Gertsel Baazov’s Unpublished Poetic Translations: Analysis and Evaluation of Manuscripts

Abstract

The article examines a lesser-studied aspect of Gertsel Baazov’s (1904–1938) poetic translations, focusing on texts that have survived only in manuscript form and remain largely unknown to the wider public. Baazov’s translation activity represents a significant stage in the development of the Georgian-Hebrew literary dialogue, as he was among the first translators to render Hebrew poetry directly from the original Hebrew language into Georgian.

The study focuses on three unpublished poems preserved at the Georgian Museum of Literature (Inventory No. 26622), based on the works of David Frishman, Jacob Fichman, and Hayim Nahman Bialik. The article analyzes Baazov’s stylistic approaches, his strategies of metrical and lexical transformation, and his tendency to reproduce the emotional intonation and spiritual atmosphere of the original texts.

Baazov’s translations transcend the boundaries of semantic equivalence, creating an interpretive dialogue between two literary and cultural systems in which Hebrew poetic archetypes are organically integrated into the Georgian artistic t7radition. Consequently, Baazov’s poetic translations are interpreted not merely as literary artifacts but as a cultural bridge that reaffirms the inner affinity and dialogic nature of the Georgian and Hebrew spiritual worlds.