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KTAV Publishing House is a publishing house located in Brooklyn, New York.[2] Ktav means "to write" in Hebrew.[2][3]
Founded in 1921, it has been among the most notable publishers of Judaica and Jewish educational texts since the middle of the 20th century. In 2004, Ktav was designated a Parents' Choice Award-Winning company.
Ktav Publishing House was founded in 1921, and took on its name in the late 1920s when it began publishing notebooks.[3][4] Sol and Bernie Scharfstein took over Ktav from their parents Asher and Feiga (Fannie), becoming co-owners.[1][3][5][6]
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.[3] 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.[2][5]
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).[2][3]
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.[3] It published approximately 25 new books every year in 1992, and 15 or 16 new books every year in 2008.[2][3] Some of Ktav's books were anticipated to sell only a few hundred copies, while others were anticipated to sell in greater numbers.[2]
In 2004, Ktav was designated a Parents' Choice Award-Winning company.[7]
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.[1][6][8]
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