“Daniil Kharms” was the main, and subsequently the sole, pen-name of Daniil Ivanovich Iuvachev [pronounced Yuvachóv] (1905-1942), who has been rediscovered, since the end of the 1960s, and successfully promoted as an important (perhaps the most important) Russian twentieth-century absurdist writer. The son of a St Petersburg political, religious and literary figure (Ivan Iuvachev), Daniil Kharms spent his entire life (other than during periods of arrest and exile) in that city, by then known as Leningrad, achieving limited renown as an avant-garde eccentric and a writer of children's stories. Indeed, apart from two early poems, none of his “adult” writings were published anywhere until decades after his death.

The author's predilection for the name “Kharms” is thought to

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Citation: Cornwell, Neil. "Daniil Kharms". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 July 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5796, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5796 Daniil Kharms 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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