Soncino Press is a Jewish publishing company based in the United Kingdom that has published a variety of books of Jewish interest, most notably English translations and commentaries to the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

and

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Orthodox and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

synagogues until the advent of other translations beginning in the 1990s.

Acceptance

The Soncino translations and commentaries are based, largely, on traditional Jewish sources. They accept the Bible as divine and the biblical history of

The Exodus The Exodus (Hebrew: יציאת מצרים, ''Yeẓi’at Miẓrayim'': ) is the founding myth of the Israelites whose narrative is spread over four books of the Torah (or Pentateuch, corresponding to the first five books of the Bible), namely E ...

from Egypt and the giving of the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

biblical Mount Sinai Mount Sinai (, ''Har Sīnay'') is the mountain at which the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God, according to the Book of Exodus in the Hebrew Bible. In the Book of Deuteronomy, these events are described as having transpired at Mount ...

as true, and had been generally regarded as Orthodox. Nonetheless, they tended to have some input from Christian and modern academic scholarship and tended not to treat rabbinical

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

and

Aggadah Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism ...

as fact. The ''Terms and Abbreviations'' page lists

Authorized Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of ...

and

Revised Version The Revised Version (RV) or English Revised Version (ERV) of the Bible is a late 19th-century British revision of the King James Version. It was the first and remains the only officially authorised and recognised revision of the King James Versio ...

, both of which include

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

; the latter term is found in Soncino's Talmud. These works, which passed their half century over two decades ago, have seen their acceptance change. As Orthodox and Conservative Judaism have diverged in recent decades, they have tended to move to different Bible translations reflecting their increasingly different theological viewpoints. * Orthodox Jews are now more likely to use

ArtScroll ArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., a publishing company based in Rahway, New Jersey. Rabbi Nosson Scherman is the general editor. ArtScroll ...

translations, which shun academic scholarship and treat

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

ic and

Aggadic Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism ...

accounts, as well as the Biblical text, as literally true. * Conservative Judaism has moved in the opposite direction, publishing a commentary, the Etz Hayim Bible, which is considerably more liberal in tone, based on academic sources that accept the documentary hypothesis as the Bible's origin and question the accuracy of its accounts of Jewish history. Nonetheless, Soncino books still retain a following, particularly among traditional Conservative and some Modern Orthodox Jews in the English-speaking world. A full page was devoted in ''The Jewish Press'' to the ''Soncino Classics Collection'' CD-ROM in 2003. No popular Jewish translation with Soncino's intermediate approach, combining traditionalist outlook and exegesis with openness towards Christian and academic scholarship, has appeared since. Additionally, because the Soncino publications were generally released without copyright notices at a time when notices were mandatory for establishment of

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...

, the works were generally considered as

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired ...

. Legally, however, this is no longer the case in the United States since 1994.In the United Kingdom, and other contemporary signatories to the

Berne Convention The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, was an international assembly held in 1886 in the Swiss city of Bern by ten European countries with the goal to agree on a set of leg ...

, a copyright notice was never required to establish copyright. In the United States copyright for such works originally published overseas was re-established by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA) of 1994. Copyright was restored for works still in copyright in their native countries as of 1 January 1996.

The term of copyright in the UK at the time was life + 70 years, so U.S. copyright was restored for all UK-originating works whose authors were still alive on 1 January 1926 or were born after that date. Under current U.S. law the works will now remain in copyright until the end of a period of 95 years from first publication.

History

The firm is named for the

Soncino family The Soncino family (משפחת שונצינו) is an Italian Ashkenazi Jewish family of printers, deriving its name from the town of Soncino in the duchy of Milan. It traces its descent through a Moses of Fürth, who is mentioned in 1455, back to ...

of Hebrew book printing pioneers. Based in Northern Italy, this family published the first-ever printed book in Hebrew type in 1483 (an edition of the Talmud tractate Berakhot) and continued a string of printed editions of the Hebrew Bible, Talmud, and various rabbinical works until about 1547.

