Free Library Resources
Resource Tools
Free Web Research Databases
Find freely accessible Judaica databases. This list is being updated. If you find links that are not working let us know at [email protected]. If you have suggestions of links to add, send them along.
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Bibliography of the Hebrew Book
A comprehensive bibliography of approximately 90% of books printed in the Hebrew Language between 1470 and 1960.
The Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) includes many full-text, quality-controlled scholarly journals. There are more than 13,600 journals included in the directory which cover the areas of religion, philosophy, social sciences, gender studies, education, anthropology and more.
A database of articles, books and documents on a broad range of education-related issues, published by Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC), a federally funded national information system.
The Manuscripts Collection at the National Library of Israel
The manuscript collection at the National Library of Israel encompasses many different fields, including Jewish, Islamic and Christian manuscripts, as well as manuscripts dealing with non-religious subjects.
The Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts collects copies of all Hebrew manuscripts which exist in public and private collections in Israel and around the world. In addition, the Library collection includes a wide variety of non-Hebrew manuscripts, primarily of European origin, dating from the 9th century onwards.
Kabbalah: The Aramaic Language of the Zohar
A very useful blog for the introductory study of the Zohar with online dictionaries, grammars, and introductory commentaries.
RAMBI—The Index of Articles on Jewish Studies—is a selective bibliography of articles in the various fields of Jewish studies and in the study of Eretz Israel. Material listed in Rambi is compiled from thousands of periodicals and from collections of articles—in English, Hebrew, Yiddish and European languages—mainly from the holdings of the Jewish National and University Library in Israel.
Note that the catalog only lists references to the articles, not the articles themselves. Check in the Hebrew College A-Z Journal Search Tool (Ebsco) to see if the articles are available in full text online. If not, the library can order a copy of the article if you send an email to [email protected] with the full citation.
Talmud Subject Search. English language easy reference subject guide for the Talmud.
ULY – Union List of Yiddish – is a joint effort of four institutions with substantial Yiddish collection, YIVO (Institute for Jewish Research), YBC (Yiddish Book Center), NYPL (New York Public Library) and the National Library of Israel. The goal in this project is to create a full catalog of Yiddish publications, allow one search and link back to the different institutions and add a link to a digital copy where possible.
Classic Texts Online
Bible study resources, including resources for studying the weekly Torah portion. Sources include traditional biblical commentaries from The Rabbinic Bible – Mikraot Gedolot. Tools include an online bible concordance and the Brown Driver Briggs (B.D.B.) Biblical dictionary.
This website concentrates on the works of North American rabbis (in Hebrew, Yiddish, and English), and also contains thousands of older works. Over 65,000 out-of-print books and journals may be downloaded as PDF images. Published by the Society for the Preservation of Hebrew Books, this website is focused on preserving all Torah seforim ever printed.
Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg
In the early 1900s, Ginzberg collected midrashic and aggadic stories about the Bible and Biblical characters and wove them together into one narrative.
Mechon Mamre: Online Resources for Learning Torah
This online database offers free access to the texts of Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim (in Hebrew, Aramaic, English and parallel Hebrew and English); Rambam’s Mishneh Torah (in Hebrew); Mishnah, Tosefta, Talmud Yerushalmi, and Talmud Bavli (in Hebrew). For Tanakh verses with links to relevant references in the rabbinical literature (in Hebrew), go to Sifrut HaKodesh.
The mission of the Open Siddur Project is to liberate the creative content of Jewish spiritual practice as a collectively shared resource
This site is a collection of links to rabbinic primary texts, journals, dictionaries, and other study tools, maintained by Rabbi Dr. Richard Hidary is a professor of Judaic Studies at Yeshiva University Revel Graduate School.
Responsa for Today and Responsa from the Conservative/Masorti movement
Sefaria Living Library of Jewish Texts
Largest collection of Jewish canon material assembled in the public domain. Easy to navigate. Includes Hebrew and many English translation.
Snunit Maagar Kodesh collection of Hebrew texts.
Snunit – MikraNet (Hebrew) Tanakh (accessible by perek), Mishnah (by masechet), Tosefta (by masechet), Yerushalmi & Bavli (by daf and amud), Midrash Tanhuma, and Mishneh Torah (by sefer and perek)
Reformatted Soncino English Talmud and Monographs by Reuven Brauner
The complete Soncino English translation of the Talmud; Tzvee Zehavy’s books; and link to Jacob Neusner’s translation and commentary of the Jerusalem Talmud
Steinsaltz Koren English Talmud
The William Davidson Talmud, a free digital edition of the Babylonian Talmud with the English and Modern Hebrew translation by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, interlinked to major commentaries, biblical citations, Midrash, Kabbalah, Halakhah, and an ever-growing library of Jewish texts. Texts are being added on the Daf-Yomi schedule
Traditional Jewish texts with some classical commentary. Clearly organized. Community sourced. In Hebrew.
