Nora Levin (September 20, 1916 – October 26, 1989) was an American historian of the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

and a writer. She was most interested in the topics of the

Jewish Labor Bund The General Jewish Labour Bund in Lithuania, Poland and Russia (), generally called The Bund (, cognate to , ) or the Jewish Labour Bund (), was a Jewish secularism, secular Jewish Socialism, socialist party initially formed in the Russian Empire ...

, social

Zionists Zionism is an ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the Jewish people, pursued through the colonization of Palestine, a region roughly cor ...

, and Jews during the Holocaust.

Biography

Levin was born on September 20, 1916, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, where she lived most of her life. She received her B.S. in education from

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...

and her M.L.S. from

Drexel University Drexel University is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony Joseph Drexel, Anthony J. Drexel, a financier ...

. She served as the executive director of the Philadelphia Council of Pioneer Women, the women's

Labor Zionist Labor Zionism () or socialist Zionism () is the Left-wing politics, left-wing, socialism, socialist variant of Zionism. For many years, it was the most significant tendency among Zionists and Zionist organizations, and was seen as the Zionist ...

organization from 1948 to 1953. She worked as a librarian and teacher and later became professor of history of Gratz College in

, where she was the founding director of the Holocaust

Oral History Oral history is the collection and study of historical information from people, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people who pa ...

Archive.Gratz web page about the Holocaust Oral History Archive
description at th
Archive Collections
page; the collection in th
USHMM catalogue
/ref> She also was a member of the Advisory Editorial Board of the ''Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe'' journal (OPREE) from its inception to her death. Apart from various articles, Levin wrote three comprehensive books about her main topics as a historian: the Holocaust; Jewish socialist and labour movements; and Jewish life in Europe in general, with a focus on Eastern Europe. Levin also served on the executive boards of the Soviet Jewry Council, the Philadelphia Jewish Community Relations Council, the

National Conference of Christians and Jews The National Conference for Community and Justice is an American social justice organization focused on fighting biases and promoting understanding between people of different races and cultures. The organization was founded in 1927 as the Natio ...

, and the Hebrew Immigration Aid Society. She died on October 26, 1989.

Works

* ''The Holocaust : the destruction of European Jewry, 1933-1945'' (1968; reprint in 1990 as ''The Holocaust years'') * ''Jewish socialist movements, 1871-1917 : while Messiah tarried'' (1977) * ''The Jews in the Soviet Union since 1917 : paradox of survival'' (two volumes) (1988/1989) Articles by Levin are available on the Berman Jewish Policy Archive, including:
"Tolerating the Nazis among us"
''Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility'', Vol. 9, no. 163 (1978)
"Jewish social work, a rejoinder"
''Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility'', Vol. 9, no. 166 (1979)
"Gratz Holocaust archive of Soviet Jews"
''Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility'', Vol. 20, no. 391 (1990)

Awards

* 1969: National Jewish Book Awards in the Holocaust category for ''The holocaust : the destruction of European Jewry, 1933-1945''

References

External links

"In Memoriam of Nora Levin" - ''Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levin, Nora Historians of the Holocaust 1916 births 1989 deaths Gratz College American women academics Jewish American historians 20th-century American historians Drexel University alumni Temple University alumni Writers from Philadelphia