Judaica Press

Judaica Press is an American independent publishing house established in New York City in 1963 by S. Goldman. The company emerged during a period when English-speaking Jewish communities showed increasing demand for accessible editions of traditional Jewish texts and for scholarly literature relating to Jewish studies. Its publishing program has combined religious reference works, translations and editions of biblical and rabbinic literature, and reprints or acquired rights to established works of Jewish scholarship. The press became particularly associated with substantial Jewish textual publications rather than with a broad trade-book list. Among the works connected with its catalog are the Mikraoth Gedoloth Nach series, covering the Prophets and Writings sections of the Hebrew Bible; the Blackman Mishnayoth set; the Hirsch Chumash set; and Marcus Jastrow's Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushlami, and Midrashic Literature. These titles place Judaica Press within the ecosystem of publishers serving Orthodox Jewish readers, synagogue and educational institutions, researchers, libraries, and others seeking English-language access to classical Jewish sources. After the company's founding, S. Goldman's son Jack Goldman took over the business. The transition coincided with the continued growth of interest in Jewish learning among the English-speaking Jewish diaspora. Rather than positioning itself primarily as a mass-market general publisher, Judaica Press has been identified with durable reference and study editions, including works that preserve or make available older scholarship. Its catalog therefore overlaps with religious publishing, Judaic studies, biblical studies, rabbinic literature, and Jewish reference publishing. The press's significance rests in part on its role in bringing major Jewish texts and scholarly resources to English-speaking audiences. The acquisition of rights to works such as the Blackman Mishnayoth, Hirsch Chumash, and Jastrow dictionary expanded the availability of materials that are important for the study of Hebrew Bible interpretation, Mishnah, Talmudic terminology, Aramaic translation traditions, and midrashic literature. The Mikraoth Gedoloth Nach series similarly reflects the company's emphasis on editions of canonical Jewish scripture accompanied by traditional commentary and scholarly apparatus. Publicly available reference material does not establish a current corporate owner, a separate parent company, a precise current executive roster, financial information, or a confirmed current operating status. Judaica Press should therefore be understood primarily as an independent publishing imprint or house documented through its historic and bibliographic output, rather than as a publicly traded media group. Its known identity remains closely tied to Jewish textual publishing and to the circulation of English-language editions for Jewish communities and academic readers.

Judaica Press was founded in New York City in 1963 by S. Goldman as an independent publishing house serving the Jewish book market. Its formation reflected rising demand among English-speaking Jewish communities for scholarly and religious works that could support study of Jewish history, scripture, rabbinic literature, and related academic subjects. The company was subsequently taken over by S. Goldman's son, Jack Goldman. Under the Goldman family, Judaica Press developed a catalog centered on significant Jewish textual and reference publications. Its output included the Mikraoth Gedoloth Nach series, an edition concerned with the Prophets and Writings of the Hebrew Bible, as well as major works whose rights were acquired by the press. These included the Blackman Mishnayoth set, the Hirsch Chumash set, and Marcus Jastrow's comprehensive dictionary of the Targumim, the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds, and midrashic literature. The Jastrow dictionary is especially important in the context of Jewish scholarship. Originally associated with the work of the Orthodox rabbi and Talmudic scholar Marcus Jastrow and published in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it provides vocabulary and explanatory material for major bodies of Jewish Aramaic and rabbinic literature. By acquiring rights to such a work, Judaica Press participated in the preservation and continued distribution of foundational reference material for students, scholars, clergy, and advanced readers. The Blackman Mishnayoth and Hirsch Chumash publications likewise positioned the press at the intersection of traditional Jewish learning and English-language access. The catalog was not limited to contemporary popular books; it emphasized editions that could function as durable study resources and that connected modern English-speaking readers with Hebrew Bible, Mishnah, and classical commentary traditions. Judaica Press is consequently best understood as a specialist Judaica and Jewish-studies publisher. Its historical role has been to make important Jewish texts and scholarship available through an English-language publishing channel, particularly for the Jewish diaspora in English-speaking countries. Public reference material does not provide a detailed account of later management, current ownership, financial performance, or recent publishing activity. Those aspects remain unverified in this dossier.

• 1963

  Judaica Press is founded

  [1]Judaica Pressen.wikipedia.org

  S. Goldman establishes Judaica Press in New York City as an independent publishing house focused on Jewish religious and scholarly works.

• Jack Goldman takes over the press

  [1]Judaica Pressen.wikipedia.org

  S. Goldman's son, Jack Goldman, succeeds him in running Judaica Press as demand grows for English-language Jewish scholarship.

• Major Jewish reference works enter the catalog

  [1]Judaica Pressen.wikipedia.org

  The press acquires rights to the Blackman Mishnayoth, Hirsch Chumash, and Marcus Jastrow dictionary, strengthening its specialist Jewish-texts catalog.

An independent Judaica publisher serving English-speaking Jewish readers, educators, libraries, and researchers through editions of classical Jewish texts and established works of Jewish scholarship.

• Hebrew Bible edition

  Mikraoth Gedoloth Nach

  A Judaica Press series devoted to Nach, the Prophets and Writings sections of the Hebrew Bible. It represents the press's emphasis on substantial editions of canonical Jewish scripture for English-speaking Jewish readers and students of traditional Jewish texts.

• Mishnah edition

  Blackman Mishnayoth

  A set based on the Blackman edition of the Mishnah, one of the central bodies of early rabbinic Jewish law and interpretation. Its inclusion in the Judaica Press catalog supports study of the Mishnah in an English-language setting.

• Torah commentary

  Hirsch Chumash

  A Chumash set associated with the commentary and interpretive tradition of Samson Raphael Hirsch. The work reflects Judaica Press's focus on making major Jewish religious texts and commentaries available to English-speaking readers.

• Jewish studies dictionary

  Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushlami, and Midrashic Literature

  Marcus Jastrow's comprehensive dictionary covering terminology found in the Targumim, the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds, and midrashic literature. Judaica Press acquired rights to this important reference work, helping maintain its availability for readers working with Jewish Aramaic and rabbinic sources.

1. 1Judaica Pressen.wikipedia.org