Erich Silbiger

Born:	12-19-1914
Faculty:	Medical School | Medical University Vienna
Category:	Expelled student

Erich SILBIGER, born on December 19th, 1914 in Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), son of Prof. Dr. Josef Silbiger (secondary school teacher), lived in Vienna 3rd district, Klopsteinplatz 4. After he had graduated from high school ("Bundesgymnasium") in Vienna 3rd district, he began to study medicine at the University of Vienna in fall term 1932/33. He was finally enrolled in spring term 1937 at the Medical School in the 5th year of his studies (Leaving Certificate ('Abgangszeugnis') was issued on July 18th, 1938).
Silbiger wasn't enrolled at the Medical School any more in 1938, but was preparing for the final exams ('Rigorosen'). He could finally finish his studies and graduated on July 21st, 1938, but only with the discriminating ceremony of a 'Nichtarierpromotion', which included at the same time that he was banned from his profession.

After the "Anschluss" 1938 Erich Silbiger was arrested by the Nazis and deported to the concentration camp Dachau in November 1938. He was released in December 1938 and emigrated to Palestine [Israel] in April 1939. He joined to the British Army and served as a Captain and military doctor in North Africa and Italy.
After World War II he returned to Palestine and participated as a military doctor in the Palestine war/Israeli independed war in 1948. After the war he worked as a physician at the Rothschild Hospital in Haifa [since 1988: Bnai Zion Medical Center]. He married Vitoria Arbib and had three children Shimon, Oded and Michal.

In 1955 Erich Silbiger moved to Beer Sheva in the south of Israel, where he served as pediatrist in the Ministry of Health clinics, until he passed away in Haifa in December 1981.


Lit.: information from his son Shimon Silbiger (Ziv), Haifa/Israel, 2014.

Katharina Kniefacz