Editing Ahad Ha'am (section)

==Biography==
Ginsberg was born in [[Skvyra]], in the [[Kiev Governorate]] of the [[Russian Empire]] (present-day [[Ukraine]]) to wealthy [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] parents.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Goldstein |first=Yossi |date=December 2010 |title=Eastern Jews vs. Western Jews: the Ahad Ha'am–Herzl dispute and its cultural and social implications |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10835-010-9119-6 |journal=Jewish History |language=en |volume=24 |issue=3–4 |pages=355–377 |doi=10.1007/s10835-010-9119-6 |s2cid=154798556 |issn=0334-701X|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book |editor-last=Noveck |editor-first=Simon |title=Great Jewish thinkers of the twentieth century. Edited with introductory essays by Simon Noveck. |date=1969 |publisher=B'nai B'rith, Dept. of Adult Jewish Education |oclc=9860316}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Simon |first=Leon |title=Ahad ha-am : Asher Ginzberg: a biography |date=2002 |publisher=Varda Books |isbn=1-59045-411-1 |oclc=1243580984}}</ref> The town was located in the [[Pale of Settlement]], which constituted an area in the Russian Empire in which Jews were legally allowed to reside. Ginsberg felt little affection for the town, describing it as "one of the most benighted spots in the Hasidic districts of Russia."<ref>{{Cite book |first=Ahad |last=Ha'am |title=Words of Fire: Selected Essays of Ahad Ha'am |year=2015 |publisher=Notting Hill Editions |isbn=978-1-910749-41-8 |oclc=962854479}}</ref> Jewish segregation in the Russian Empire as well as his strong [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox]] upbringing served to cultivate an identity fundamentally based in [[Zionism|Jewish Nationalism]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=1951-06-01 |title=Ahad Ha'am: Nationalist with a Difference:A Zionism to Fulfill Judaism |url=https://www.commentary.org/articles/hans-kohn/ahad-haam-nationalist-with-a-differencea-zionism-to-fulfill-judaism/ |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=Commentary Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> At eight years old, he began to teach himself to read Russian. His father, Isaiah, sent him to [[heder]] until he was 12. When his father became the administrator of a large estate in the village of Gopitshitza in the Kiev Governorate, he moved the family there and took private tutors for his son, who excelled at his studies.<ref name=":1" />

From a young age, Ginsberg was interested in the [[Haskalah]] movement.<ref name=":1" /> He was critical of the dogmatic nature of Orthodox Judaism, and began to distance himself from Orthodoxy by the time he was 16.<ref name=":0" /> Still, he remained loyal to his cultural heritage, especially the ethical ideals of [[Judaism]].<ref name="NY">''Encyclopedia of Zionism and Israel'', vol. 1, Ahad Ha'am, New York, 1971, pp. 13–14</ref> Ginsberg felt uncomfortable with taking the identity of [[Misnagdim|mitnagid]] (non-Hasidic Orthodox jew) or [[maskil]] (Jewish Enlightener), so he simply referred to himself as "Ohev Yisrael", or "Lover of Israel".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smollett |first=Brian Matthew |title=Reviving enlightenment in the age of nationalism: the historical and political thought of Hans Kohn in America |year=2014 |publisher=City University of New York |isbn=978-1-303-74091-6 |oclc=878960512}}</ref> He married his wife Rivke at the age of 17. They had three children, [[Shlomo Ginossar|Shlomo]], Leah, and Rachel.<ref name=":1" />  In 1886 he settled in Odessa with his parents, wife and children, and entered the family business.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Ahad_Ha-Am|title=YIVO &#124; Ahad Ha-Am|website=yivoencyclopedia.org}}</ref> In 1908, following a trip to Palestine, Ginsberg moved to London to manage the office of the [[Wissotzky Tea]] company.<ref>{{Cite news
   |url=https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/.premium-1824-a-man-who-makes-israelis-think-of-tea-is-born-1.5407039
   |title=1824: A Man Whose Name Makes Israelis Think of 'Tea' Is Born
   |author=David B. Green  |date=2016-07-08  |work=Haaretz |access-date=2020-01-26 |language=en}}</ref> He settled in [[Tel Aviv]] in early 1922, where he served as a member of the Executive Committee of the city council until 1926. Plagued by ill health, Ginsberg died there in 1927.<ref name="NY" />