thumb | right | alt=Kol Mevasser, First modern Yiddish journal, Odessa, 1862 | Kol Mevasser, First modern Yiddish journal, Odessa, 1862
Kol Mevasser () was a Yiddish-language periodical that appeared from October 11, 1862 into 1872. It served as a supplement to the Hebrew weekly HaMelitz, providing scientific information in a Western style. It is considered by Sol Liptzin and others to be the most important early Yiddish-language periodical (although by no means the first: the short-lived Die Kuranten in Amsterdam predated it by centuries). Unlike any earlier Yiddish publication, it circulated over a wide territory,
The decade-long run and relatively professional editorial standards of Kol Mevasser helped to standardize Yiddish spelling, enrich its vocabulary, establish patterns of written usage, and generally increase the prestige of the language.
Notes
References
- Liptzin, Sol, A History of Yiddish Literature, Jonathan David Publishers, Middle Village, NY, 1972, , especially p. 41-42.