NAIDUS, LEIB

NAIDUS, LEIB (Leo Najdus; 1890–1918), Yiddish poet. Born in Grodno, Belorussia, Naidus began writing poems in Yiddish, Hebrew, and Russian while attending gymnasium in Vilna. His first book of Yiddish poems, Lirik ("Lyrics," 1915) revealed virtuosity in versification and was a manifestation of modern literary aestheticism. From 1916 to 1918 Naydus composed large poetry cycles and epic poems, where he expressed vitalism as his poetic philosophy. After his premature death, his works were published in six volumes (1923–28), including two volumes of translations of Russian, German, French, and English romantic and symbolist poetry. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: Rejzen, Leksikon, 2 (1927), 552–61; LNYL, 6 (1965), 213–8; Sh. Rozhansky, in: L. Naydus, Oysgeklibene Verk (1958), introd.; J. Glatstein, In Tokh Genumen (1963), 147–54; A. Zak, In Kinigraykh fun Yidish Vort (1966), 28–51; E.H. Jeshurin, Leyb Naydus Bibliografye (1962). ADD. BIBLIOGRAPHY: A. Zak, in: L. Naydus, Ale verk. Litvishe Arabeskn (1924), v–xix. (Melech Ravitch / Mindaugas Kvietkauskas (2nd ed.)