Uriel Ofek
Uriel Ofek (30 June 1926 in Tel Aviv – 23 January 1987) was an Israeli children's writer, editor, lyricist, poet, translator and literary scholar.
Uriel Ofek

ד"ר אבישי טייכר · צילום:ד"ר אבישי טייכר · Avishai Teicher via the PikiWiki - Israel free image collection project · CC BY 2.5
- Born
- 1926 · Tel Aviv.
- Died
- 1987
- Nationality
- Israel
- Occupation
- writer · translator · newspaper editor · literary theorist · bibliographer · songwriter · screenwriter
- Education
- Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium · University of Toronto · Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- Honours
- Ze'ev Prize
- Languages
- Hebrew
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wikidata · Q7900594 · wikipedia · Uriel Ofek
In this article
Biography
Biography
Ofek was born in Tel Aviv to the Yiddish poet Arie Popik, grew up in Giv'atayim and studied in Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium. He served as a medic in the Palmach Brigades, 1944–1949, 1947–1949 Palestine war and served in Gush Etzion and was in Jordanian captivity, where he spent about nine months. He edited the children's newspaper Davar L'iladim (children's supplement of Davar) for many years and laid the foundation for the Bibliography of Jewish children's literature, Hebrew and Yiddish, the global children's literature, both knees of children's literature. He had a doctorate degree in children's literature from the University of Toronto. Many of his books are based on experiences in childhood and youth in neighborhood Borochov in Giv'atayim, where he grew up. He describes landscapes, events and characters from the period preceding the establishment of Israel – the Slick of Aldema, Battles in Wadi Musrara, and the Seven Mills along the Yarkon river. His widow, Bina Ofek, and two daughters, Atara Ofek and Amira Hachamowitz, are writers and editors for children as well. Ofek died from leukemia in 1987 at the age of 61.
Classic Jewish Legends
Classic Jewish Legends
• "Chelm the City of Wise Men" • "King Solomon's bee" (originally by Haim Nahman Bialik) • "Emperor's New Clothes" • "Fishing the Goldfish"
Translations
Translations
• Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (1969) • Tree stars by Leib Morgntoi (1977) • Mister God, This Is Anna by Fynn (1979) • Translation of poems in The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien (1979) • Max and Moritz by Wilhelm Busch (1983) • The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (1984) • Wild Shua, a third translation of Struwwelpeter by Heinrich Hoffmann (1985) • Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum (published after Ofek's death in 1988) • Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain • Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll • Tales from Moominvalley and The Memoirs of Moominpappa by Tove Jansson • Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl • James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Books for children and youth
Books for children and youth
• "The Show Must Go On" (translated to English, German, Danish and Dutch) • "Smoke Over Golan" (translated to English, German, Danish, Dutch and Afrikaans) • "Five minutes of fear" • "Stars on the border" • "Story Time" • "No secrets in the neighborhood" • "Seven mills and a station" • "Steps in the sand" • "Deer Hill" • "My Great Raid"
reference books
reference books
• "Lexicon Ofek to Children's Literature" • "A hundred years of Zionism" • "Robinson to Lubengulu" • "Snow white to Emil" • "Tarzan and Hasamba" • "Give them books"
Discography
Netanela and Dudu Zakai- Blue Bird – The Songs of Uriel Ofek −1977

The Popiks: In the center Arieh L. Popik with his wife Bronya; to their left are their son Uriel Ofek with his wife Bina Ofek and their eldest daughter Atara Ofek; his parents, Pessia Rachel and Mordecai Yisrael Popik.
Popik's granddaughter Roni Golani (via email)

Ephraim Katzir and Uriel Ofek (997009452095205171)
Boris Carmi · Boris Carmi / Meitar Collection / National Library of Israel / The Pritzker Family National Photography Collection · This image is available from National Library of Israel under the digital ID: 997009452095205171
Awards
• In 1965, Ofek was awarded the Lamdan Prize for children's literature and youth for his book "Robinson to Lubengulu". • In 1976, he won the Zeev Prize for literature for children and youth for his book "No secrets in the neighborhood".
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Licensing
Text attribution
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The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Uriel Ofek, revision 1350198066 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
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Studied at
1- Herzliya Hebrew GymnasiumOrganisation
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 28 August 2026.
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