Why should I begin my research with secondary sources?
Secondary sources on the Jewish press (that is, books and articles written about the Jewish press) provide historical and cultural context that reading the newspapers on their own cannot. Looking in the bibliography of a secondary source is also a great way to find primary sources you may not have found on your own.
I'm researching the historical Jewish press in a specific country and/or time period. How do I find what's already been written?
Using Library of Congress Subject Headings (see more below) is a good way to find books about the Jewish press in a specific time or place. You can also do a keyword search in one of our databases.
Does the Dorot Jewish Division hold directories or bibliographies of Jewish newspapers?
Yes. These are typically limited by date or geographic location. See Suggested Sources to the right for specific examples, and Suggested Subject Headings below for subject headings that contain bibliographies and directories on the Jewish press.
I can only read English, but most of the results of my catalog search are in another language. Can I limit my search to just English-language sources?
Yes. You can limit your search to a specific language in our Research Catalog's Advanced Search. This option only allows you to search for items in one language at a time. If you'd like to see items in, e.g., Spanish and French, begin a search without selecting a specific language and then click on "Refine Search" under the search bar to filter by language, date, or material type.
How do I request books?
In the Research Catalog, many books have a button that says "Request for On-site use." Click on this button to request delivery of a book to our reading room. You will be prompted to log in with your library card.
If the book you want to see does not have a "Request" button, you can request it by emailing us at dorotjewish@nypl.org, or by filling out a paper call slip if you are already in our reading room. If you don't have a library card, you'll need to apply for one first.
I found a book I want to read. Can I take it home?
Books from NYPL's research collections can only be used in the library. We will be happy to help you make arrangements to read your book in our reading room.
I found a scholarly book that I want to read, but NYPL does not own it. Can you get it for me?
If NYPL does not hold any copies of the item you need, Interlibrary Services and Document Delivery ("interlibrary loan") will attempt to borrow a copy from another library. See their FAQs here.
I can't come to the library myself. Can I request a scan from a book?
Yes. If you have an up-to-date NYPL card, staff will scan up to one chapter of a book as part of our free Scan & Deliver service. Scans of eligible items may be requested by clicking on the "Request" button in the Research Catalog.
If you are looking for secondary sources about the Jewish press, Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) can be helpful. These are standardized terms that cataloguers use to categorize materials in their collections. They typically include multiple levels, with each level becoming more specific or further limiting a search by geography.
It can be difficult to browse by LCSH if you do not already have one in mind. Although all LCSH use standardized words and phrases, these phrases sometimes appear in different combinations, making them difficult to predict. The standardized language used in the LCSH may also not match how you might colloquially refer to a type of publication.
Still, doing a keyword search using your own words can be helpful. Let's say we did a search for "Jewish press united states" and then clicked on an item that looked relevant. Scroll down until you see the "Details" section, which will show you which subject headings the item is catalogued under, as seen in the screenshot below. You can then click on a subject heading to view more items under that category.
See the next tab in this box for examples of subject headings to use.
The below subject headings may contain both secondary sources about Jewish newspapers, and the newspapers themselves. "Periodicals" is a broader term than "newspapers" and can also refer to magazines and other serial publications. When you're browsing this subject heading, be aware that many of the results you see will not be newspapers.
Place names can also be omitted from the below (e.g. Jewish periodicals -- Bibliography). You can also try adding "Bibliography" or "Directory" to any of the subject headings below. I provided a few examples of such headings.
This list is not exhaustive, but many relevant subject headings will fall under the following formats:
Jewish newspapers -- [Place]
e.g. Jewish newspapers -- Poland
e.g. Jewish newspapers -- New York (State) -- New York
Jewish periodicals -- [Place]
e.g. Jewish periodicals -- Africa, North
[Language] newspapers -- [Place]
e.g. Polish newspapers -- Israel
e.g. Ladino newspapers -- Turkey
[Language] periodicals -- [Place]
e.g. Yiddish periodicals -- Brazil
Jews -- [Place] -- Newspapers
e.g. Jews -- Argentina -- Newspapers
e.g. Jews -- New York (State) -- New York -- Newspapers
Jews -- [Place] -- Periodicals
e.g. Jews -- China -- Periodicals
Jews -- [Place] -- Intellectual life
e.g. Jews -- Mexico -- Intellectual life
Jewish periodicals -- [Place] -- Bibliography
e.g. Jewish periodicals -- Romania -- Bibliography
Jews -- [Place] -- Periodicals -- Bibliography
e.g. Jews -- Canada -- Periodicals -- Bibliography
Jewish newspapers -- [Place] -- Directories
e.g. Jewish newspapers -- United States -- Directories
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