Writings on Modern Hebrew Type Design

The aim of this bibliography is to compile literature on the subject of modern Hebrew type design in English. Titles in other languages are only included if they were not translated. «modern» in this context refers to the time since the beginning of the secular revival of the Hebrew language around 1900.

Type specimen and templates for lettering and calligraphy were added if they contain explanatory text.

An Asteriks indicates that a title is covered by Sivan Toledo’s Anotated Bibliography of Hebrew Typesetting (2001).

General reflections on the subject

Adler, Jacques: «Die Renaissance des Hebräischen», in: Frank, Rafael: Über hebräische Typen und Schriftarten, Berlin 1926, S. 33–39.

Avrin, Leila: «Modern Hebrew Calligraphy & Calligraphers», Calligraphy Idea Exchange, 1986, No. 1, pp. 43–54.

 ——— : «The Art of the Hebrew Book in the Twentieth Century», in: Gold, Leonard Singer (ed.): A Sign and a Witness. 2000 Years of Hebrew Books and Illuminated Manuscripts, New York 1988, pp. 125–139.*

Bil’ak, Peter / Sahar, Michal: New Types (Typotheque Specimen No. 15), The Hague 2017.

Brüggemann, Katrin: Alefbet – Hebrew Graphic Design, 2014 (Thesis, Fachhochschule Mainz). [unpublished]

David, Ismar: Our Calligraphic Heritage, New York 1979.

——— : The Hebrew Letter. Calligraphic Variations, New Jersey / London 1990.

Donner, Batia: [The History of Graphic Design in Israel – Between Idea and Form], Ramat Gan 2016. [Hebrew] [PDF]

Eldar, Guy: «The Visual Type as an Image of a People. Hebrew Typography throughout History and its Representation of Jewish and Israeli Identity», in: Giansante, Rocco / Goldberg, Luna (eds.): Imagined Israel(s). Representations of the Jewish state in the arts, Leiden 2023, pp. 19–39.

Frank, Rafael: «Über hebräische Typen und Schriftarten», Archiv für Buchgewerbe 48, 1911, pp. 20–25.* [PDF (Reprint, Berlin 1926)]

Davidow, Ari: «Digital Hebrew in a Monolingual World», in: Sassoon, Rosemary (ed.): Computers and Typography, Oxford 1993, pp. 53–68.

Ezer, Oded: «Eclectic Unity. Discovering the New Generation of Israeli Graphic Designers», Typo, 2007, Nr. 25, pp. 2-9.

Frank, Herman: [Jewish Typography and Bookmaking Art], New York 1938. [Yiddish] [PDF]

Friedlaender, Henri: «Modern Hebrew Type Faces», Typographica, 1959, No. 16, pp. 4–9.*

——— : «Modern Hebrew Lettering», Ariel, 1962, No. 4, pp. 6–15.*

———: «Geschriebene Schrift – gedruckte Schrift», in: Guggenheim-Weil, Susi (ed.): Hebräische Schrift. Von der Steinschrift zum Poster, Zürich 1976, n. p.

Hofshi, Yehuda / Iontef, Yanek: «The Design of Contemporary Typefaces in Israel», Typo, 2007, No. 25, pp. 10–19.

Hofshi, Yehuda: «[Everything is Evident. Stylistic Change and Logo Appearance]», in: Horowitz, Michael / Prath, Amram (eds.): [Logo & Symbol in Israel], Nes Ziona 2004, pp. 14–27. [Hebrew]

——— : «Fonts: Evolution vs. Revolution», in: Ezer, Oded / Klanten, Robert (eds.): Oded Ezer – The Typographer’s Guide to the Galaxy, Berlin 2009, pp. 8–15.

Iontef, Yanek: [Tel Aviv. Historical Signage Research], Tel Aviv 2021. [Hebrew]

Israel Export Institute, Book and Printing Center (ed.): Israel Presses Typeface Directory, Tel Aviv 1972.

Lavi-Turkenich, Liron / Stern, Adi: «Hebrew», in: Wittner, Ben / Thoma, Sascha / Hartmann, Timm (eds.): Bi-Sriptual, Salenstein 2019, pp. 244–248.

Leaf, Reuben: Hebrew Alphabets. From 400 B.C. to Our Days, New York 1950.

Lubell, Stephen: «Hebrew Typography – From the Sacred to the Mundane», Typo/graphic Journal, 1990, No. 41, pp. 16–23.*

——— : «Bilingualism in the Hebrew Text», Visible Language 27, 1993, No. 1, pp. 162–204.* [PDF]

Messner, Philipp: «Hebrew Type Design in the Context of the Book Art Movement and New Typography», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design, Jerusalem 2016, pp. 21–33.

