Rakhel (Rachel Bluwstein)

Rakhel (she is known by her first name alone) was among the first women in the Land of Israel to write modern Hebrew poetry. She was born into a wealthy merchant family in Ukraine that was both observant and receptive to secular currents. She and her sister traveled to Ottoman Palestine for what was supposed to be a short trip before visiting Italy, where they intended to study painting. Captivated by what they saw, they remained. She settled first in Reḥovot, where she worked in the orchards, and later at Kevutsat Kinneret, where she studied in a women’s agricultural school. She was in France, continuing her studies in agronomy, when the war broke out, and she was able to return to Palestine only in 1919. She joined Kevutsat Deganyah and began to publish her poetry. When she was diagnosed with tuberculosis, she was forced to leave and lived a peripatetic life until her early death. Her poems are known for their unencumbered and straightforward style, their brevity, and lyricism. Many of them have been set to music and have become part of Israeli culture.