Soncino Books of the Bible

The ''Soncino Books of the Bible'' is a set of

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

) in fourteen volumes, published by the Soncino Press. The first volume to appear was

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

in 1945, and the last was

Chronicles Chronicles may refer to: * ''Books of Chronicles'', in the Bible * Chronicle, chronological histories * ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', a novel series by C. S. Lewis * ''Holinshed's Chronicles'', the collected works of Raphael Holinshed * '' The Idh ...

in 1952. The series was edited by Abraham Cohen and the commentary was written by several rabbis including Cohen himself, Eli Cashdan,

Harry Freedman Harry Freedman (''Henryk Frydmann''), (April 5, 1922 – September 16, 2005) was a Canadians, Canadian composer, English hornist, and music educator of Polish birth. He wrote a significant amount of symphony, symphonic works, including the scores ...

and Israel Wolf Slotki (identified as I. W. Slotki) (1884–1973). Each volume contains the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

and English texts of the Hebrew Bible in parallel columns, with a running commentary below them. The Hebrew text in Psalms was originally that of Christian D. Ginsburg's earlier (1894) edition.See preface to Psalms This led to protests, since Ginsburg had converted to Christianity, so subsequent volumes used a (completely reset) copy of Meir Letteris' second (1866) edition of the Hebrew text. Both Hebrew texts are scrupulous versions of the

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...

, so the differences between them are small. The English translation is the

Jewish Publication Society of America Version The Jewish Publication Society of America Version (JPS) of the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible) was the first Bible translation published by the Jewish Publication Society of America and the first translation of the Tanakh into English by a committee ...

of 1917.

First edition

The commentary in the first edition of the series drew mainly upon classical Jewish sources (see below), but also drew upon the best of early-to-mid 20th century Bible scholarship, including the work of Christian expositors. The ''Soncino

Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages, indigenous languages of California See also *Chumash traditional n ...

'', covering the

and

Haftara The ''haftara'' or (in Ashkenazic pronunciation) ''haftorah'' (alt. ''haftarah, haphtara'', he, הפטרה) "parting," "taking leave", (plural form: ''haftarot'' or ''haftoros'') is a series of selections from the books of ''Nevi'im'' ("Prop ...

s, first published in 1947 and frequently reprinted has only the views of the most important medieval Jewish commentators, such as Abraham ibn Ezra,

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

Rashbam Samuel ben Meir (Troyes, c. 1085 – c. 1158), after his death known as "Rashbam", a Hebrew acronym for RAbbi SHmuel Ben Meir, was a leading French Tosafist and grandson of Shlomo Yitzhaki, "Rashi". Biography He was born in the vicinity of Tro ...

Ramban Ramban can refer to: * Nachmanides (1194 – ), Catalan rabbi and philosopher also known as RaMBaN * Cave of the Ramban in Jerusalem * Ramban, Jammu and Kashmir, a town in India ** Ramban district, an administrative unit in India ** Ramban (Vid ...

Sforno Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno (Obadja Sforno, Hebrew: עובדיה ספורנו) was an Italian rabbi, Biblical commentator, philosopher and physician. A member of the Sforno family, he was born in Cesena about 1475 and died in Bologna in 1550. Bi ...

, Radak, and Ralbag (Gersonides), but no modern or Christian source references, so as not to duplicate the book ''The Pentateuch and Haftarahs'' edited by

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

Joseph H. Hertz Joseph Herman Hertz (25 September 1872 – 14 January 1946) was a British Rabbi and biblical scholar. He held the position of Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom from 1913 until his death in 1946, in a period encompassing both world wars and the ...

, also published by the Soncino Press.

Second edition

A second edition of all books other than the ''Soncino Chumash'' appeared in the 1990s, edited by Rabbi Abraham J. Rosenberg, (a disciple of Rabbi

Moshe Feinstein Moshe Feinstein ( he, משה פײַנשטיין; Lithuanian pronunciation: ''Moshe Faynshteyn''; en, Moses Feinstein; March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986) was an American Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and ''posek'' (authority on ''halakha''—J ...

) who had previously done a Bible commentary for

Judaica Press Judaica Press is an Orthodox Jewish publishing house founded in New York City in 1963 by S. Goldman, and then taken over by his son Jack Goldman in response to the growing demand for books of scholarship in the English-speaking Jewish world. In ...

and a

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Tor ...

commentary for

Artscroll ArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., a publishing company based in Rahway, New Jersey. Rabbi Nosson Scherman is the general editor. ArtScroll ...

. In this edition, all work from historical scholars and Christian bible commentators has been removed; it has been replaced by additional references to the

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

literature and medieval Jewish commentators.

