Alexander Mikhailovich Glikberg ( rus, Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Гли́кберг, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ ˈɡlʲiɡbʲɪrk, a=Alyexandr Mikhaylovich Glickbyerg.ru.vorb.oga; – 5 July 1932), better known as Sasha Chorny or Cherny ( rus, Са́ша Чёрный, p=ˈsaʂə ˈtɕɵrnɨj, a=Sasha Chyornyy.ru.vorb.oga), was a Russian poet, satirist and children's writer.

Early years

Alexander Glikberg was born into a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family of

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

s in

Odessa ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...

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(currently in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

) on October 13 N.S. 1880. The Glikberg family was not a happy one: his mother suffered from

hysteria Hysteria is a term used to mean ungovernable emotional excess and can refer to a temporary state of mind or emotion. In the nineteenth century, female hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that the bas ...

and children were bad for her nerves; his father often became violent and severely punished his children. It so happened that among the five Glikberg children there were two Alexanders (or Sashas for short), the blond Sasha was usually called ''White Sasha'' (''Белый Саша'' in Russian) and the brunet ''Black Sasha'' (''Чёрный Саша'' in Russian). The Glikberg children could not enter a gymnasium because of the quota restriction for enrollment of

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

s in schools in

Imperial Russia Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * ...

. Eventually, the Glikbergs solved the problem by baptizing themselves and their children. After this, in 1889, the children entered the

gymnasium. Alexander found studying in the gymnasium akin to boring bureaucratic service. At the age of fifteen, he ran away from home. For some time he lived with his aunt in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, but after being expelled from a Saint Petersburg gymnasium for failing

algebra Algebra is a branch of mathematics that deals with abstract systems, known as algebraic structures, and the manipulation of expressions within those systems. It is a generalization of arithmetic that introduces variables and algebraic ope ...

, he was left homeless and without money. Neither his parents nor other relatives responded to his letters and pleas for help. Fortunately for Alexander, one of his stories was published by the journalist ''Alexander Yablonovsky'' in the popular newspaper ''Syn Otechestva''. The article was read by K. K. Rochet, a French-Russian living in

Zhitomir Zhytomyr ( ; see #Names, below for other names) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Zhytomyr Oblast (Oblast, province), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding ...

, who decided to adopt the boy. Alexander entered a Zhitomir gymnasium, from which he was also eventually expelled after a conflict with the principal. Alexander served two years in the Army and then got a job as a

customs officer A customs officer is a law enforcement official who enforces customs laws. Canada Canadian customs officers are members of the Canada Border Services Agency. It was created in 2003 and preceded by the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (1999-20 ...

in the village of Novosiltsy on the border with

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

. In 1904, he returned to his adoptive family in Zhitomir and worked as a journalist for the magazine ''Volynsky Vestnik''. The magazine went bankrupt within two months, and Alexander decided to continue his journalistic career in

Poet

On moving to Saint Petersburg, he worked an administrative job for the Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railway. There he met his wife, Maria Ivanovna Vasilieva, who was his manager at the railroad. She was a few years older than him, better educated, and richer. In Chorny's verse, marriage to a co-worker was often noted as the worst fate for a person. Despite this, their marriage seemed to have been a happy one and lasted their whole lives. They spent their honeymoon in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, in 1905. After returning to Saint Petersburg, Alexander published a collection of verse titled ''Nonsense'' (Чепуха) in the magazine ''Zritel'' using the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

Sasha Chorny. The magazine was closed by the government as a result of these verses, but their effect on the readers was huge. The verses were distributed throughout the country, rewritten by hand, and Chorny soon became a popular and sought after author. Between 1906 and 1907, Sasha Chorny lived in

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and studied at the

Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is Germany's oldest unive ...

. In 1908, he returned to Saint Petersburg and wrote for the popular magazine '' Novyi Satirikon'' to wide popular acclaim. "When somebody gets an issue of the magazine, the first things he looks for are the Sasha Chorny poems. There isn't a student, physician, or lawyer that does not know Chorny's verses by heart," wrote

Korney Chukovsky Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky ( rus, Корне́й Ива́нович Чуко́вский, p=kɐrˈnʲej ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ tɕʊˈkofskʲɪj, a=Kornyey Ivanovich Chukovskiy.ru.vorb.oga; 31 March NS 1882 – 28 October 1969) was one of the most p ...

, who was also a Satirikon contributor. Among the admirers of his verses was

Vladimir Mayakovsky Vladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky ( – 14 April 1930) was a Russian poet, playwright, artist, and actor. During his early, Russian Revolution, pre-Revolution period leading into 1917, Mayakovsky became renowned as a prominent figure of the Ru ...

, who knew many of his poems by heart and often recited them. In 1910, Sasha Chorny published his book of verses, ''Satires'', followed in 1911 by another one, ''Satires and Lyrics''. He also published the children's books ''Tuk-Tuk'' (Knock-Knock) in 1913 and ''Live ABC'' (1914).

War and emigration

During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Sasha Chorny served as a private at a field hospital. After the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

, he immigrated to

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, then to Germany, where he worked for the

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

magazine ''Fire-bird'', then to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, where he worked for the

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

ian ''Russian newspaper''. In 1923, he published his third book of verses, ''Thirst''. In 1927, he was a founder of a Russian colony in the village La Favière in

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

. In emigration, he wrote the poem ''Who lives well in emigration'' (Кому в эмиграции жить хорошо, 1931-1932) and prose ''Non-serious stories'' (Несерьезные рассказы, 1928) ''Soldiers' tales'' (Солдатские сказки, published in 1933). After his death his fourth book of verse ''Children's Island'' (''Детский остров'') was published. He died of a heart attack while helping to put out a fire in the town of Lavandou in the South of France on July 5, 1932. Legend has it that Chorny's dog Micky, the 'author' of the Chorny story ''Micky the Fox Terrier's Diary'', lay on the chest of Sasha Chorny and died with his owner.

Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov ( ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian and American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Born in Imperial Russia in 1899, Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Rus ...

, in his eulogy, said, "He left only a few books and a quiet, beauteous shadow."Левинг, Юрий
''Владимир Набоков и Саша Черный''
«Старое литературное обозрение» 2001, №1(277). Quote in Russian: " �� него осталось только несколько книг и тихая, прелестная тень."

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

set five of Chorny's poems to music for his song cycle ''Satires (Pictures of the Past)'', op. 109.

References

External links

*
Sasha Chorny poetry
*
Sasha Chorny: poems, biographyBiography and works
- in Russian
Chorny's verses
- in Russian
Chorny ''Micky the Fox Terrier's Diary''
- parallel Russian original and English translation

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chorny, Sasha 1880 births 1932 deaths Odesa Jews People from Odessky Uyezd Writers from Odesa White Russian emigrants to France French people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Russian children's writers Russian male poets Jewish poets Russian satirists Russian satirical poets 20th-century Russian poets 20th-century Russian male writers Heidelberg University alumni Expatriates from the Russian Empire in Germany