How to Create a Hebrew Reader? Olam Katan (1901–1904) and the Young Hebrew Reading Public

Abstract

Olam Katan [‘Small world’] was the first illustrated Hebrew periodical for Jewish children, published first in Vienna (1901–1902), then in Cracow (1902–1904). Although the periodical reached three continents, the overwhelming majority of its readers were located in Eastern Europe. This article analyses the editors’ efforts to create an attractive yet educational magazine for young readers as a part of a much bigger enterprise: raising a generation of Hebrew users and contributing to the revival of Hebrew. Through a content analysis of the periodical, I reconstruct not only the editors’ strategy to reach children and young readers but also the obstacles they faced in the process. I also seek to determine what the role of adults was in the process of children’s Hebrew education in general, and in mediating the content of this Hebrew periodical in particular.