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Jewish Studies

A Subject Guide to research in all fields related to Jewish Studies, on campus and beyond

ASU Judaica Collections

The Jewish Studies collections at ASU include scholarly literature monographs and journals, literary works that represent different aspects of Jewish life, and documentary and feature films. Strategic acquisitions in specific areas are made in support of faculty interests, such as Jewish philosophy, Eastern European Jewish Studies, Holocaust Studies, or Hellenistic Jewish literature. 

Humanities and social sciences books are located in Hayden (4th floor), Fletcher, and the Downtown libraries; art-related books are in the Design and the Arts Library, science-related books are in Noble Library, Music materials are in the Music Library, and physical film formats (DVDs) are in Hayden Library (lower level). Please check the catalog for locations and requests (whole books or chapter scans).

Named and distinctive collections:  

  • Edward and Mae Zipperstein Collectionnamed after its donors, who gifted the largest book collection ever given to ASU Library. The collection is particularly strong in Judaism, Biblical Studies, Jewish history, Jewish sermons, and history of Zionism and Hebrew. Most of the materials are interfiled with the open stack collections.
  • Norman Drachler Collection: focused on Jewish education and separation of church and state. Dr. Drachler (1912–2000) led the Detroit school system as superintendent (late 1960s) and established the Institute for Educational Leadership at George Washington University and Stanford University. The collection embraces many rarities, including dozens of 17th and 18th religious tracts and pamphlets. 
  • The Kehillah (Community) Collection: purchased thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor. The collection includes hundreds of books, photo albums and pamphlets telling the story of local, national and regional Jewish communities from around the world, including European countries; Muslim lands and the Horn of Africa (Ethiopia, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, General North Africa, Arab Lands); the Americas (United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Other Latin America & Caribbean); South- and East-Asia; and Sub-Saharan Africa (South Africa, China, India, other Asian countries). Most of the materials are in open stacks, with rarities in distinctive collections.
  • Marvin Fisher Collection: named after its donor, former chair of ASU's Department of English. The collection includes over hundred photographs, many of them in the form of postcards given to Dr. Fisher’s mother, Helena Goldman. The photos (pre-1930) were taken in Poland, mostly in the towns of Gostynin, Gombin or Kutno.
  • The Yizkor Book Collection: over 250 Holocaust memorial books complied jointly by survivors of Eastern European Jewish towns (shtetls). These books commemorate Jewish towns eradicated by the Nazis via personal memoirs, photos and drawings, usually in more than one language (Yiddish, Hebrew and English). Yizkor books serve as living monuments for those who perished and provide rich primary sources for scholars. This collection is part of ASU's distinctive collections.
  • Gerda Weissman Klein and Kurt Klein Papers: drafts, reader correspondence, and other materials documenting Gerda Klein's All But My Life (1957). Also included are personal correspondence, biographical information, and other materials.
  • Joe Lockard Collection of American and Postcolonial Literature in Hebrew Translation (200 books): donated by ASU Associate Professor and Jewish Studies affiliate. All the books are in open stacks.
  • Yoram Mor Collection was donated by a Holocaust survivor who fought in the War of Independence in 1948 and was among the founders of Kibbutz Sede-Boker in Israel. The collection comprises maps, tour guides, IDF brochures and Hebrew song booklets. These materials are in ASU's distinctive collections.
  • The IsraPulp Collection (1930s–1970s) is a research collection, the only repository of Hebrew popular literature outside of Israel. The collection (established 2004) includes serialized fiction in the form of pamphlets and softcover pocket books, in genres such as comic books, Westerns, detective stories, science fiction, romance, crime stories—all mass-produced for distribution in newsstands. The now-rare pulps were widely read but never systematically collected in libraries, although they represent facets of Israeli culture as much as canonical literature does. This collection is one of ASU's distinctive collections.

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