Reuben Brainin

Reuben Brainin
Born	1862 Lyady, Belarus
Died	1939 New York City
Genre	literary criticism, biography

Reuben Brainin, Reuven Brainin, or Ruben ben Mordecai Brainin (Hebrew: ראובן בריינין‎‎; March 16, 1862 - November 30, 1939) was a Russian Jewish publicist, biographer and literary critic.

He was born in Ljady (ru) (now in Dubroŭna Raion, Vitsebsk Voblast, Belarus (former "Lithuania", now Belarus) in 1862 to Mordechai Brainin the son of Azriel Brainin ^[1]and had moved to Berlin by 1901.^[2] thumbnail At different times Brainin contributed to the periodicals Ha-Meliẓ, Ha-Toren, Ha-Ẓefirah, Ha-Maggid, and Ha-Shiloaḥ. In 1895 he issued a periodical under the title "Mi-Mizraḥ u-Mi-Ma-arab" (From East and West), of which only four numbers appeared.

Brainin was the author of several pamphlets, the most important of which were his sketch of Pereẓ Smolenskin's life and works (Warsaw, 1896); and a translation of M. Lazarus' essay on Jeremiah (Warsaw, 1897). He also wrote about one hundred biographical sketches of modern Jewish scholars and writers.

To "Aḥiasaf" Brainin contributed the following articles:

• "Ilane Sraḳ" (Barren Trees) (i. 32)
• "Bar Ḥalafta" (ii. 71)
• "Dappim Meḳuṭṭa'im" (Loose Leaves) (v. 120).

He also contributed to the same periodical the following biographical sketches:

• Moritz Lazarus (iv. 214)
• Rabbi Moritz Güdemann (iv. 219)
• Theodor Herzl (v. 222)
• Israel Zangwill (v. 233)
• Max Nordau (v. 247)

He died in New York City. The city of Tel Aviv-Yafo in Israel has named a street after Reuben Brainin to honor his memory.

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herman Rosenthal & I. George Dobsevage (1901–1906). "BRAININ, RUBEN". In Singer, Isidore; et al. Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company. 
  • Chaim David Lippe, Bibliographisches Lexicon s.v.;
  • Moïse Schwab, Répertoire des Articles d'Histoire et de Littérature Juive, part i, s.v.

Further reading

• Simon Rawidowicz, BRAININ, RUBEN, Jüdisches Lexikon, Berlin 1927, vol. 1, col. 1134-1135

Notes