Eliakum Zunser Biography | Poet

Eliakum Zunser (Eliakim Badchen, Elikum Tsunzer ) (October 28, 1836 – September 22, 1913), was a Lithuanian Jewish Yiddish -language poet, songwriter, and badchen who lived out the last part of his life in U.S.. A 1905 article in the New York Times lauded him as "the father of Yiddish poetry". About a quarter of his roughly 600 songs survive. He influenced and was influenced by Brody singer Velvel Zbarzher, although it is not believed that they ever met.