As a boy growing up in Bethlehem, George A. Kiraz was fascinated with his family history, and understandably so, given its turbulent nature. His family is Syriac Christian, one of the earliest branches of Christianity first practiced by Aramaic peoples in Jerusalem dating back at least as early as the 3rd century and practiced throughout the Near East and Asia in several denominations to this day. Dr. Kiraz’s family migrated to Palestine from present-day Turkey following the Sayfo genocide of 1915, and throughout his childhood, George experienced the unique perspective of one surrounded by the ancient artifacts of the first Christians and witnessed the fraught custodianship of its holy places and artifacts.
After migrating to the United States, he built a career in computation and linguistics and worked for Bell Labs, but he felt drawn to the world of academia. He founded a non-profit called Beth Mardutho: the Syriac Institute, and in 1999 and 2000 attempted — with success — to join the Dot-Com Bubble. When the bubble burst nine months later, he and his wife Christine decided to form their own publishing company, Gorgias Press, to specialize in their areas of interest and expertise: the history and religion of the Middle East and the larger pre-modern world.
To this day, Gorgias is a premier publisher in this area and a trusted partner of Atla. Atla Product Specialist Todd Aiello and Publisher Relations Manager Gregg Taylor spoke to Dr. Kiraz about his company’s history, scope, relationship with Atla, and some exciting new updates for readers.
Starting a publishing company without a large amount of funding presented a challenge to the Kirazes. They discovered print on demand and used the format exclusively in the beginning, making them one of the first academic presses to use this approach. Most authors and printers were resistant to this form of publishing at first, though now every publisher uses it. George and Christine persevered through their early struggles and worked with printers to make sure that the quality of the printing and binding was indistinguishable from that of the major publishers.
They discovered print on demand and used the format exclusively in the beginning, making them one of the first academic presses to use this approach.
The scope of the material Gorgias published began with Eastern and Syriac Christianity, and from there, they investigated other religions and connected disciplines that were underrepresented in the publishing world. They next attempted to publish works about ancient Greece and the Classics, but found this field nearly impossible to penetrate, not finding it receptive to those they would consider outsiders. Eastern Christianity remains the backbone of Gorgias’s publications, but it has also expanded recently into Arabic and Islamic Studies, Judaica, and Hebrew Studies.
At the heart of Gorgias Press is its motto: “Publishing for the sake of knowledge.” In Dr. Kiraz’s words, if it’s a good book, we’ll publish it. The staff are all scholars themselves, and their work gives them an opportunity to remain in the academic world. Because the editing is done by scholars, they can reference the books they are publishing in their own academic work. This gives the company a homey environment, as the process of editing the works takes on the feel of communicating with colleagues. Its strong editorial board helps to bolster its reputation internationally.
Publishing for the sake of knowledge.
Eastern Christianity is a small community in which everyone knows everyone, and each pocket throughout the world is connected, so building strong relationships is key to Gorgias’s success in this area. They have also committed to offering Open Access materials. They attempt to make access as easy as possible through their Open Access repository, in which material can be downloaded without the use of a login or subscription, and they also are committed to keeping the fees on the author side as low as possible.
Dr. Kiraz’s relationship with Atla dates back even before the creation of Gorgias Press, when he was involved in font creation software for Syriac, Arabic, and other specialized fonts. He encountered Atla at several conferences and established a relationship with us while still working as the General Editor of Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies, and when Gorgias began publishing, it was natural for the relationship to continue. Today, Atla houses the full text of The Journal of Syriac Studies, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary, as well as the Journal of the Canadian Society for Syriac Studies in AtlaSerials® (Atlas®). In George’s view, Gorgias Press is there to serve the field. He is not certain he would attempt to begin a publishing company in today’s climate, as the monetary aspect is even more challenging, but what keeps Gorgias going is the team’s passion for the field and the support of their authors and customers.
Titles in Atla Research Tools
The titles published by Gorgias Press indexed in Atla Religion Database® (Atla RDB®) and available in Atlas are:
- Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies
- Journal of the Canadian Society for Syriac Studies
Gorgias Press Resources & Opportunities for Libraries
We would also like to highlight Gorgias’s Library Affiliate Program. This program came from a challenging experience Dr. Kiraz had with larger book distributors, which led to the decision to sell books directly. This inspired the creation of the Library Affiliate Program, which gives direct access to libraries to the books published by Gorgias. The program provides a 30% discount to libraries for access to their publishing materials. The link to access this program can be found here: https://www.gorgiaspress.com/library-affiliates
Gorgias Press main page, including information on their 30% summer sale (valid until the end of August): https://www.gorgiaspress.com/
Gorgias Annual Catalog 20th Anniversary Edition: Part 1 and Part 2
Gorgias 2022 Spring Libraries Catalog: https://www.gorgiaspress.com/images/uploaded/2022%20Spring%20Catalog.pdf
2022 Essential Titles For Librarians: https://www.gorgiaspress.com/images/uploaded/2022%20Essential%20Titles%20for%20Library%20Catalog%20Web.pdf
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