——— : «Chronology. Hebrew Typeface Design in the Era of Lead Typesetting», in: Ibid., pp. 306–311.

Molcho, Ilan: [Hebrew Typography], Jerusalem 1980. [Hebrew]

Prais, Simon: Design Considerations Affecting the Simultaneous Use of Latin and Hebrew Typography, 1985 (Thesis, Manchester Polytechnic).* [unpublished]

Rothschild, K[alman]: Hebräische Quadratschrift, Berlin 1930. [PDF]

Schonfield, Hugh J.: The New Hebrew Typography, London 1932.* [PDF]

Spitzer, Moshe: «Typography», in: Encyclopaedia Judaica, Bd. 15, Jerusalem / New York 1972, pp. 1480–1488.

——— : «The Development of Hebrew Lettering», Ariel, 1974, No. 37, pp. 4–28.*

Stern, Adi: Some Guidelines and Recommendations for the Design of a Hebrew Book Typeface, 2003 (Thesis, University of Reading). [PDF]

——— : «Archaismus und Neuerung. Hebräische Schriftgestaltung im ersten Jahrzehnt nach der Staatsgründung», in: LeVitte Harten, Doreet / Zalmona, Yigal (eds.): Die neuen Hebräer, Berlin 2005, pp. 191–196.

——— : «Hebrew – An Old New Script», in: Typo, 2007, No. 25, pp. 24–31.

——— : «The Design of Hebrew Type in the First Decade of Israeli Statehood», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design, Jerusalem 2016, pp. 35–67.

Stern, G[ideon]: «Neue hebräische Druckschriften», Typographische Monatsblätter, 1953, No. 2, pp. 58–59.

——— : «Hebräische Druckschriften 1963», Typographische Monatsblätter, 1963, No. 10, pp. 606–607.

Tamari, Ittai Joseph: New Hebrew Letter Type, Tel Aviv 1985.*

——— : «Decipherability, legibility and readability of modern Hebrew typefaces», in: Morris, Robert A. / André, Jacques (eds.): Raster Imaging and Digital Typography, Cambridge 1991, pp. 128–136.*

——— : Hebräische Schriftgestaltung in Deutschland von der Jahrhundertwende bis zum Ausbruch des Zweiten Weltkrieges unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der ‹Frank-Rühl›-Lettern, Egelsbach 1994.*

Toby, L[udwig] F[ritz]: Hebrew Artistic Lettering, Tel Aviv 1951.* [Flickr-Album, (revised and enlarged version, Tel Aviv 1960)]

Yardeni, Ada: The Book of Hebrew Script. History, Paleography, Script Styles, Calligraphy & Design, Jerusalem 1997.*

Writings on single Protagonists / designs

Adler, Cyrus: «A New Hebrew Press», Monotype: A Journal of Composing-Room Efficiency, Nov./Dez., 1921, 1–3.

Avni, Shani: David Hebrew. The First Multi-Style Hebrew Typeface Family by Ismar David, 2016 (Thesis, University of Reading). [PDF]

——— : «Ismar David’s Quest for Original Hebrew Typographic Signs», Visible Language 53, 2019, No. 1, pp. 50–75. [PDF]

Avrin, Leila: «People of the Book: Elyahu Korén», Israel Bibliophiles Newsletter, 1986, No. 6, pp. 1–5.

Beletsky, Misha: «Zvi Narkiss and Hebrew Type Design», in: Berry, John D. (ed): Language Culture Type. International Design in the Age of Unicode, New York 2002, pp. 91–105.

Berry, John D.: «Biotypography», in: Typo, 2007, Nr. 25, pp. 20–23. [On the work of Oded Ezer]

Brandshaft, Helen: The Work of Ismar David, Rochester 2005.

Carter, H[arry] G.: «Making a Printing-Type», The Palestine Post, 14.12.1945, p. 7.

Coakley, J[ames] F[arwell]: The Hebrew Types of the Jericho Press. A Specimen with Notes, Ely 2010.

Ezer, Oded / Klanten, Robert (eds.): Oded Ezer – The Typographer’s Guide to the Galaxy, Berlin 2009.

Friedlaender, Henri: The Making of Hadassah Hebrew, Jerusalem 1975.*

Halevy, Lahav: «Letter Head», Programma, 2009, No. 1, pp. 26–32. [On the work of Yanek Iontef]

Iontef, Yanek: «The Typographical Styles in the Oeuvre of the Shamir Brothers», in: Donner, Batia (ed.): Hebrew Graphics, Shamir Brothers Studio, Tel Aviv 1999, pp. 58–60.