The Yiddish Book Center’s Steven Spielberg Digital Yiddish Library
More than 11,000 Yiddish titles are available to read online or download free of charge
Dictionaries and Concordances
The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project
The CAL is a text base of the Aramaic texts in all dialects from the earliest (9th Century BCE) through the 13th Century CE, currently with a database of approximately 2.5 million lexically parsed words, and an associated set of electronic tools for analyzing and manipulating the data, whose ultimate goal is the creation of a complete lexicon of the language. Note: It is a work in progress, not a completed dictionary. Accordingly, any citations for scholarly purposes should include the date when the data was found.
PDF vol. 1
PDF vol. 2
Marcus Jastrow’s A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushlami, and the Midrashic Literature
Dukhrana online searchable version of Volume I & II
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon.
The Enhanced Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon
With an appendix containing the Biblical Aramaic. Based on the lexicon of William Gesenius.
Over 16,000 abbreviations from Judaic sources and commentaries.
Online free simple spelling and grammar checker
Newspapers
Thanks to the Library of the Leo Baeck Institute, the German-Jewish newspaper is now available in completely digital format online, on the Center for Jewish History website
Compact Memory—Internetarchiv jüdischer Periodika (in German)
The portal Compact Memory comprises 500 German-Jewish journals and newspapers from the 18th through 20th centuries.
Historical Jewish Press (National Library of Israel)
Easily searchable database of Jewish newspapers from around the world. 45 Titles, 1843-1987.
Early Hebrew Newspapers
Jiddischer Drucke (Yiddish Prints)
This “Yiddish Prints” Collection of the Frankfurt University Library contains about 800 Yiddish books of all kinds, some of which are extremely rare books or unique editions. The texts were printed in Hebrew letters in Western, Central and Eastern Europe between the middle of the 16th century and the beginning of the 20th century.
Check here for Israeli newspapers including Ha’Aretz, Jerusalem Post, Ye’diot Achronot, Ma’ariv and more. Find current information on Israeli politics, events, business and entertainment in English, Hebrew and Russian.
Union List of Digitized Jewish Historic Newspapers and Periodicals
Comprehensive list of digitized Jewish newspapers (with Latin characters and Hebrew characters in separate tabs) and links to the sites that provide access to them
Music
Dartmouth Jewish Sound Archive
The Dartmouth Jewish Sound Archive offers thousands of fully searchable tracks of Jewish music and humor, including cantorial, Yiddish, Ladino, Israeli and Hasidic performances and radio broadcasts. Hebrew College’s extensive LP collection has also been digitized and included in the Archive. (QuickTime music player must be installed) Off-campus access is available: To access the Dartmouth Jewish Sound Archive from off-campus, go to the archive website and register on the top right of the page.
Recorded Sound Archives – Florida Atlantic University
Originally established in 2002 as a small project dedicated to the preservation of recorded Jewish music. The Project has collected more than 15,000 78-rpm phonograph records of Jewish music. The Project’s database includes Yiddish theater music, Hebrew folk music, Cantorial chants, Sephardic music and any other music.
To support and encourage scholarship and general enjoyment of Jewish music. The website provides an informational platform for activities by individuals and groups as well as academic and archival resources. Started by Judith Pinnolis.
Milken Archive of American Jewish Music
The Milken Archive was founded in 1990 to document, preserve, and disseminate the vast body of music that pertains to the American Jewish experience. The Milken Archive contains roughly 600 recorded works, more than 500 of them world premieres. Additionally, the Milken Archive’s collection contains over 800 hours of oral histories, nearly 50,000 photographs and historical documents, thousands of hours of video footage from recording sessions, interviews, and live performances, and an extensive set of program notes and essays that illuminate the music’s historical and cultural context.
Nusach database maintained by Mauro Braunstein. List of sites with mp3 and other recordings of nusach and Jewish liturgy.
A joint project of B’nai Jeshurun in New York and Invitation to Piyut in Israel, focused on revitalizing the global Jewish music of Piyut in the U.S. through spiritual practice, music and yoga.
The Piyut and Tefillah Website – From the Snunit Association
Database for traditional piyutim (religious poetry) with commentary and analysis. Over 7,000 files of piyutim; over 4,800 files of tefilot; over 2,500 files of cantillation.
The Virtual Cantor site is a free site that provides the Nusach for the entire year cycle including weekdays, Shabbat, Holidays, Yom Tov, High Holidays. The site is a volunteer work in progress.
Online Encyclopedias
Produced by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, this is a comprehensive encyclopedia of the Holocaust.
The 12-volume Jewish Encyclopedia was originally published from 1901–1906. This online version contains more than 15,000 unedited articles and illustrations from the original encyclopedia. Since the original work was completed almost 100 years ago, it does not cover a significant portion of modern Jewish history (e.g., the creation of Israel, the Holocaust, etc.).
Jewish Language Resource Website
This site, maintained by a global team of experts in their respective fields, includes a map of 18 Jewish languages, as well as descriptions and resources for their use and study.
