 Masthead of Ha-Tsfirah, 27 February 1862 | |
| Founder(s) | Chaim Selig Slonimski |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1862, 1874 |
| Language | Hebrew |
| Ceased publication | 1931 |
| Country | Poland |
| Free online archives | Editions from the Historical Jewish Press |
Ha-Tsfira (Hebrew: הצפירה) was a Hebrew-language newspaper published in Poland in 1862 and 1874–1931.[1]
The first issue of Ha-Tsfira appeared in Warsaw, Congress Poland, in 1862, edited by Chaim Selig Slonimski.[2] Ha-Tsfira was the first Hebrew paper with an emphasis on the sciences.[2]
The paper closed down after six months when Slonimski became principal of the rabbinical seminary in Zhytomyr, and the government began censorship of Hebrew books.[3]
It reopened in 1874 in Berlin, and began to be published in Warsaw in September 1875. Coverage of news and politics was introduced after the First Zionist Congress.[2] From 1886, the paper began to appear as a daily. The driving spirit behind this change was Slonimski's assistant, Nachum Sokolov, who was later appointed editor-in-chief.[2][4]
Ha-Tsfira became part of a network of important Hebrew periodicals, among them Ha-Shahar, Ha-Asif, Ha-Shiloaḥ. Some of the greatest names in early modern Hebrew literature published their work in the paper, including Mendele Mocher Sforim, Y. L. Peretz, and Sholem Aleichem.[2]
