Mediaמתי שמואלוף

Mati Shemoelof

Mati Shemoelof is an Israeli poet, author and journalist born in Haifa in 1972, who has lived in Berlin since 2013.

born 1972Mizrahi identity poetryEditing HaKivun Mizrah journalOpinion columns in Israeli media

Born: 11 July 1972, Haifa
Occupation: journalist, poet, activist, opinion journalist
Education: Tel Aviv University, University of Haifa, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Mati Shemoelof was born in 1972 in Haifa

Shemoelof was born on July 11, 1972, and grew up in Haifa. His family has Iraqi, Kurdish, Persian and Syrian roots.

He earned a BA in theater at Tel Aviv University and an MA in history at the University of Haifa. He began a doctorate in literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem but left to focus on writing. He taught at Kedma High School in Jerusalem, at the Ron Vardi Center for Gifted Children and at Minshar School of Art in Tel Aviv.

He writes poetry, drama and prose, and his work has been translated into 6 languages. He edited the journal HaKivun Mizrah from 2006 to 2008 and co-edited anthologies such as Aduma and Tehudot Zehut. He wrote columns for Israel HaYom, Mako, Ynet, NRG and Walla!.

He was a member of the Mizrahi Democratic Rainbow and co-edited the Ruh Jedida project, an open letter from Israelis of Arab Jewish descent to Muslims in the region. In 2013 he moved to Berlin, where he teaches creative writing and founded literary groups. His first novel, The Prize, came out in 2021.