Yehuda Amichai

Who is Yehuda Amichai?

Born in Würzburg, Germany, Yehuda Amichai emigrated with his family to Mandatory Palestine in 1936 and grew up in Jerusalem, the city that became central to his work. Widely considered Israel's greatest modern poet, he transformed Hebrew verse by writing in a plain, colloquial idiom that fused everyday speech with biblical and liturgical echoes, giving voice to love, war, faith, and ordinary human experience. He served in the British Army's Jewish Brigade and later in Israel's wars, and these experiences deeply informed his poetry. His collections, including 'Now and in Other Days' and the late masterpiece 'Open Closed Open', have been translated into dozens of languages, making him one of the most widely read Hebrew poets in the world and a recipient of the Israel Prize.

Sources: Yehuda Amichai, 'The Selected Poetry of Yehuda Amichai' (translated by Chana Bloch and Stephen Mitchell, 1996) · Yehuda Amichai, 'Open Closed Open: Poems' (English translation 2000)