Elie Wiesel

Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE (/ˈɛli wɪˈzɛl/; born September 30, 1928) is a Romanian-born Jewish writer, professor, political activist, Holocaust survivor, and Nobel Laureate. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and Buchenwald concentration camps. Wiesel is also the Advisory Board chairman of the newspaper Algemeiner Journal.

When Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986, the Norwegian Nobel Committee called him a "messenger to mankind," stating 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 had delivered a powerful message "of peace, atonement and human dignity" to humanity.

Early life

Elie Wiesel was born in Sighet, Transylvania (now Sighetu Marmației), Maramureș,Romania, in the Carpathian Mountains. His parents were Sarah Feig and Shlomo Wiesel. At home Wiesel's family spoke Yiddish most of the time, but also German, Hungarian, and Romanian. Wiesel's mother, Sarah, was the daughter of Dodye Feig, a celebrated Vizhnitz Hasid and farmer from a nearby village. Dodye was active and trusted within the community. In the early years of his life, Dodye had spent a few months in jail for having helped Polish Jews who escaped and were hungry.