Yoram Kaniuk (May 2, 1930 – June 8, 2013) was an Israeli writer, painter, journalist, and theatre critic.

Biography

Yoram Kaniuk was born in Tel Aviv. His father, Moshe Kaniuk, was the first curator of Tel Aviv Museum of Art and was born in Ternopil, Galicia, which is now in Ukraine but was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. His grandfather was a Hebrew teacher who wrote his own textbooks. Kaniuk's mother, born in Odessa, was also a teacher. Her family immigrated to Palestine in 1909, the year Tel Aviv was founded, and settled in Neve Tzedek, which has become part of the established Tel Aviv. Later they moved to Kiryat Meir, and later to Ben Yehuda Street. In 1947, at the age of 17, Kaniuk joined the Palmach. In 1948, during the War of Independence, he took part in several battles and was shot in the legs by an Englishman in a keffiyeh, but then the Englishman rescued him and he was treated at the British Mount Sinai Hospital. In 1958 while living in the USA, Kaniuk married Miranda Baker, a Christian woman, and returned to Israel with her. They had two daughters, Aya and Naomi. Kaniuk was an anti-war activist who advocated for a peaceful solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Kaniuk died of cancer on June 8, 2013, at the age of 83. After his death, his body was donated to science.

Civil status

In May 2011, Kaniuk petitioned the Israeli Interior Ministry to change his religion status from "Jewish" to "no religion". The petition came after the birth of his grandson, Omri, who was registered as having "no religion" due to not being Jewish under the Halakhic definition used by Israeli civil law. He cited the fact that his child and infant grandson, because they are descended from a mixed Jewish/Christian marriage, are legally unclassified in terms of religion, and his desire not to belong to a "Jewish Iran" or "what is today called the religion of Israel." On September 27, 2011, The Hon. Judge Gideon Ginat of the Tel Aviv District Court approved his petition and ordered the change of his record of religion to "no religion" in his record in the Population Administration Register. The Rabbinate retained a veto over his status. Hundreds of other Israelis expressed an intention to do the same; a new Hebrew verb, lehitkaniuk ("to Kaniuk oneself", "to Kaniukize",, a pun with "lehitraot", , a parting phrase) was coined to refer to this process.

Literary career

Kaniuk has published 17 novels, a memoir, seven collections of short stories, two books of essays and five books for children and youth. His books have been published in 25 languages and he has won numerous literary prizes. An international conference dedicated to the works of Kaniuk was held at Cambridge University in March 2006.

Literary themes and style

'Eagles' is a war story that attacks the subject of death in Israeli culture from a unique angle. His work has been described as "existential writing that deviates from the Israeli consensus" and difficult to categorize. He is known for the dark, somewhat bizarre humor in his writing. The late writers Anthony Burgess and Kurt Vonnegut have influenced his unsettling style of political satire. He was widely rejected by the Israeli mainstream until the 21st century, when many young readers found his unique take on the sensitive Israeli social climate refreshing.

Awards and honours

Kaniuk has won numerous literary prizes, including the following:

Works