Natan Yonatan

• Name — Nathan Yonathan • Birth Name — Nathan Klein • Born — September 20, 1923 • Birthplace — Kiev, Ukraine • Died — 12 March 2004 • Occupation — Poet • Education — Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, and Oxford University • Spouse — 1) Tzefira; 2) Nili • Awards — *1946 Bialik Prize for literature • 1960 Lamdan Prize for children's literature • Native Name — נָתָן יֹונָתָן

Natan Yonatan was born Nathan Klein, in Kiev in Ukraine in 1923. In 1925, his family immigrated to Mandate Palestine. They were among the early settlers (1935), of Kfar Ma'as, an agricultural village near Petah Tikva. Yonatan was active in the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement and in 1945 joined kibbutz Sarid in the Jezreel Valley. He was a member of Sarid for 46 years. From 1991 until his death, he resided in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. He fathered two sons with his first wife Tzefira: Lior—who fell in action in the Yom Kippur War at age 21—and Ziv, musician, composer and radio producer. Natan Yonatan was also father to his second wife Nili's daughter and grandson: Netta and Tom. While love and passion, as well as the Israeli landscape, permeate his work, the authenticity of Yonatan's poems mourning the loss of Lior – the terrible price of war – became this poet's hallmark. He held degrees in Hebrew Literature and Comparative Literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University and Oxford University. He lectured internationally, as well as within the Israeli public school system. One of Israel's most eminent teachers of creative writing, he was known for his generous spirit and desire to foster new poetic talent. While serving as long-term Editor-in-Chief of the Sifriat Poalim publishing house, he was also the unanimously elected President of the Hebrew Writers Union and represented Israel at literary conferences around the globe.

• Illustration — Natan Yonatan Square, in Yehud, Israel Yonatan published his first poem, “When Ships Put Out to Sea”, during the Second World War, in 1940 at age 16 before the establishment of the State of Israel, and soon became one of modern Israel's most read and beloved poets. Notwithstanding the subtle complexity of his use of Hebrew's many registers and intertexts, Yonatan's lyricism lends itself to musical composition. Dozens of his poems have become traditional favorites, set to music by Israel's foremost songwriters and composers. Yonatan's poems are sung and broadcast for national occasions, both festive and mournful.