Mendele: Yiddish literature and language
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Contents of Vol. 3.024
June 3, 1993

1) Toytn bankes un henglaykhter (Elyet Hersh Gertel)
2) More idioms (Dovid Ber Katz)
3) Sadan bibliography (Shleyme Axelrod)
4) Introduction (Diane Valsamis)
5) Mekoyekh bankes (Noyekh Miller)

1)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed Jun  2 19:32:49 1993
From: EGERTEL@FULLERTON.EDU
Subject: Toytn bankes un henglaykhter

Meykoyekh di interesante bamerkungen fun Herold Orbakh (Mendele 3.020):

1) Koydem kol oyb kh'hob nisht keyn toes, az me zogt "helfn vi a
toytn bankes" dos meynt nisht az di bankes zenen "toyt."
(Gramatish iz dos say vi nisht gerekht oyb emester meynt az "toytn"
iz do an adyektiv vos modifitsirt dem substantiv "bankes."  In dem
fal volt es gedarft zayn "TOYTE bankes" vayl dos vort "bankes" iz
dokh mertsol.  Afile eyntsolik volt es geven "toyte banke" vayl
"banke" iz loshn-nekeyve [feminin]).  Az me dermont "toytn bankes"
meynt es az epes vet azoy helfn vi "s'vet helfn (a) toytn bankes!"
Belaz heyst es that something or other would be as useful as bankes
(bleeding cups) would be applied to a corpse so it's not that the
bankes aredead but they are totally ineffective in reviving the
dead hence the great expression to indicate the absolute
worthlessnes of something.

2)  Kh'hob ergets in a bikhl fun yidishe shprikhverter gezen epes
azoyns: "Zol er zayn vi a henglaykhter: zol er hengen bay tog un
brenen bay nakht." Kh'veys nisht dem moker fun ot dem vertl nor
s'hot mir ale mol gefelen un kh'hob oykh do in MENDELE gevolt es
dermonen hot Khaver Orbakh gekumen tsum ershtn. A dank aykh far dem.
Lomir hofn az emetser vet yo visn funem opshtam...

Elyet Hersh Gertl

2)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu Jun  3 10:43:07 1993
From: bkatz@epas.utoronto.ca (Bernard Katz)
Subject: More idioms

        Here are a couple of idioms that I heard fairly recently.
Both are unfamiliar to me. Does anyone know anything about them?

1/  Yeder shmoiger far zich toiger.

(I heard `toiger' as one word; perhaps it is really two: toig er.)

2/  Heng zich uf ayf a tsukershtrikl.

Dovid Ber Katz

3)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu Jun  3 13:28:49 1993
From: Seymour Axelrod <PTYAXEL@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu>
Subject: Sadan bibliography

Y. Kertesz, while searching belatedly for khometsdike footnotes,
came up with the idea of a reference work on Dov Sadan's writings.
In response to an inquiry, R' Yossi Galron has provided the
following information about his Sadan bibliography of 1986; R'
Yitzhak and other Mendelenikes may find it of interest:

	"The Bibliography *Kitve Dov Sadan : Bibliyografyah 696-744
        <1936 -1984>, kolel hashlamot la-shanim 686-696 <1926-1936>
        (Tel-Aviv : ha-Kibuts ha-me'uhad, 747 <1986>* is a
        continuation of Kressel's bibliography, published in 1981.
        My book contains 2907 entries and includes subject index,
        index of books and periodicals where Sadan published, index
        of Sadan's books and index for phrases, idioms etc. on which
        he wrote about (Hebrew and Yiddish). As I checked in OCLC
        and RLIN, almost all major Judaica libraries in the U.S.
        have the book.

        [.........]

        "P.S. The addendum to my 1986 bibliography will be published
        by the Kats Institute at the Tel-Aviv University in a Fest-
        schrift for Sadan, that will be published (hopefully) by the
        end of the year."

--Shleyme Axelrod

4)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu Jun  3 15:21:17 1993
From: Diane Valsamis <MNHEN031@SIVM.BITNET>
Subject: Introduction

I usually just sit on the sidelines and try to absorb all the news
but since I'm new here's my introduction. My Bobbi and Zeide were
from Noveselitz, Romania and spoke Yiddish at home. They moved to
Bogota, Colombia in 1938 and my mom was born there. Her first
language was Yiddish. I was born here but learned both Spanish and
Yiddish from my grandparents, unfortunately much more Spanish than
Yiddish. I'm hoping to brush up on my Yiddish by reading this list
and if anybody has any suggestions for textbooks on Yiddish please
either post them or send them to me directly.

Diane Gold Valsamis

5)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed Jun  2 20:23:48 1993
From: noyekh miller <nmiller@starbase.trincoll.edu>
Subject: Mekoyekh bankes

Why do we all so love the line about bankes?  My guess is that
its utter finality, the way it's intended to put an end to all
further bebbitzing, fits the deep pessimistic strain in Yiddish
culture.

How does one test such a brilliant and original hypothesis?  By
looking for evidence of its contradiction.  Hert a mayse.

Scene: a Yiddish theatre on Second Avenue.  At the height of the
action one of the actors keels over.  Consternation, confusion.
Finally the manager comes to the apron and says: our star has just
died, there is no understudy, we have to cancel the performance.
From the highest balcony comes a voice: "Gibt im a kane (enema)!"
The manager replies: "Ir farshteyt nisht? Er iz toyt vi ille toyte.
Vos toyg a kone?"  Comes back from the balcony: "Vos ken es shatn?"

So is hope a form of pessimism...or is it the other way around?

Noyekh Miller

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End of Mendele Vol. 3.024