15 Facts About Zuzanna Ginczanka

Zuzanna Ginczanka, pen name Zuzanna Polina Gincburg was a Polish-Jewish poet of the interwar period.

Zuzanna Ginczanka was arrested and executed in Krakow shortly before the end of World War II.

Zuzanna Ginczanka was born Zuzanna Polina Ginzburg on March 22,1917 in Kiev, then part of the Russian Empire.

Zuzanna Ginczanka's father, Simon Ginzburg, was a lawyer by profession, with her mother Tsetsiliya Ginzburg, nee Sandberg, a housewife.

Zuzanna Ginczanka spoke both Russian, the choice of her emancipated parents, and the Polish of her friends, but did not know a word of Yiddish.

Zuzanna Ginczanka's longing to become a Polish poet caused her to choose the Polish language.

Seven weeks later, in its edition of 2 September 1934, Wiadomosci Literackie will revisit its poetry competition by publishing a list of additional book prizes awarded to the winners: for her contribution, Zuzanna Ginczanka will receive a collection of Michelangelo's poetry in the translation of Leopold Staff.

The other co-founder, Zbigniew Mitzner, will opine in his memoirs that Zuzanna Ginczanka was tied to this particular weekly magazine by the closest bonds of all the alliances that she maintained with the literary press.

Zuzanna Ginczanka wrote several radio dramas for the Polish national broadcaster, Polskie Radjo.

Zuzanna Ginczanka narrowly managed to avoid arrest by Ukrainian forces targeting Jewish population of the city, being shielded by her Nansen passport which, unfamiliar to them, impressed them sufficiently to spare her.

In Lviv, the female concierge in the building where Zuzanna Ginczanka lived, resentful of having allocated space in her building to a refugee like Zuzanna Ginczanka in the first place, saw her opportunity to rid herself of the unwelcome tenant and at the same time to enrich herself.

In Krakow Zuzanna Ginczanka occupied a room next door to Weinzieher's, spending most of her time in bed.

The circumstances of Zuzanna Ginczanka's arrest were pondered upon by postwar memoirist.

Zuzanna Ginczanka recalls that during her stay Ginczanka never left the premises even once for security reasons, and she would never open the door if she happened to be alone.

Zuzanna Ginczanka withdrew at this and went into the entryway of the apartment building across the street.