The state of Israel is a miracle, and Hebrew is the core of the miracle.
For nearly two thousand years, Hebrew has existed in synagogues, in prayers, in reading the Bible, in correspondence between communities. But among friends and family, Jews spoke to one another in their local language.
Dr. Avshalom Kor is the most famous advocate for the Hebrew language in Israel. He was born in Tel Aviv to two Holocaust survivors. He received his PhD at Tel Aviv University, where his research focussed on an attempt to revive the Hebrew language 1,500 years ago.
Dr. Kor has had a lengthy Hebrew broadcasting career spanning over 25 years. He was one of the first Hebrew teachers sent by the Israeli government to Moscow to teach 70 activists from all of the republics of the Soviet Union.
In 2016 he won the Prime Minister Prize for his public activity for the Hebrew language. His name has become synonymous with the language; In Israel, if somebody insists on clear Hebrew, people frequently say: Who are you, Avshalom Kor?
The Annual Spiro Tribute Lecture is sponsored by the Pears Foundation to celebrate the tremendous work of Robin (z"l) and Nitza Spiro and their contribution to Jewish cultural life in Britain over the last 40+ years.
