Ya'akov Nitzani
Encyclopedia
Ya'akov Nitzani was an Israel
i politician who served as a member of the Knesset
for Mapai
from 1952 until 1959.
in Bulgaria
, Nitzani studied law at the University of Sofia, and also attended a Hebrew teachers seminary. He worked as a teacher from 1920 until 1925, and was a founder of the Organisation for Hebrew Language and Culture. He also helped establish the Bulgarian branches of Hashomer Hatzair
and Poale Zion
, and was secretary general of the Zionist Organisation
in the country.
In 1935 he made aliyah
to Mandate Palestine, and became secretary of the Histadrut
's Mizrahi Jews
department, as well as becoming a member of the trade union's executive committee and the Tel Aviv
Workers Council.
A member of the Mapai
central committee, he was on the party's list for the 1951 elections
, but failed to win a seat. However, he entered the Knesset on 8 December 1952 as a replacement for Yitzhak Ben-Zvi
, who had been elected
President
. He lost his seat in the July 1955 elections
, but returned on 14 November the same year as a replacement for Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
, who had resigned from the Knesset following allegations that his involvement in the oil business was inappropriate for a workers party representative. He lost his seat again in the 1959 elections
.
He died in 1962 at the age of 61.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i politician who served as a member of the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
for Mapai
Mapai
Mapai was a left-wing political party in Israel, and was the dominant force in Israeli politics until its merger into the Israeli Labor Party in 1968...
from 1952 until 1959.
Biography
Born in PlovdivPlovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Nitzani studied law at the University of Sofia, and also attended a Hebrew teachers seminary. He worked as a teacher from 1920 until 1925, and was a founder of the Organisation for Hebrew Language and Culture. He also helped establish the Bulgarian branches of Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair is a Socialist–Zionist youth movement founded in 1913 in Galicia, Austria-Hungary, and was also the name of the group's political party in the Yishuv in the pre-1948 British Mandate of Palestine...
and Poale Zion
Poale Zion
Poale Zion was a Movement of Marxist Zionist Jewish workers circles founded in various cities of the Russian Empire about the turn of the century after the Bund rejected Zionism in 1901.-Formation and early years:Poale Zion parties and organisations were started across the Jewish diaspora in the...
, and was secretary general of the Zionist Organisation
World Zionist Organization
The World Zionist Organization , or WZO, was founded as the Zionist Organization , or ZO, in 1897 at the First Zionist Congress, held from August 29 to August 31 in Basel, Switzerland...
in the country.
In 1935 he made aliyah
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Mandate Palestine, and became secretary of the Histadrut
Histadrut
HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael , known as the Histadrut, is Israel's organization of trade unions. Established in December 1920 during the British Mandate for Palestine, it became one of the most powerful institutions of the State of Israel.-History:The Histadrut was founded in...
's Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews or Mizrahiyim, , also referred to as Adot HaMizrach are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of the Middle East, North Africa and the Caucasus...
department, as well as becoming a member of the trade union's executive committee and the Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
Workers Council.
A member of the Mapai
Mapai
Mapai was a left-wing political party in Israel, and was the dominant force in Israeli politics until its merger into the Israeli Labor Party in 1968...
central committee, he was on the party's list for the 1951 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1951
Elections for the second Knesset were held in Israel on 30 July 1951. Voter turnout was 75.1%.-Results:¹ Rostam Bastuni, Avraham Berman and Moshe Sneh left Mapam and set up the Left Faction. Bastuni later returned to Mapam whilst Berman and Sneh joined Maki. Hannah Lamdan and David Livschitz left...
, but failed to win a seat. However, he entered the Knesset on 8 December 1952 as a replacement for Yitzhak Ben-Zvi
Yitzhak Ben-Zvi
Yitzhak Ben-Zvi was a historian, Labor Zionist leader, the second and longest-serving President of Israel.-Biography:...
, who had been elected
Israeli presidential election, 1952
An election to choose the second President of Israel was held in the Knesset on 8 December 1952 following the death of the Israel's first president, Chaim Weizmann on 9 November...
President
President of Israel
The President of the State of Israel is the head of state of Israel. The position is largely an apolitical ceremonial figurehead role, with the real executive power lying in the hands of the Prime Minister. The current president is Shimon Peres who took office on 15 July 2007...
. He lost his seat in the July 1955 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1955
Elections for the third Knesset were held in Israel on 26 July 1955. Voter turnout was 82.8%.-Results:Mapai retained its plurality in the Knesset, although its share of the vote dropped by 5.1 and its share of seats dropped from 47 to 40...
, but returned on 14 November the same year as a replacement for Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
-Biography:Shapira was born in Kirovograd in the Russian Empire in 1902. He studied in a Yeshiva and later studied medicine at the University of Kharkov. He was active in the Zionist socialist Movement and was incarcerated for his activism from 1923 to 1924...
, who had resigned from the Knesset following allegations that his involvement in the oil business was inappropriate for a workers party representative. He lost his seat again in the 1959 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1959
Elections for the fourth Knesset were held in Israel on 3 November 1959. Voter turnout was 81.5%.-Results:¹ The General Zionists and the Progressive Party merged to form the Liberal Party....
.
He died in 1962 at the age of 61.