William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
| William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company | |
|---|---|
| legal form | family business |
| founding | 1911 by William B. Eerdmans and Brant Sevensma |
| Seat | Grand Rapids (Michigan) , USA |
| management | William B. Eerdmans Jr. |
| Branch | Printing, publishing, book trade |
| Website | https://www.eerdmans.com/ |
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company is a Christian literature publisher based in Grand Rapids . It was founded in 1911 by William B. Eerdmans (1880–1966) and is still in private hands. Eerdmans has long been known to publish a wide variety of Christian religious books. The palette ranges from academic papers in Christian theology , Bible studies, and religious history to references to popular titles in spirituality , social and cultural criticism, and general literature .
history
Eerdmans, a son of a Dutch textile manufacturer, came to the United States in 1902 and settled in Grand Rapids, which was then a center of Dutch immigration. After a while he began to study at Calvin Theological Seminary , the seminary of the Reformed Church. He made his living selling books to Dutch-American customers. In 1911 he decided to give up his studies and become a bookseller. With his colleague Brant Sevensma he founded the bookstore Eerdmans-Sevensma, which specialized in theological literature.
Sevensma left the joint venture in 1915, and Eeerdans renamed it William B. Eerdmans Verlag. Many of Eerdman's first publications were theological works by European theologians printed in the Dutch language. The main published work was Jean Calvin's 50-volume Commentary .
It was not until the early 1930s that the Zondervan brothers appeared as a competitor in the religious book trade and book publishing business Grand Rapids. One of the founders of Zondervan Verlag had previously worked for Eerdmans. In 1939, the Dutch-born Herman Baker opened another religiously-oriented book trade and publishing company in the city. But Eerdmans was able to further establish itself in this competitive market with quality publishing. Works by well-known authors such as CS Lewis , Karl Barth , Richard John Neuhaus , Nicholas Wolterstorff , Richard Mouw , Martin Marty , Rowan Williams , Joan Chittister and Dorothy Day , who represented quite different beliefs, were also published.
In 1966 the founder William B. Eerdmans died and his son William B. Eerdmans Jr. took over the management of the publishing company. Biblical and theological reference works, commentaries, concordances, and manuals of high quality continued to be printed. At the end of the 1990s, The Encyclopedia of Christianity, the recognized German reference work Evangelisches Kirchenlexikon, was translated and published. In 2000 the publisher published Eerdman's Dictionary of the Bible , which was widely used.
The imprint Eerdmans Books for Young Readers began in 1995 as part of the Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company with the publication of quality literature in the fictional and non-fictional area for young readers.
Web links
- Official website (English)
- Eerdmans Books for Young Readers - Young Readers Page
- William B. Eerdmans (1880-1966), Industrial / Commercial Leader . English article on New Netherland Institute website