The Yivo Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe
By Gershon David Hundert (Editor)
This unprecedented reference work systematically represents the history and culture of Eastern European Jews from their first settlement in the region to the present day. More than 1,800 alphabetical entries encompass a vast range of topics, including religion, folklore, politics, art, music, theater, language and literature, places, organizations, intellectual movements, and important figures. The Encyclopedia covers the region between Germany and the Ural Mountains, from which more than 2.5 million Jews emigrated to the United States between 1870 and 1920. In addition to the encyclopedia articles in the printed volumes, the website provides access to a collection of photographs, audio, video, digitized documents, as well as specific resources for educators and researchers.
Books: General Jewish History
Internet Jewish History Sourcebook
Fordham University’s immense corpus of links to full-text primary sources. Includes texts from the ancient to the modern period.
COJS: Center for Online Jewish Studies
The COJS is an online repository of rich digital images depicting primary resources from throughout Jewish history. “History 101” is the primary gateway to these images, which include detailed contexts.
The New York Public Library has over 700 Yizkor Books memorializing various towns in Europe, and nearly all of them are digitized. Most of them are in Hebrew or Yiddish, but there are some English translations available as well
Hebrew Literature Tools
Modern Hebrew Literature – a Bio-Bibliographical Lexicon.
The Academy of the Hebrew Language
Resources for the History of the Hebrew Language
Ben Yehuda Project / פרויקט בן-יהודה
Classics of Hebrew literature including poetry and prose, essays, letters, memoirs, and reference works converted to a format that is readable and searchable on the Internet. In Hebrew. A free digital library of Hebrew literature, maintained and updated by volunteers
Texts and short linguistic explanations for answering common Hebrew grammar questions. In Hebrew.
A concise overview of the field of modern Hebrew literature, presented in English by the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Lexicon of Modern Hebrew Literature
This extensive lexicon, compiled by Joseph Galron-Goldschlager, includes a description and bibliography for nearly every important author of Hebrew literature. In Hebrew.
Poetrans is an index of poetry translations into Hebrew. A digital database of poetry books translated into Hebrew.
Israeli Culture
This Hebrew site is a forum for authors to present their literature. Users can vote and comment on the works. It is a good resource for new and cutting edge forms of literature.
This database, sponsored by the Israeli Film Council and others, provides information about Israeli film from its inception to the present day. Includes a history of Israeli film, an alphabetical listing of films with further information, and more. Note: Site entirely in Hebrew
סיפור ישראלי- Israeli Stories (radio program)
An often humorous Israeli radio broadcast in the style of “This American Life”.
Hebrew University in Jerusalem Youtube Channel
Includes student interviews, faculty lectures, and videos from the extensive Spielberg Jewish Film Archive.
Israeli Government Sites
Includes historical records, press releases, information about current MKs and committee activities and a live feed from the Knesset floor (requires plugin). Content available in Hebrew, Arabic and English.
Supreme Court Website בית המשפת העליון
Includes previous court decisions and a history of the court, information about the justices and upcoming cases. Limited sections available in English and Arabic.
Israel Central Bureau of Statistics
Reports on demographics, business/economy, and environmental trends. Available (most in English as well as Hebrew) as PDF files.
Financial reports, educational material and historical archives available in English, Hebrew and Arabic.
VERSA: Opinions of the Supreme Court of Israel
Available through the Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, this website provides contains a searchable database of hundreds of translated cases, media from ISCP events, and links to items of interest pertaining to the Court.
Knesset Research and Information Site (Hebrew)
The Hebrew site for the Knesset Research and Information site includes a vast array of documentation for Knesset business and discussion.
Knesset Research and Information Center (English)
Select documents from the Israeli Knesset that have been translated to English.
This project, produced by Cardozo Law School, has translated many of the decisions of the Israeli Supreme Court and included them in a searchable database.
Online Archives
The National Library of Israel
(Formerly The Jewish National and University Library/JNUL)
Comprehensive collection of online resources freely available in a wide range of subjects and media, including E-Journals, Scanned Books & Newspapers, Photography, Manuscripts, Music and much more. Searchable in Hebrew, Arabic, and English.
Volumes of the American Jewish Year Book from 1899 to the present.
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is America’s national institution for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history, and serves as this country’s memorial to the millions of people murdered during the Holocaust. A partial bibliography, by subject, of Holocaust related resources compiled by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum can be found here.
The Harvard Law School Library’s Nuremberg Trials Project is an open-access initiative to create and present digitized images or full-text versions of the Library’s Nuremberg documents, descriptions of each document, and general information about the trials.
North American Jewish Databank (NAJDB)
National and community level social scientific studies of the North American Jewish population.A repository of both national and community level social scientific studies of the North American Jewish population. The collection includes both contemporary and historical data. (Access is free but users must register with a username and password.)
Established in 1953, Yad Vashem is the world center for documentation, research, education and commemoration of the Holocaust. Many of their resources have been made available digitally, including their large photograph archive and the Central Database of the Shoah Victims’ Names.
Jewish Women
Women in Judaism: A Multidisciplinary Journal
An academic, refereed journal published exclusively online, and devoted to scholarly debate on gender-related issues in Judaism.
The Jewish Women’s Archive has an extensive encyclopedia of important Jewish women around the world.