Leon Simon (Zionist)
Leon Simon | |
|---|---|
אריה (לאון) סימון | |
Simon in 1911 | |
| Born | 11 July 1881 |
| Died | 27 April 1965 (aged 83) |
| Nationality | British, Israeli |
| Alma mater | Balliol College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Civil servant |
| Years active | 1904–1949 |
| Known for | Cultural Zionist, writer, Hebrew scholar, political activist |
| Spouse |
Ellen Simon (m. 1916) |
Sir Leon Simon CB (Hebrew: אריה (לאון) סימון; 11 July 1881 – 27 April 1965) was a leading British Zionist intellectual and civil servant who took part in the drafting of the Balfour Declaration of 1917 and served on the Zionist Commission with Chaim Weizmann. An advocate of cultural Zionism and the revival of Hebrew language, Simon was a scholar and translator of Ahad Ha'am, and produced the first modern Hebrew translations of Plato. He served as the Chairman of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Executive Council, and from 1949–50 as the university's President.