Chana Schneerson

Rebbetzin
Chana Schneerson
Born
Chana Yanovsky

December 30, 1880
Nikolayev, Kherson Governorate, Russian Empire
DiedSeptember 12, 1964(1964-09-12) (aged 83)
Brooklyn, New York
SpouseLevi Yitzchak Schneerson
Children3, including Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Parents

Chana Schneerson (née Yanovsky; December 30, 1880 – September 12, 1964) was the wife of Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, a Chabad Hasidic rabbi in Yekatrinoslav, Ukraine and the mother of the seventh Chabad-Lubavitch Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.[1]

Chana Schneerson's great-grandfather was Abraham David Lavut, a composer of Jewish literature upon which Chabadic prayer books are based (including the Siddur Im Dach).

Early life

She was born Chana Yanovsky in 1880, on the 28th of Tevet in the Jewish agricultural colony of Nikolayev (now Mykolaiv, Ukraine) to Rabbi Meir Shlomo Yanovsky and Rachel Yanovsky.[2] She was the eldest of four children, having two sisters, Gittel and Ettel, and a younger brother, Yisrael Leib, who died in his youth. Rabbi Meir Shlomo was the chief rabbi of Nikolayev.[3]

As a teenager, she was educated by her father,[2] and when a maamar would arrive from Lubavitch, she would meticulously and faithfully transcribe it, making it available for other Chasidim.

Marriage to Levi Yitzchak

In 1900, she married Levi Yitzchak, a great-great-grandson of the third Rebbe of Lubavitch, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, also known as the Tzemach Tzedek.[4] The wedding took place on the 13th of Sivan, in Nikolayev. The couple produced three sons, Menachem Mendel, Dov-Ber, and Yisroel Aryeh Leib. Their eldest son, Menachem Mendel, was later to become the seventh Rebbe of Lubavitch.

Levi Yitzchak was arrested in 1939, and exiled in 1940 for his religious practice. Schneerson joined him in exile. Levi Yitzchak died in 1944.[5]

Later years

Widowed, Schneerson left the Soviet Union in 1947. She transported Levi Yitzchak's religious writings, considered illegal contraband under the communist soviet regime, focused around the Kabbalah, upon moving. That year she went to Paris, France, where she met with her son, Menachem Mendel. They both immigrated to the United States, and lived in Brooklyn, New York.[2]

She held extensive interviews with journalist Nissan Gordon, which have been published in Di Yiddishe Heim.[6]

Death

She died on September 12, 1964 (6 Tishrei 5725).[7] She is buried at The Ohel. A Chabad myth claims that on the day of her death, her chair at 770 Eastern Parkway lit on fire.[8]

In 2002, her memoirs, which she penned during the years 1947 until 1963, were published by the Kehot Publication Society as Mother in Israel - The life & memoirs of R' Chana.[9]

Multiple Chabad institutions bearing Chana's name have been founded in the Rebbetzin's honor, including Bais Chana Women International[10], Machon Chana Women's Institute[11], and the Beis Chana girls secondary school network.[12][13]

Vav Tishrei

Main article: 6 Tishrei

Chana's yahrzeit (anniversary of death) 6 Tishrei a.k.a. Vav Tishrei is observed within Chabad communities with farbrengens, study sessions about her life, and charitable initiatives established in her memory.[14][15][16]

References

  1. ^ "A Biography of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson". www.chabad.org. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  2. ^ a b c "Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson, obm". Bais Chana of California Women's Yeshiva. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  3. ^ Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson – A brief biography – Chassidism
  4. ^ "Overview on the life of Rebbetzin Chana". Vaad Or Vechom Hahiskashrus. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  5. ^ Margolin, Dovid. "The KGB's Belated Apology for the Persecution and Death of the Rebbe's Father". Chabad.org. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  6. ^ "Memoirs of Rebbetzin Chana - Part 1". Chabad.org. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  7. ^ "MRS. C. SCHNEERSON". New York Times. 13 September 1964. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  8. ^ "ו' תשרי – יום הסתלקותה של הרבנית חנה ע"ה". באתי לגני (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  9. ^ Schneersohn, Chana (2002). A mother in Israel : the life and memoirs of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson of blessed memory : mother of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Brooklyn: Kehot Publication Society. ISBN 9780826600998. OCLC 234119695.
  10. ^ "Bais Chana Home". baischana.org. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  11. ^ "Founder". Machon Chana. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  12. ^ "About". Beis Chana. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  13. ^ "Home". Bais Chana. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  14. ^ "Saturday, March 14, 2026 / Adar 25, 5786 - Jewish Calendar - Hebrew Calendar". www.chabad.org. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  15. ^ "ו' תשרי – יום הסתלקותה של הרבנית חנה ע"ה". באתי לגני (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2026-03-14.
  16. ^ "Watching a farbrengen is the best way to re-live Vov Tishrei with the Rebbe". www.iggudhashluchim.com. Retrieved 2026-03-14.

Further reading

  • Gottlieb, Naftali Tzvi. Trans. Lesches, Elchonon. "Rabbi, Mystic and Leader - the Life and Times of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson" (Kehot Publication Society; 2008) 253 pages
  • Marcus, Shmuel M. and Avraham D. Vaisfiche. Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson: A Brief Biography. Brooklyn: Kehot Publication Society. (2004). ISBN 0826601022
  • Strength and Majesty: A Biography of the Rebbetzins Chana Schneerson and Chaya Mushka Schneerson. Brooklyn: Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch (2004). ISBN 0826601030
  • Tilles, Yerachmiel. "A Mother in Israel - the Life and Memoirs of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson" (Kehot Publication Society; 1985, 2003) 226 pages


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