Abraham Sutzkever 1950 Photo attribution - Fritz Cohen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
By Debra Brunner
The shifting borders of Eastern Europe have long defined the region’s complex identity, with lands that once belonged to Poland now forming part of modern-day Belarus. In these changing territories, Jewish communities were essential to the cultural and literary vibrancy of the region. One such place is Smorgon, now in Belarus, which was once home to Avram Sutzkever, one of the most important Yiddish poets of the 20th century. Sutzkever’s evocative poetry, deeply influenced by his roots in this region, continues to leave an indelible mark on Jewish literature. As we explore Smorgon and Sutzkever’s legacy, we rediscover a rich cultural history that transcends borders and time.
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- Abraham Sutzkever 1950 Photo attribution – Fritz Cohen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
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- Smorgon (1918-39) Photo attribution – By Unknown author – Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe. Sygn. 1-G-5823., Public Domain, https_commons.wikimedia.org
According to the Encyclopedia Judaica, Smorgon is in the Grodno oblast or district of Belarus, 107 km WNW of Belarus’ capital, Minsk. It was established in Poland in the early 17th century but passed from Poland to Russia in 1793 as part of the Russian Pale of Settlement. For most of its existence until the mid 19th century, Smorgon’ was the private property of the princes of Radziwill. Smorgon’s Jewish settlement probably dates from the early 17th century. From shortly after WWI to the end of WWII, Smorgon was part of independent Poland.
From 1628 the Jews of Smorgon’ paid their taxes to the community administration of Grodno. In 1631 the community of Smorgon’ became the centre of a province within the framework of the Council of Lithuania (in Hebrew: Va’ad Midinat Lita.) The autonomous status of the community was confirmed in 1651. In 1765 there were 649 Jews in the community of Smorgon’ who paid the poll tax.
The Encyclopeadia Judaica describes the economic life of the 19th century Jewish community there stating, “In 1847 there were 1,621 Jews living in Smorgon. In the 1860s a tanning industry was begun in the town as a result of Jewish initiative. In addition to this, the Jews of the town earned their livelihoods from carpentry, the knitting of socks, the baking of bagels (which were famous throughout Russia), retail trade, and peddling.” Some Jewish families worked the land in the nearby Jewish agricultural settlement of Karka.
There were 6,743 Jews living in Smorgon (76% of the population) in 1897. Zionist and Jewish socialist groups were active in the town. On the eve of World War I, there were two battei midrash (houses of study of religious commentary), seven synagogues, three elementary yeshivot (religious schools), and a Jewish hospital there. A section of the town’s Jewish population were Habad Hasidim.
In 1915, during World War I, many of the Jews in Smorgon were sent to the Russian interior. Jewish refugee tanners from Smorgon founded the tanning industries in Kharkov, Rostov, and Bogorodsk. When Smorgon’ reverted to independent Poland after World War I, the Jewish refugees began to return to their destroyed houses. Between the two world wars, a Hebrew Tarbut (Jewish nationalistic) school, a drama circle, sports clubs, Zionist youth circles, and branches of Po’alei Zion (a socialistic and Zionist organisation), He-Halutz (promoting pioneering in the Holy Land) and Betar (a more radical Zionist group) were active in the town.
The Red Army occupied Smorgon in September 1939 until June 1941, when the Germans occupied the town. In October 1941, some Jews were sent to the ghetto in nearby Oshmiany. In the summer of 1942 more were sent to the ghetto in Kovno (Kaunas) and shared the fate of that community while the others were sent to Ponary near Vilna, and were killed there. After the Second World War, the Jewish community in Smorgon was not re-established. An association of former residents of Smorgon in Israel and the U.S.A. was formed.
Avram Sutzkever was born in Smorgon in 1913 – which was then in the Vilna Governorate of the Russian Empire and part of the Pale of Settlement. Sutzkever was a renowned Yiddish poet and Holocaust survivor, widely considered one of the greatest Yiddish writers of the 20th century. He grew up in Vilna (Vilnius), where he became an integral part of the city’s vibrant Jewish literary scene. During World War II, he was a member of the Vilna Ghetto resistance and later joined the partisans fighting against the Nazis. His poetry, often blending beauty with profound sorrow, chronicled his experiences during the Holocaust and became a voice of Jewish resilience. After the war, Sutzkever emigrated to Israel, where he continued to write and edit the prestigious literary journal Di Goldene Keyt, and solidify his legacy as a towering figure in Jewish literature. He died in Tel Aviv, Israel in 2010.
Sutkever’s legacy lives on in music
In 2007 at an Ot Azoy Yiddish language workshop run by the UK’s Jewish Music Institute, an extraordinary collaboration unfolded that would bring new life to a haunting Yiddish poem. Heather Valencia, teacher, researcher, and translator of modern Yiddish literature, was leading a session on the poem A Vogn Shikh (A Wagon-Load of Shoes) by Avram Sutzkever. Among the participants was Thomas Novotny, a priest and musician from the Czech Republic. Inspired by the power of Sutzkever’s words, Novotny spent the night composing music for the poem.
The next day, he presented his composition to Hilda Bronstein, a fellow participant and renowned Yiddish singer, telling her that he had written the music for her to sing. Accompanying her on his concertina, Navotny and Bronstein performed the now-musical version of A Vogn Shikh for their class, creating an unforgettable moment.
At the time, Hilda was preparing to record her first CD with Arc Records, Hilda Bronstein Sings Yiddish Songs Old and New, and she decided to include this new song on the album. She reached out to Avram Sutzkever, seeking permission to set his poem to music. Sutzkever, moved by the collaboration, promptly agreed.
The poem, already deeply emotional, became even more powerful when set to Navotny’s composition. The sad and sombre refrain, which questions the fate of the owners of the shoes being taken by wagon to Berlin, resonates with haunting clarity in Bronstein’s voice. The result is a deeply personal and poignant tribute, a musical rendition that stirs the heart and preserves the legacy of a piece of Holocaust poetry for future generations.
Click here to listen (Spotify log in required)
‘A Vogn Shikh’ (A Wagon-Load of Shoes)
The wheels they drag and drag on,
What do they bring, and whose?
They bring along a wagon
Filled with throbbing shoes.
The wagon like a khupa
In evening glow, enchants:
The shoes piled up and heaped up,
Like people in a dance.
A holiday, a wedding?
As dazzling as a ball!
The shoes — familiar, spreading,
I recognize them all.
The heels tap with no malice:
Where do they pull us in?
From ancient Vilna alleys,
They drive us to Berlin.
I must not ask you whose,
My heart, it skips a beat:
Tell me the truth, oh, shoes,
Where disappeared the feet?
The feet of pumps so shoddy,
With buttondrops like dew —
Where is the little body?
Where is the woman too?
All children’s shoes — but where
Are all the children’s feet?
Why does the bride not wear
Her shoes so bright and neat?
‘Mid clogs and children’s sandals,
My Mama’s shoes I see!
On Sabbath, like the candles,
She’d put them on in glee.
The heels tap with no malice:
Where do they pull us in?
From ancient Vilna alleys,
They drive us to Berlin.
Reference for this article: https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/smorgon/smorgon.htm