EARLY WOMEN PSYCHOANALYSTS
Welcome to a site dedicated to the remarkable women pioneers of psychoanalysis — born before World War I, most of them Jewish — whose contributions have been inadequately remembered, overlooked, or erased.
Despite their substantial impact on psychoanalytic thought, theory, and clinical practice, their work has too often been devalued, marginalized, or written out of the canon. Intersecting forms of gendered and racial power, institutional practice, and historical narrative determined whose stories counted — and whose did not.
This site brings together courses, publications, and events that honor and critically engage with their legacy. Join us in uncovering the stories of these women who shaped psychoanalysis and continue to inspire new generations. Together, let's restore their voices and contributions to the historical record — and carry them forward.
The Early Women Psychoanalysts project is created and maintained independently by Klara Naszkowska, with no outside funding. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Janka Kormos, The Life and Work of Judith S. Kestenberg: The Body on Trial.
Routledge [forthcoming in 2026]
Fátima Caropreso, The Research Trajectory of Judith Kestenberg. From the Study of Movements to Research with Child Victims of the Holocaust. SHOAH: INTERVENTION. METHODS. DOCUMENTATION, 2024.
Klara Naszkowska. Give me Permission to Remember: Judith S. Kestenberg and the Memory of the Holocaust.
Contemporary Psychoanalysis and Jewish Thought: Answering a Question with More Questions. Ed. Libby Henik. Routledge, 2023.
Klara Naszkowska, Judith S. Kestenberg i ucieczka w (nie)pamięć o Zagładzie. (Judith S. Kestenberg. Escape into (non)memory of the Shoah). Zagłada Żydów. Studia i Materiały / Holocaust Studies and Materials. Journal of the Polish Center for Holocaust Research, 18, 2022.