Founded: 1929
Jawa headquarters: Týnec nad Sázavou, Czech Republic
Official website: jawa.eu
In 1922, Frantisek Janicek opened the Zbroiowka Arms Factory in Prague (Czechoslovakia, today – the Czech Republic), and six years later decided to re-profile it and set up the production of motorcycles.
The plant started its work in a new quality in 1928, and in 1929 the Jawa-500 motorcycle came off the assembly line for the first time, and the Jawa trademark was registered, the name of which is formed by the first syllables of the surname Janeček and the name of the company – Wanderer.
For almost half a century, the factory produced models with the Jawa logo, the technological basis of which were the 1946 and 1948 models with a volume of engines of 250 and 350. The upgrades did not affect the basic design features of the bikes. Nevertheless, the manufacturer actively exported its products, and first of all – to the USSR. Due to the size of this market, the Czech manufacturer has supplied the market closed by the Iron Curtain with about million bikes. According to various estimates, almost half of motorcycles owned by Soviet citizens were of this brand.
In 1993, there were improved models 250593 Master with liquid-cooled two-stroke engine.
Since 2005, Jawa has been producing motorcycles with larger engines.