Katzenstein, H[ans] J[acob]: Dr. Moshe Spitzer – Books, Typography, Design, Jerusalem 1981.

Koren, Eliayhu: «[The Letter as Element in the Design of Sacred Books]», in: Spitzer, Moshe (ed.): [A Letter Is Forever. A Collection of Papers on the Design of the Hebrew Letter], Jerusalem 1989/90, pp. 85–90.* [Hebrew]

Lavi-Turkenich, Liron: From Frank Rühl to Peninim. A Story of People, Type and Technology, 2013 (Thesis, University of Reading). [unpublished]

——— : «Franzisca Baruch. Lettering: Drawing Letters for a Variety of Purposes», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design, Jerusalem 2016, pp. 219–231.

——— : «Henri Friedlaender. Shalom, Hadar, and Aviv: New Typefaces», in: Ibid., pp. 297–305.

Lubell, Stephen: «Joseph Tscherkassky – Orientalist and Typefounder», Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 71, 1996, pp. 222–239.

——— : «The Hebrew Typeface Designs of Zvi Narkis», Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 78, 2003, pp. 217–233.

Lüthi, Karl: «[Josef] Kaplans reformierte Schrift», in: Idem: Hebräisch in der Schweiz, Bern 1926, pp. 12–19.

Messner, Philipp: «Von der Form der Sprache: Hebräische Renaissance und typografischer Diskurs in Deutschland zur Zeit der Weimarer Republik», in: Bürger, Karin / Sonder, Ines / Wallmeier, Ursula (eds.): Soncino-Gesellschaft der Freunde des jüdischen Buches. Ein Beitrag zur Kulturgeschichte, Berlin 2014, pp. 41–74.

——— : «Franzisca Baruch. The 1921 Passover Haggadah: Lettering by Franzisca Baruch, Illustrations by Jacob Steinhardt», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design, Jerusalem 2016, pp. 187–201.

——— : «Henri Friedlaender. 1922 to 1932: Training and Apprenticeship in Germany», in: Ibid., pp. 257–265.

——— : «[Franzisca Baruch. ‹Schocken-Baruch›: A New Hebrew Booktype]», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): [New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design], Jerusalem 2015, pp. 255–238. [Hebrew]

Narkiss, Zvi / Gonczarowski, Jakob / Hofshi, Yehuda: «On the Design of Hebrew Book Fonts by Zvi Narkiss», Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 92 , 2017, pp. 224–227.

Oron, Asher: «[Designing a New Hebrew Typeface]», in: Spitzer, Moshe (ed.): [A Letter Is Forever. A Collection of Papers on the Design of the Hebrew Letter], Jerusalem 1989/90, pp. 90–95.* [Hebrew]

Reich, Ronny / Sussmann, Ayala: «The Hebrew Episode in the Typography of Eric Gill», Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 72, 1997, pp. 305–308.

Shva, Shlomo: «People of the Book: Henri Friedlaender», Israel Bibliophiles Newsletter, 1986, No. 6, pp. 6–9.

Soifer, Israel: «The Pioneer Work of Maurice Spitzer», Penrose Annual 1970, pp. 129–142.*

——— : «Henri Friedlaender: Book Designer», Ariel, 1973, No. 33/34, pp. 131–140.*

Stern, Adi: «Henri Friedlaender. Hadassah: A Modern Hebrew Typeface», in: Wardi, Ada (ed.): New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design, Jerusalem 2016, pp. 267–288.

Stern, Gideon / Friedlaender, Henri: «People of the Book: Franzisca Baruch», Israel Bibliophiles Newsletter, 1984, No. 4, pp. 1–4.

Szydłowska, Agata / Misiak, Marian: «Chaim. owoc wielokutturowej Warszawy», in: Idem: Paneuropa, Kometa, Hel. Szkice z historii projektowania liter w Polsce, Kraków 2015, S. 76–81.

Tamari, Ittai Joseph: «‹Kusari-Hebräisch› – der Anfang einer Druckschrift von Henri Friedlaender und Paul Koch», Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 67, 1992, pp. 309–318.

——— : «Rafael Frank und seine hebräischen Druckschriften», in: Unger, Manfred (ed.): Judaica Lipsiensia, Leipzig 1994, pp. 70–78.*

Wardi, Ada: «[Moshe Spitzer. The Creation of the ‹Jerusalem Typefoundry›]», in: Idem (ed.): [New Types – Three Pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design], Jerusalem 2015, pp. 174–193. [Hebrew]