''HaZvi'' (, also ''Hatzevi'', literally 'The Gazelle') was a

Hebrew-language 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 th ...

newspaper published in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

from 1884 to 1914 by

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda Eliezer Ben‑Yehuda ( he, אֱלִיעֶזֶר בֵּן־יְהוּדָה}; ; born Eliezer Yitzhak Perlman, 7 January 1858 – 16 December 1922) was a Russian–⁠Jewish linguist, grammarian, and journalist, renowned as the lexicographer of ...

, a pioneer of the

revival of Hebrew The revival of the Hebrew language took place in Europe and Palestine toward the end of the 19th century and into the 20th century, through which the language's usage changed from the sacred language of Judaism to a spoken and written language ...

as a spoken tongue.

History

The first issue of ''HaZvi'' was published on October 24, 1884. It began as a weekly paper and eventually developed into a daily. In 1909, the paper had a peak circulation of 1,200 copies, 500 distributed in Jerusalem.'Jews, the poet Bialik will come today' Haaretz, March 27, 2009
/ref> ''HaZvi'' revolutionized Hebrew newspaper publishing in Jerusalem by introducing secular issues and techniques of modern

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

, especially after

Itamar Ben-Avi Itamar Ben-Avi (; []; 31 July 1882 – 8 April 1943) was the first native speaker of modern Hebrew, Hebrew in modern times. He was a journalist and Zionism, Zionist activist. Biography Itamar Ben-Avi was born as Ben-Zion Ben-Yehuda in Jerusalem ...

, Ben-Yehuda's son, joined the paper. Influenced by the French press, Ben-Avi brought in sensational headlines and a style of reporting that differed from newspapers of the old school. ''HaZvi '' became the organ of the

New Yishuv Yishuv ( he, ישוב, literally "settlement"), Ha-Yishuv ( he, הישוב, ''the Yishuv''), or Ha-Yishuv Ha-Ivri ( he, הישוב העברי, ''the Hebrew Yishuv''), is the body of Jewish residents in the Land of Israel (corresponding to the s ...

(pre-state Jewish community), as the first Jewish agricultural colonies were founded. The paper included translations of French literature (previously only German literature had appeared in translation) and original Hebrew prose. The need for Hebrew words to report the daily news prompted Ben-Yehuda to begin his lifelong project of compiling a Hebrew dictionary (). All this fit in with the

Hebraist A Hebraist is a specialist in Jewish, Hebrew and Hebraic studies. Specifically, British and German scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries who were involved in the study of Hebrew language and literature were commonly known by this designation, a ...

ideology that was on the rise.Encyclopedia Judaica, ''Newspapers, Hebrew,'' vol. 12, Keter Books, Jerusalem, 1978 Ha'Aor

In 1908, the name of the paper was changed to ''HaOr'' ( 'The Light') due to licensing restrictions. The paper was banned by the Ottoman government during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

due to its proposals for a

Jewish homeland A homeland for the Jewish people is an idea rooted in Jewish history, religion, and culture. The Jewish aspiration to return to Zion, generally associated with divine redemption, has suffused Jewish religious thought since the destruction ...

References

Bibliography

* Robert St. John. ''Tongue of the Prophets'', Doubleday & Company, Inc. Garden City, New York, 1952. *

External links

Archived issues of ''HaZvi''

HaZvi
at

Historical Jewish Press Historical Jewish Press is an online archive of historical newspapers written and published by Jews. The database enables, through digitization, virtual access to the Hebrew press in most of its years of existence, starting from mid 19th Century t ...

{{Authority control Jewish newspapers Hebrew-language newspapers Jewish printing and publishing Defunct newspapers published in Israel Yishuv newspapers Publications established in 1884 1884 establishments in the Ottoman Empire 1914 disestablishments in Asia Daily newspapers published in Israel