Elie Wiesel

Eliezer Wiesel (born September 30, 1928 in Sighet, Transylvania ? now part of Romania) is a Holocaust survivor, a world–renowned author, and a political activist. He is the author of over 40 books, the most famous of which, Night, serves as a testimony to his experiences during the Holocaust. In 1986, Elie Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.{{ref|Nobel}} The Norwegian Nobel Committee called Wiesel a "messenger to mankind", noting that through his struggle to come to terms with "his own personal experience of total humiliation and of the utter contempt for humanity shown in Hitler's death camps", as well as his "practical work in the cause of peace", Wiesel has delivered a powerful message "of peace, atonement and human dignity" to humanity. Wiesel lives in the United States, teaches at Boston University and serves as the Chairman of The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity.{{ref|ewfoundation}} He was the first to use the term "Holocaust".

Early life and experiences during The Holocaust

Wiesel was born in Sighet (now Sighetu Marma?iei), Romania, to Shlomo and Sarah Wiesel, Orthodox Jews of Hungarian descent who owned a grocery store. He had three sisters. Elie was devoutly religious as a child and he spent much of his young life studying religious texts. Wiesel was particularly interested in the traditions and folklore of Hasidic Judaism, but he also studied secular topics.

Related Topics:
Sighet - Romania - Orthodox Jews - Hungarian - Hasidic Judaism

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The town of Sighet became part of German ally Hungary in 1940, and in 1944 the Nazis deported the Jewish community in Sighet to Auschwitz–Birkenau. Wiesel was separated from his mother and younger sister, who were murdered at Auschwitz. Elie and his father were sent to the attached work camp Auschwitz III Monowitz. He managed to remain with his father for a year as they were forced to work under appalling conditions and shuffled between concentration camps in the closing days of the war. In January 1945, as the two were being marched to Buchenwald, Wiesel's father died of dysentery, starvation, exhaustion and exposure.

Related Topics:
Hungary - 1940 - 1944 - Nazis - Auschwitz–Birkenau - 1945 - Buchenwald - Dysentery

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