Soncino Talmud

The Soncino Talmud was published from 1935–1952, under the general editorship of Rabbi Isidore Epstein. The translation is distributed both on its own (18 volumes) and in a parallel text edition (35 volumes), in which each English page faces the

Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated i ...

/Hebrew page; it was available also on CD-ROM, as below. The work provides a precise and concise literal translation, David S Farkas (2021)
"In Praise of the Soncino Talmud"
seforimblog.com.

Gil Student Gil Ofer Student (born August 8, 1972) is the Book Editor of the Orthodox Union's Jewish Action magazine; former Managing Editor of OU Press, and an Orthodox Jewish blogger who writes about the interface between different facets of Judaism, spe ...

(2012)
"Tackling the Talmud: One Daf at a Time"
''

Jewish Action ''Jewish Action'' is an American Orthodox Jewish magazine published by the Orthodox Union. The magazine generally presents a Modern Orthodox viewpoint, and covers "topics of interest to an international Orthodox Jewish audience... ncludingarticle ...

''. with detailed footnotes referencing the classical commentaries. Each of the six ''Sedarim'' has its own introduction, and the introduction to each of the individual Tractates includes a topic-summary for each chapter. Each volume had its own translator, drawn from a group of Orthodox Anglo-Jewish Rabbis and scholars (these include Rabbis H. Freedman and Eli Cashdan; see for a listing); Rabbi Epstein reviewed each translation, to an extent ensuring consistency in form and notation, and provided footnotes and cross references as required. Rabbi Raymond Apple (1972)
Rabbi Dr Isidore Epstein – a tribute
/ref> Subsequent to publishing the translation, Soncino released an index in a separate volume; a translation of the

Minor Tractates The minor tractates (Hebrew: מסכתות קטנות, ''masechtot qetanot'') are essays from the Talmudic period or later dealing with topics about which no formal tractate exists in the Mishnah. They may thus be contrasted to the Tosefta, whose ...

was also published, as was a translation of the Mishnah, with detailed notes, for those tractates without ''

Gemara The Gemara (also transliterated Gemarah, or in Yiddish Gemo(r)re; from Aramaic , from the Semitic root ג-מ-ר ''gamar'', to finish or complete) is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah ...

''. The work was used by beginning students and laymen through the 1980's, although has largely been supplanted by the Schottenstein (

) and Steinsaltz ( Koren) translations. One observation, is that relative to these the Soncino "has limited value in helping one understand the ... progression of ideas at large," functioning rather as a translation; the index is still considered valuable.

Translations of classical works

Among many books on Jewish topics, both translations and original works, Soncino Press has also published a number of other classical works, including the following. Soncino's ''Midrash Rabbah'' comprises a translation, with brief commentaries in its footnotes. The Soncino Haggadah is a translation and commentary on the Haggadah by

Cecil Roth Cecil Roth (5 March 1899 – 21 June 1970) was a British Jewish historian. He was editor in chief of ''Encyclopaedia Judaica''. Life Roth was born in Dalston, London, on 5 March 1899. His parents were Etty and Joseph Roth, and Cecil was the young ...

with the Hebrew text of Koren Publishers. * Soncino

Midrash Rabbah Midrash Rabba or Midrash Rabbah can refer to part of or the collective whole of specific aggadic midrashim on the books of the Torah and the Five Megillot, generally having the term "Rabbah" (), meaning "great," as part of their name. These midr ...

* Soncino

Zohar The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...

* Soncino

Haggadah The Haggadah ( he, הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each J ...

CD-ROM – Soncino Classics Collection

Davka Davka Corporation is a software company specializing in applications related to Jewish history, customs and traditions and the Hebrew language. Founded in 1982, Davka is notable as the publisher of several early games for the Apple II series of c ...

released a CD-ROM, Soncino Classics Collection, that contains: * Hebrew and English of

Tanach The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

Hebrew Publishing Company Hebrew Publishing Company is an American Jewish publishing house based in New York City. The company publishes a range of Hebrew prayerbooks and other religious works, as well as many Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ...

Kehot Publication Society Kehot Publication Society is the publishing division of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. History Kehot was established in 1941 by the sixth Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn. In 1942, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak appointed his so ...

Notes

References

External links

Soncino Press website
{{Authority control Bible translators Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Hebrew Bible studies Jewish printing and publishing Orthodox Judaism Series of books Study Bibles