Golda Werman

Background

Golda Werman was born on December 27, 1930, in Berlin, Germany. She is a daughter of Chaim Spiera and Breindel (Kestenbaum) Spiera.

Golda grew up in the United States.

Education

Golda received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Indiana University Bloomington in 1980.

Career

In 1972, Golda was appointed a director of program at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, at Indiana University Bloomington, a post she held till 1991. In addition, in 1985, Werman began working as a director of overseas program at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Currently, she lives in Israel.

Achievements

• Golda Werman is a prominent writer and translator of Yiddish literature. She is the author of "Milton and Midrash" (1996). Her well-known translations include "The Dybbuk and Other Writings" by S. Ansky (1992), "The Stories of David Bergelson" (1996), "Smugglers" by Ozer Warshawsky (2008) and others.

Works

More photos

• book

  • The Stories of David Bergelson

    (With little of his fiction available in English translati...)

    1996
  • Smugglers

    ("Smugglers", a novel in three parts, deals with a neglect...)

    2008
  • The Dybbuk and Other Writings

    (This volume presents "The Dybbuk", S. Ansky’s well-known ...)

    1992
  • Milton and Midrash 1995

Views

Quotations: "I came to the study of Yiddish after the 1988 trial of Ivan Demanjuk of the Treblinka concentration camp. The few survivors of this death camp gave their testimony in Yiddish, describing the rich, vibrant Jewish life, that had been destroyed. I decided to study Yiddish so that I could read the books, the only thing, that survived. It is a wonderful literature, but who can now read it? I came to translation as a means of preserving the literature. The first story I translated was "In the Post Wagon", published by the Partisan Review. It has been Yiddish translation ever since for me."

Membership

Golda is a member of the Modern Language Association of America, Milton Society, American Literary Translators Association and Metuna (a road safety organization).

Interests

• Opera, biblical studies, classical Jewish texts

• Music & Bands

  Classical music, folk songs

Connections

Golda married Robert Werman, a professor of neurophysiology, writer and poet, on February 14, 1954. Their marriage produced four children — Michael, Aaron, Rachel Werman Venkurt and Ariel.

Father:

Chaim Spiera

Mother:

Breindel (Kestenbaum) Spiera

child:

Michael Werman

child:

Aaron Werman

child:

Rachel Werman Venkurt

child:

Ariel Werman

husband:

Robert Werman