Scienceמיכאל הלצר

Michael Heltzer

Michael Heltzer was a historian of the ancient Near East and a professor at the University of Haifa.

1928 to 2010Research on ancient Near East historySocial and economic history of PhoeniciaTeaching at the University of Haifa

Born: 1 May 1928, Tallinn
Died: 6 June 2010, Haifa
Occupation: orientalist, assyriologist, linguist, university teacher
Education: Faculty of Oriental Studies of the St. Petersburg University

Michael Heltzer was born in 1928 in Tallinn

Michael Heltzer was born in Tallinn, Estonia, in 1928.

He studied the ancient Near East at Leningrad University. In 1954 he earned a doctorate for a study of the social and economic history of Phoenicia, supervised by Isaac Vinnikov.

His parents had been held in a Soviet prison and were barred from living in the city, so he taught Russian and history in Estonian schools. In 1959 he found a post at the Vilnius Pedagogical University. He joined its faculty in 1965, became an associate professor in 1966 and a full professor in 1970.

In 1972 he immigrated to Israel and joined the University of Haifa. Over the years he wrote 14 books and more than 200 articles. Estonia honored him with the Order of the White Star.

He was married to Shoshana and had 3 children. He died in 2010.