Petr Ginz
| Petr Ginz | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1 February 1928 Prague, Czechoslovakia |
| Died | 28 September 1944 (aged 16) Auschwitz Birkenau, General Government |
Petr Ginz (1 February 1928 – 28 September 1944) was a Czechoslovak boy of partial Jewish background who was deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp during the Holocaust. He died at the age of sixteen when he was transferred to Auschwitz concentration camp and gassed.
Petr was born into the family of Otto Ginz, a manager of the export department of a textile company from Prague and notable Esperantist, and Marie Ginz (née Dolanská). Petr's father was Jewish, and his mother was not. His parents met at an Esperantist congress. His mother was from Hradec Králové where her father was a village teacher. Petr got frequent visits from his relatives during Christmas including his grandfather who owned an antique shop in Jungmann Square where he sold rare books. Petr was a very intelligent boy; between the ages of 8 and 14 he wrote 5 novels: From Prague to China, The Wizard from Altay Mountains, Around the World in One Second and A Visit from Prehistory — the only surviving novel today. The novels, including Návštěva z pravěku (English: Visit from Prehistory), were written in the style of Jules Verne and illustrated with his own paintings. He was interested in the sciences and yearned for knowledge. Because of his parents' interest in Esperanto, Petr also became a fluent speaker of the language.
According to the anti-Jewish laws of the Third Reich, children from mixed marriages were to be deported to a concentration camp at the age of 14. Young Petr was transported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp in October 1942. His efforts in sciences and thirst for knowledge remained and he tried to study even in the concentration camp. He often read from the library full of confiscated books to which he had access. He was placed in the Domov č.1 (Home No. 1, building L417). He became one of the most significant individuals of the community. He established and prepared for publication the periodical magazine Vedem which means "We Lead." He also wrote an Esperanto–Czech dictionary as well as several other short novels that have been lost. One interesting piece of writing is called 'The Rambles through Theresienstadt' where he interviews and comments on people, buildings and even the crematorium.
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