Herz Bergner

Herz Bergner was a novelist born in 1907 in Radymno, Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria. His early life was marked by relocation, as his family moved to Vienna, Austria, at the outset of World War I, and later returned to Poland after the war. Bergner's familial connections to literature were notable, with his brother, Melech Ravitch, being a prominent Yiddish writer. Ravitch's decision to emigrate to Australia in 1933 would eventually influence Bergner's own path.

Bergner followed his brother to Australia in 1938, initially with the intention of raising funds for Jewish secular schools in Poland. However, upon arrival, he became immersed in the local literary scene, befriending notable Yiddish writers such as Pinchus Goldhar. Alongside Abraham Schulman and Goldhar, Bergner played a key role in establishing the literary publication Oyfboy, which was published in Melbourne. Through this endeavor, Bergner contributed to the vibrant cultural landscape of Australian literature, leaving a lasting mark until his passing in 1970.