# Nathaniel Buchwald

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For the American neuroscientist, educator and administrator, see [Nathaniel A. Buchwald](/source/Nathaniel_A._Buchwald).

**Nathaniel Buchwald** (1890–1956) was a 20th-century, left-leaning Jewish-American theater critic, writer, and scholar of [Yiddish theater](/source/Yiddish_theater) who wrote in [Yiddish](/source/Yiddish) and English and translated from Yiddish and Russian into English.[1] [2][3]

## Background

Nathaniel Buchwald was born Naftoli Bukhvald on April 14, 1890, in [Lublin](/source/Lublin), [Volhynia](/source/Volhynia), [Ukraine](/source/Ukraine) (then, party of the [Russian Empire](/source/Russian_Empire)). He studied at a religious primary school and then a public school. In 1910, Buchwald emigrated to America. He studied at the [University of Georgia](/source/University_of_Georgia), [Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute](/source/Brooklyn_Polytechnic_Institute), and in 1918 obtained a BS in Chemistry from [New York University](/source/New_York_University).[1][2][3]

## Career

During [World War I](/source/World_War_I), Buchwald worked for *[Forverts](/source/Forverts)* (later *The Jewish Daily Forward*) by translating its editorials from Yiddish into English as required by wartime security regulations regarding foreign-language publications in the US.[4]

In the 1920s, Buchwald began publishing articles appeared in *Di naye velt* (*The New World*), after which he wrote for this and other Yiddish labor publications. Following the founding of *[Morgn Frayhayt](/source/Morgn_Frayhayt)* (*Morning Freedom*) in New York City in 1922, Buchwald joined its editorial board and contributed as theater critic. Later, he wrote for *[Jewish Life](/source/Jewish_Currents)*, also in New York.[1][2][3]

In 1925, Buchwald helped found the [Artef](/source/Artef), a Yiddish theater group in New York City. (The name "Artef" came from *Arbeter teater-farband* or "workers' theatrical alliance."[5]) Members included: Moyshe Olgin, [David Pinski](/source/David_Pinski), David Abrams, Melech Marmur, Kalman Marmur, Shachno Epstein, Moyshe Nadir.[5] Regarding Artef's aims, Buchwald wrote: " Life pulled in one direction, to world upheavals, to Revolution, to Soviet Russia, to collective consciousness and collective action, [while] the theatre still busied itself with bygone idylls, Hassidic legends, all kinds of tall tales, or with the routine of bourgeois life, family drama and romantic complication."[5] They staged their first performance in 1927 but slowed during the [Great Depression](/source/Great_Depression) and even took a hiatus from 1937 to 1939. In 1939, the group resumed performances with *[Clinton Street](/source/Clinton_Street)* by [Louis Miller](/source/Louis_Miller). The group disbanded in the 1940.[1]

Up to September 1933, Buchwald served as Moscow correspondent for the publications like the [Communist Party USA](/source/Communist_Party_USA)'s official newspaper, the *[Daily Worker](/source/Daily_Worker)*; [Vern Smith](/source/Vern_Smith_(journalist)) replaced him.[6]

## Communist allegations

During the 1930s, Buchwald came to the attention of the [Dies Committee](/source/Dies_Committee) of the US House of Representatives for his contributions to [Agitprop](/source/Agitprop) theater[7] and again in the 1950s for his theater criticism that appeared in *The Daily Worker*.[8]

## Personal life and death

Buchwald married Stella Buchwald, also a writer.[citation needed]

Buchwald wrote under several [pen names](/source/Pen_name) including: B. Tulin, B. Brand, N. Poloner, and Bert Toulens (in English).[2][3]

Buchwald's friends and letter correspondents include [Abraham Cahan](/source/Abraham_Cahan).[9]

Buchwald died on June 7, 1956, in New York.[2][3]

## Works

**Books:**

- *Folks-bildung in Sovet-Rusland* (1925?)[10]
- *From peasant to collective farmer* (1933)[11]
- *Farvos men hot gemishpet di 21 in moskve* (*Why the twenty-one were sentenced in Moscow*) (New York: Idbyuro, 1938)
- *Alts--far unzer land Amerike* (1942)[12]
- *Di dek̜laratsye fun zelbsht̜endigk̜eyt̜* (1943)[13]
- *Teater* (*Theater*) (1943)[14]
- *Pogromshtshikes farfleytsn amerike, faktn vegn der aynvanderung fun natsis, fashistn un gorgl-shnayder* (*Pogromists invade America, facts about the immigration of Nazis, fascists, and cut-throats*) (1952)[15]
- *Omanut ha-teatron* (1953)[16]

