Sheftelovich Yankel was born on 15 September 1882 in Lithuania; he studied Talmud in Telšiai (Lithuania), where he also completed the yeshiva, and was ordained by the chief rabbis of Telšiai, Bloch and Atlas; he taught Torah to Jewish children at the Aknīste primary school.

Rabbi of Šiauliai (Lithuania) from 1917, rabbi in Aknīste from 21 May 1931.