Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 2 no. 67 September 16, 1992 1) ES (Khaim Bochner) 2) Mazl tov and Katz (Max Stern) 3) Mazl-tov (Ruvn-Mendl Turkel) 4) Spetter (Ellen Prince) 5) Acronyms (Payrets Mett) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 15 Sep 92 17:37:23 -0400 From: bochner@das.YCC.Yale.Edu Subject: ES David Sherman writes in 2.66: .... > ...I'd appreciate an explanation as to what "es" > means here, how it's used, and who uses it this way. > These constructions look totally unfamiliar to me. I've encountered this construction often in reading, and I would also appreciate tips about its use from native speakers. My impressions: a) "dos" can be used as well as "es". I don't know if this is a dialect thing, or if "dos" is perhaps stronger? b) It seems to add some sense of immediacy to the information. For instance, I imagine some one reading a letter with terrible news, looking up and saying Mikhl's example (1). Is this on the right track? None of the grammar books that I've seen mention this construction. I know that Ellen Prince has done work on a related construction with "dos" at the beginning of the sentence: 5) Dos hobn zey gefunen aykhmanen. She translates this as "It's they who have found Eichmann." I haven't read her article yet (sorry, Ellen :-), so I'm hoping she'll tell us more about this. -- Khaim 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 15 Sep 92 15:00:22 PDT From: Max Stern 310-524-6152 Subject: Mazl Tov, Katz In Mendele 2.65, [Berl Hoberman asks what is meant by b'mazl tov.] I think this is to be understood in the original literal meaning of b'mazal tov, that is, "who has been born to her with good signs in the heavens"; we are saying that we are anticipating that all will be well for this child. [David Sherman asks if there are Yiddish acronyms.] What about "schatz", which besides its usual Yiddish meaning, is the prayerbook abbreviation for Shaliach Tzibbur (Shin Tzaddi) (the congregational prayer leader). Max Stern 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 15 Sep 92 16:31:58 EDT From: rmt51@cas.org (Rick Turkel) Subject: Mazl-tov (mendele 2.65) The answer to Berl Hoberman's final question is contained earlier in his post: "...who has been born to her UNDER A GOOD CONSTELLATION...." I know it sounds a bit odd to late 20th-century ears, but that's the literal meaning. It's analogous to the Hebrew "be-sha'a tova," at an auspicious hour, used, e.g., in wedding invitations. Rick (Ruvn-Mendl) Turkel 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 15 Sep 92 21:52:28 -0400 From: "Ellen F. Prince" Subject: RE: Mendele Vol 2.66 >From: hjb@levi.th.vu.nl >Subject: jewish last name Spetter:dutch or yiddish? maybe i'm confusing this with something else, but isn't there a big dutch director named spetters? or was it a dutch movie? somehow i seem to recall this in my local video store in the dutch section. i'll check and let you know. ellen prince 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1992 14:42:13 +0100 From: P.Mett@open.ac.uk Subject: acronyms Dovid Sherman [Mendele 2.65] fregt vegen neimen vus zenen roshei tayves, azoi vi Katz. S' zenen du andere azelche, l'mushel Segal (= sgan lviyo in loshn koydesh) . Einer vos hayst Segal is shtendig a layvi. Afile mayn aygen nomen Mett vays ich nisht zicher fin vant es shtamt, ober men hot mir g'zugt az s' is roshei tayves fin maasim toyvm. Az men red shoyn veign roshei tayves, ich derman zich az men treft fiel mol of an aynlading m'zol tsezamen kimen 7 azayger (l'mushl) BDIYUK (=punctually) . Die velt zogt az dos is roshei tayves fin "biz di yiden velen kimen" ! Payrets Mett ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol 2.67 If your message is intended for MENDELE, please write to: mendele@vax1.trincoll.edu If you want to discuss personal business or have a shmues with the shames, please write to: nmiller@vax1.trincoll.edu Please sign your articles.