Ktav Publishing House
{{Short description|American publishing house}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2014}}
{{Infobox publisher
| name =KTAV Publishing House
| image = File:Ktav.gif
| caption =
| parent =
| status =
| traded_as =
| predecessor =
| founded = {{Start date and age|1921|paren=yes}}
| founder = Asher and Feiga (Fannie) Scharfstein
| successor =
| country = United States
| headquarters = Brooklyn, New York
| distribution =
| keypeople = Moshe Heller, Levi Rodal
| publications =
| topics = Judaica and Jewish educational texts
| genre = Jewish
| imprints = KTAV, Targum
| revenue =
| owner = Moshe Heller
| numemployees =
| url = http://www.ktav.com
}}
KTAV Publishing House is a publishing house located in Brooklyn, New York.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/20/nyregion/where-the-elves-wear-yarmulkes.html?pagewanted=all|title=Where the Elves Wear Yarmulkes|author=Andy Newman|date=December 20, 1992|work=The New York Times|access-date=November 5, 2014}} Ktav means "to write" in Hebrew.{{cite web|url=http://njjewishnews.com/njjn.com/080708/mwPublisher86StillThrills.html|title=Publisher, 86, still thrills at the chance to inspire; As Ktav's co-owner, Sol Scharfstein puts faith in written word|author=Johanna Ginsberg|work=New Jersey Jewish News|date=August 7, 2008|access-date=November 5, 2014}}
Founded in 1921, it has been among the most notable publishers of Judaica and Jewish educational texts since the middle of the 20th century.{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}} In 2004, Ktav was designated a Parents' Choice Award-Winning company.
History
Ktav Publishing House was founded in 1921, and took on its name in the late 1920s when it began publishing notebooks.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ibdtAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Ktav+Publishing%22+scharfstein+books+scholarly|title=The illustrated new concise Jewish encyclopedia|author=Robert Milch|publisher=Ktav Pub. House|year= 1962 |isbn=9780870686351|access-date=November 5, 2014}} Sol and Bernie Scharfstein took over Ktav from their parents Asher and Feiga (Fannie), becoming co-owners.{{cite web|url=http://www.ktav.com/index.php/aboutus|title=About KTAV; Scharfstein Family Saga|access-date=November 5, 2014}}{{cite web|url=http://www.ktav.com/history|title=History|access-date=February 17, 2021}}
Ktav has over the years been located on Canal Street in Manhattan, in Hoboken, New Jersey, Jersey City, and is currently based in Brooklyn, New York. From 1984 when it moved from Manhattan, and as of 1992, the publishing house was located in Hoboken's industrial district, and was part of a $3-million-a-year publishing and novelty enterprise.{{cite web|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/390002/JOLLY-TOYMAKER-IS-FILLING-ORDERS.html?pg=all|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141112110525/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/390002/JOLLY-TOYMAKER-IS-FILLING-ORDERS.html?pg=all|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 12, 2014|title=Jolly Toymaker is Filling Orders|work=Deseret News |date= November 26, 1994|access-date=November 5, 2014}}
Ktav was as of 1992 run by Sol Scharfstein (who handled the textbook division) and his younger brother Bernie Scharfstein (who handled administrative matters, and oversaw scholarly and theological works).
Ktav in 1992 had a catalog of over 700 titles, and in 2008 its catalog included textbooks, siddurs (Jewish prayer books), scholarly works, and books on spirituality. It published approximately 25 new books every year in 1992, and 15 or 16 new books every year in 2008. Some of Ktav's books were anticipated to sell only a few hundred copies, while others were anticipated to sell in greater numbers.
In 2004, Ktav was designated a Parents' Choice Award-Winning company.{{cite web|url=http://www.parents-choice.org/company.cfm?the_co=5943&from=Gan%20Shirim%20%28A%20Garden%20of%20Songs%29|title=Parents' Choice Award-Winning Company: KTAV Publishing House, Inc.|publisher=Parents' Choice|date=2004|access-date=November 5, 2014}}
As of 2014, the owner and CEO of Ktav is Moshe Heller, who previously founded Urim Publications in 1997, an independent publishing house based in Jerusalem and New York.{{Cite web|url=http://www.urimpublications.com/faqs.html|title = Urim Publications: FAQs}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.ktav.com/ Ktav Publishing House homepage]
{{Authority control}}
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Category:Publishing companies established in 1924
Category:Publishing companies of the United States
Category:1924 establishments in New York (state)
Category:Companies based in Brooklyn
Category:Book publishing companies based in New York (state)
Category:Jewish printing and publishing
Category:Hebrew-language mass media in the United States
Category:American companies established in 1924