The Miriam Catalog and Repository

Welcome to NAJC

The purpose of the Miriam Catalog and Repository is to document the culture of North American Jews.

Who We Are

President NAJC
Alan Bailin, PhD, MLS

Professor of Library Services, Hofstra University

Treasurer
Ari Fridkis, MA, MSW

Rabbi, Temple of Universal Judaism

Secretary
Martha Kreisel, MA, MAH

Retired Associate Professor of Library Services, Hofstra University

Collection Director
Ann Grafstein, PhD, MLIS

Professor of Library Services, Hofstra University

 

Miriam Catalog and Repository

The purpose of the Miriam Catalog and Repository is to document the culture of North American Jews. North American Jewish Culture (NAJC) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.

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Recent Submissions

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100 years after its founding, can a Yiddish institute serve a people who don’t speak the language?: YIVO’s centennial marks a fractious time in Jewish life. It’s ready for the challenge.
(The Forward, 2025-03-22) Grisar, PJ
The YIVO institute was founded in 1925 in Eastern Europe. It has served as an archive, library and research institution. One of its primary focuses was to standardize Yiddish spelling. Its vision was to "elevate Yiddish from a “lowly ‘jargon’” to a modern language with the scholarly prestige of any other European tongue, “a fitting vehicle for a sophisticated high culture.” Despite many controversies about the nature of the institute, it has persisted to this day in its current home in New York City. In 1958, Max Weinreich wrote that "“as long as the world exists, there will always be Jews who want to understand their roots in order to thereby understand themselves.” YIVO remains there to serve those Jews. See the following entries in this library for a glimpse at some of YIVO's projects.
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Monica Unikel
(Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women--Jewish Women's Archive, 2021-06-23) Remba, Natania
Monica Unikel-Fasja is an ethnographer of Jewish immigration to Mexico and retells unwritten narratives. Her mission is preserving and chronicling the historical and cultural record and documenting Jewish influence on Mexican history and architecture. Her knowledge was acquired by her observation and interactions with the local community. The article calls her a "scholar of the streets." She conducts walking tours of Jewish areas, established between 1500 and the 1950s, highlighting historical and cultural features. The article describes her as an "example for Jews and non-Jews of all ages who value their own heritage more after experiencing her teachings." Click on the link to read the article.
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Mexico Virtual Jewish History Tour
(Jewish Virtual Library, 2025) Jewish Virtual Library
A through article about Jews in Mexico. "Conversos" (Jews who had to convert to Christianity during the Spanish Inquisition) were the first Jews to immigrate to Mexico in the 16th century. It covers various stages of Jewish immigration and discusses Jewish life in Mexico, as well as the demographic characteristics of the Jewish community there. A list of the sources used to inform the article appears at the end. Click on the link to read the article.
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Jewish American Heritage Month
(Smithsonian, 2025) Smithsonian
Website from the Smithsonian showing items in its collections that bear on the "long history of Jewish presence first in British North America and then the United States." Click on the link to explore the website.
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Every May is JAHM
(Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM), 2025) Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM)
The month of May has been designated as Jewish American Heritage Month. The organization, Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) is a kind of umbrella organization with hundreds of organizations partnering to showcase the contributions and accomplishments of Jews of all backgrounds in American society. As stated on JAHM's website, "Each May, hundreds of organizations and Americans of all backgrounds join together to discover, explore, and celebrate the vibrant and varied American Jewish experience from the dawn of our nation to the present day." The website makes free downloadable tools and suggestions for observing Jewish American Heritage Month. Click on the link to visit the website.