**Translations to Yiddish:**

- [Alfonz Goldshmidt](/source/Alfonz_Goldshmidt), *Dos lebn un shtrebn in sovet-rusland* (*Life and aspiration in Soviet Russia*) (New York, 1921)
- [Anatoly Lunacharsky](/source/Anatoly_Lunacharsky), *Kunst un sotzyalizm* (*Art and socialism*)
- [Lenin](/source/Lenin), *Teorye un praktik fun revolutsye* (*The theory and practice of revolution*)
- [Rosa Luxemburg](/source/Rosa_Luxemburg), *Reform oder revolutsye* (*Reform or revolution*)
- [Hallie Flanagan](/source/Hallie_Flanagan) and Margaret Ellen Clifford, *Trikenish* ("*Drought*"), translation of *[Can You Hear Their Voices?](/source/Can_You_Hear_Their_Voices%3F)* a play from a short story by [Whittaker Chambers](/source/Whittaker_Chambers)) (1931)[17]
- *Der Regnboygn* (1944)[18]

**Articles:**

- "Yiddish", *Cambridge History of American Literature* (NY: Putnam, 1921)[19][20]
- "A Visit with 'Tarbut Laam'," *Jewish Life* (1956)[21]

## References

1. ["Papers and lecture notes of Nathaniel Buchwald, 1927-1940"](http://archives.nypl.org/the/21484). New York Public Library. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Reyzen, Zalmen (1935). *Leksikon*. Kiev: A. Pomerants, in Proletpen. p. 197.

1. Kagan, Berl (ed.) (1986). *Leksikon*. New York: Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers). pp. 72–73.

1. Hartman, Hershl (28 July 2017). [*Splits in the Yiddish Socialist Movement*](https://archive.jewishcurrents.org/splits-in-the-yiddish-socialist-movement/). Jewish Currents. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Polyan, Alexandra (2014). [*Reflections of Revolutionary Movements in American Yiddish Poetry: the Case of Proletpen*](https://www.academia.edu/5649820). Jewish Thought, Utopia, and Revolution. p. 154. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Garlin, Sender (6 August 1933). ["Vern Smith is New 'Daily' Correspondent in U.S.S.R"](https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/data/batches/iune_fluorite_ver01/data/sn84020097/00332897421/1933082401/0232.pdf). *The Daily Worker*. p. 6. Retrieved 17 April 2022.

1. [*Investigation of Un-American Propaganda Activities in the United States*](https://archive.org/details/investigationofu10unit). US GPO. 1938. p. 540. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. [*Communist Infiltration of Hollywood Motion-picture Industry*](https://archive.org/details/communistinfiltr09unit). US GPO. 1951. pp. 3476–3478. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. [*Guide to the Papers of Abraham Cahan (1860-1951), 1890-1987*](http://digifindingaids.cjh.org/?pID=426471). YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1925). *Folks-bildung in Sovet-Rusland*. (unknown). LCCN 54051374.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel & Bishop, R. (1933). *From peasant to collective farmer*. International Publishers. LCCN 34002401.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1942). *Alts--far unzer land Amerike*. (unknown). LCCN 55046035.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1943). *Di dek̜laratsye fun zelbsht̜endigk̜eyt̜ (Declaration of Independence. Yiddish)*. (unknown). LCCN 43020800.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1943). *Teatr*. Farlag-Komitet Teater. LCCN 44033948.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1952). [*Pogromshtshikes farfleytsn amerike, faktn vegn der aynvanderung fun natsis, fashistn un gorgl-shnayder (Pogromists invade America, facts about the immigration of Nazis, fascists, and cut-throats*](https://lccn.loc.gov/a56003592). Morning Freiheit. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1953). *Omanut ha-teatron*. Merhavya. LCCN 57053221.

1. [*Politics of Yiddish: Studies in Language, Literature and Society*](https://books.google.com/books?id=0BlUHEMOI9QC). Rowman Altamira. 1998. p. 138. ISBN 9780761990253. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (1944). [*Der Regnboygn*](https://archive.org/details/nybc207229). Tsuḳunfṭ. LCCN 47025444.

1. [*Cambridge History of American Literature*](https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.180156). G.P. Putnam. 1921. pp. 572–609. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. [*Cambridge History of American Literature*](https://archive.org/details/cu31924022001170). G.P. Putnam. 1921. pp. [572](https://archive.org/details/cu31924022001170/page/n159)–609. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

1. Buchwald, Nathaniel (May 1956). [*A Visit with "Tarbut Laam"*](https://www.marxists.org/subject/jewish/what-happened.pdf). Jewish Life. pp. 18–22. Retrieved 16 August 2018.

## External sources

- [YIVO Archives: Nathaniel Buchwald](http://www.yivoarchives.org/index.php?p=collections/controlcard&id=33623) Translation of *Teatr*
- [Beit Hatfutsot Databases - Buchwald](https://dbs.bh.org.il/familyname/buchwald)
- [Yiddish Song](https://yiddishsong.wordpress.com/tag/russia/) "In dem vaytn land Sibir"

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