A. Vayter

Born in Benakani, Russian Empire (today in Belarus), to a religious family that ran an inn, Ayzik Mayer Devenishki received a traditional upbringing from his grandfather. Exposed to works of the Haskalah as well as Russian and Polish literature while studying in Smargon, Devenishki eventually turned away from his observant background, joining The Bund soon after its formation in 1897. He became a prolific propagandist for The Bund, working in Kovno, Vilna, and Minsk to promote the cultural program of the party. Tsarist authorities exiled him to Siberia for his political work, and after his return in 1905, he settled in Vilna, where he participated in the 1905 revolution. Employing the pen name A. Vayter, he then began a modest literary career, contributing short stories to the Yiddish press and trying his hand as a playwright. In 1908, Vayter collaborated with Shmuel Niger and Shmarye Gorelik to found Literarishe monatsshriftn. In 1911, he took over management of Boris Kletskin’s publishing house in Vilna. Again exiled to Siberia, he made his way back to Vilna in 1918, working to promote Yiddish culture as the city passed back and forth between various regimes. He was murdered by Polish soldiers when Polish forces occupied Vilna in 1919.