Salman Schocken
Encyclopedia
Salman Schocken (October 30, 1877, Margonin
, Province of Posen
, German Empire
(today Poland
) - August 21, 1959, Pontresina
, Switzerland
) was a German
Jewish publisher and businessman.
Salman Schocken was the son of Jewish shopkeeper in Posen
.
In 1901, he went to Zwickau
, a German town in southwest Saxony
, to help run a department store owned by his brother, Simon. Together they built up the business and established a chain of stores all over Germany. In Chemnitz
and Stuttgart
, Schocken commissioned the German Jewish architect Erich Mendelsohn
to build branches of the Kaufhaus Schocken. In 1915 Schocken was co-founder of the Zionist
journal Der Jude (with Martin Buber
). After Simon's death in 1929 Salman Schocken became sole owner of the firm. The same year, in which Schocken's friend Franz Rosenzweig also died, 1929 he established the Schocken Institute for Research on Jewish Poetry. In 1931, he founded the publishing company Schocken Verlag, which reprinted the recently completed Buber-Rosenzweig
translation of the Bible.
In 1934, after the rise of Nazism
, Schocken left Germany for Palestine. In 1940, he settled in the United States. In Jerusalem, he built the Schocken Library, also designed by Erich Mendelsohn. He was a board member of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
and bought the newspaper Haaretz
, which is still owned by his family. He also founded Schocken Publishing House Ltd. and opened another branch in New York (Schocken Books
). The Nazis forced him to sell his German enterprises to Merkur AG but he managed to recover some of his property after the war.
Schocken became the patron of Shmuel Yosef Agnon
when he was a struggling writer in Palestine. Recognizing Agnon's literary talent, Schocken paid him a stipend that relieved him of financial worries and allowed him to devote himself to writing (Agnon went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature
).
Schocken was married to Lily and had five children. He died in 1959 on a journey to Switzerland.
, also designed by Erich Mendelsohn, was built between 1934-1936. Originally the house, constructed of Jerusalem stone
, was surrounded by a spacious 1.5 acres (6,070.3 m²) garden. In 1957, the property was sold to the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
, which invited another architect, Joseph Klarvin, to design an additional front wing of classrooms facing the street. Klarvin also added a third story, dispensing with the pergolas and blocking up the oval pool in the courtyard.
Margonin
Margonin is a town in Chodzież County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland, with 2,941 inhabitants .- History :Margonin is first mentioned when Archbishop Jarosław Skotnicki of Gnesen and the Bishop of Posen, Jan Doliwa, agreed on May 15, 1364 that Margonin parish should belong to the Posen...
, Province of Posen
Province of Posen
The Province of Posen was a province of Prussia from 1848–1918 and as such part of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918. The area was about 29,000 km2....
, German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
(today Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) - August 21, 1959, Pontresina
Pontresina
Pontresina is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland.-History and name:The city was first mentioned in medieval Latin documents as pontem sarasinam in 1137. In 1237 it was mentioned as de Ponte Sarraceno and in 1303 as ponte sarracino...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) was a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Jewish publisher and businessman.
Salman Schocken was the son of Jewish shopkeeper in Posen
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
.
In 1901, he went to Zwickau
Zwickau
Zwickau in Germany, former seat of the government of the south-western region of the Free State of Saxony, belongs to an industrial and economical core region. Nowadays it is the capital city of the district of Zwickau...
, a German town in southwest Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
, to help run a department store owned by his brother, Simon. Together they built up the business and established a chain of stores all over Germany. In Chemnitz
Chemnitz
Chemnitz is the third-largest city of the Free State of Saxony, Germany. Chemnitz is an independent city which is not part of any county and seat of the government region Direktionsbezirk Chemnitz. Located in the northern foothills of the Ore Mountains, it is a part of the Saxon triangle...
and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, Schocken commissioned the German Jewish architect Erich Mendelsohn
Erich Mendelsohn
Erich Mendelsohn was a Jewish German architect, known for his expressionist architecture in the 1920s, as well as for developing a dynamic functionalism in his projects for department stores and cinemas.-Early life:...
to build branches of the Kaufhaus Schocken. In 1915 Schocken was co-founder of the Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
journal Der Jude (with Martin Buber
Martin Buber
Martin Buber was an Austrian-born Jewish philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of religious existentialism centered on the distinction between the I-Thou relationship and the I-It relationship....
). After Simon's death in 1929 Salman Schocken became sole owner of the firm. The same year, in which Schocken's friend Franz Rosenzweig also died, 1929 he established the Schocken Institute for Research on Jewish Poetry. In 1931, he founded the publishing company Schocken Verlag, which reprinted the recently completed Buber-Rosenzweig
Franz Rosenzweig
Franz Rosenzweig was an influential Jewish theologian and philosopher.-Early life:Franz Rosenzweig was born in Kassel, Germany to a middle-class, minimally observant Jewish family...
translation of the Bible.
In 1934, after the rise of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, Schocken left Germany for Palestine. In 1940, he settled in the United States. In Jerusalem, he built the Schocken Library, also designed by Erich Mendelsohn. He was a board member of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
and bought the newspaper Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
, which is still owned by his family. He also founded Schocken Publishing House Ltd. and opened another branch in New York (Schocken Books
Schocken Books
Schocken Books is a publishing company that was established in Berlin with a publishing office in Prague in 1931 by the Schocken Department Store owner Salman Schocken. It published the writings of Martin Buber, Franz Rosenzweig, Franz Kafka and S. Y...
). The Nazis forced him to sell his German enterprises to Merkur AG but he managed to recover some of his property after the war.
Schocken became the patron of Shmuel Yosef Agnon
Shmuel Yosef Agnon
Shmuel Yosef Agnon , was a Nobel Prize laureate writer and was one of the central figures of modern Hebrew fiction. In Hebrew, he is known by the acronym Shai Agnon . In English, his works are published under the name S. Y. Agnon.Agnon was born in Galicia, Austro-Hungarian Empire...
when he was a struggling writer in Palestine. Recognizing Agnon's literary talent, Schocken paid him a stipend that relieved him of financial worries and allowed him to devote himself to writing (Agnon went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
).
Schocken was married to Lily and had five children. He died in 1959 on a journey to Switzerland.
Schocken house
The home of Salman Schocken on Peretz-Smolenskin Street in RehaviaRehavia
Rehavia is an upscale Jerusalem neighborhood located between the city center and Talbiya.-History:Rehavia was established on a large plot of land purchased in 1921 from the Greek Orthodox Church by the Palestine Land Development Company . The area was known at the time as Ginzaria, a native...
, also designed by Erich Mendelsohn, was built between 1934-1936. Originally the house, constructed of Jerusalem stone
Jerusalem stone
Jerusalem stone is a name applied to various types of pale limestone, dolomite and dolomitic limestone, common in and around Jerusalem that have been used in building since ancient times...
, was surrounded by a spacious 1.5 acres (6,070.3 m²) garden. In 1957, the property was sold to the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance , founded in 1958 as the Rubin Academy of Music, is located on the Givat Ram campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.-History:...
, which invited another architect, Joseph Klarvin, to design an additional front wing of classrooms facing the street. Klarvin also added a third story, dispensing with the pergolas and blocking up the oval pool in the courtyard.