I can.”

Visit our Facebook page (Hebrew only) – https://www.facebook.com/Stefanzweig.il