He was born Avraham Sonne, on September 13, 1883, in Przemyśl, Austrian Galicia, a region of Eastern Europe which has changed hands throughout history between Austria and Poland.
In his youth, Przemyśl was part of the Austrian Empire, and he moved to Vienna to study.
Canetti describes "Dr. Sonne" in his autobiographical book Das Augenspiel (The Play of the Eyes).
In his description, Avraham Ben-Yitzhak appears as a profound scholar with interests in religion, philosophy, psychology and sociology.
Dr. Sonne had a lasting influence on Canetti, who later wrote a profile of him in the April 7, 1986, edition of The New Yorker.