Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 5.231 January 24, 1996 1) Zimrey ben Sludek (Keyle Goodman) 2) Gevest (Meyer-Leyb Wolf) 3) Skatine/skotine (Meyer-Leyb Wolf) 4) Tum Balalaika (Serge Rogosin ) 5) Satmer and St. Mary? (Zellig Bach) 6) Dona, Dona ('eynekh Sapoznik) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 23 Jan 1996 21:04:53 -0800 From: ac939@lafn.org Subject: Zimrey ben Sludek In "Di Frume Kats" - I. L. Peretz nutst er a vertl "zimre ben sludek" in dem zats "Tsu iz nokh a mol a kats in a shtayg gezesn? Tsu hot nokh a mol a frume kats azoy gefifn, azoy zimre ben sludek gefifn? Fun vanen shtamt sludek? ( samekh - lamed - vov - aleph - daled yod - kuf ) Fraynd Zellig Bach, Dovid Braun un nokh azoyne efsher kent ir mir dos erklern? Keyle (Kay) Goodman 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 01:32:38 -0500 From: wolfim@chelsea.ios.com Subject: Gevest Ellen Prince: There are Litvaks and there are Litvaks. There were certainly some areas of Northeastern Yiddish where the only past auxiliary was 'hobn', but it is just as certain that other areas had both 'hobn' and 'zayn'. What is important for a theory of the unexpected pluperfect is that the single auxiliary area borders on the area where the unexpected pluperfect prevails. Unfortunately, the only decent data on the distribution of the single auxiliary covers only a limited area, see Herzog's "The Yiddish Language in Northern Poland", maps 4:76 - 4:79. In his Tora translation, Yehoash uses 'gevest' only as the pluperfect particle; in fact, his use of it is found only in the section beginning with Yeshaye and ending with the first book of Tilim. The pluperfect with 'gehat' is found everywhere, including this section. In all, there are only a couple dozen instances of the pluperfect. Meyer-Leyb Wolf 3)---------------------------------------------------- From wolfim@chelsea.ios.comWed Jan 24 11:11:04 1996 Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 01:32:41 -0500 From: wolfim@chelsea.ios.com Subject: Skatine/skotine Louis Fridhandler: The Talmudic saying has it that whoever attributes a citation to its author brings 'geule' into the world. When citing an author, one can bring a little more 'geule' by saying where. Sholem Aleichem used 'skatine' in at least two places: the first in 'Motl Peysye dem khazns', p. 23 in my edition -- part 1, chapter 1, section zayen; the second in 'Funem Yarid', p. 96 in my edition -- chapter 18 'pinele shimeles fort keyn odes'. Meyer-Leyb Wolf 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 02:33:35 -0500 From: srogosin@aol.com Subject: "Tum Balalaika"; Jewish balalaika Can anyone tell me about the origin of the song "Tum balalaika"? I'm working on a book on the balalaika and am looking for Jewish connections. Does anyone know if there were Jewish balalaika groups or individual players in the former Russian Empire? I am also preparing an article on balalaika in New York City. There were a number of Jews who played in Russian balalaika orchestras, but did anyone play the balalaika or domra (a related Russian instrument) in the Yiddish theater or in orchestras that catered to predominantly Jewish audiences? Any information on Jewish connections to the balalaika would be much appreciated. Serge Rogosin 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 05:13:38 -0500 From: zellig@aol.com Subject: Satmer and St. Mary? Hasidic sects are often known after the towns where their rebes started to "reign." So we have the Bobover khsidim, Gerer, Lubavitsher, Satmer (or Satmar), Skverer, and so on. In the Indianapolis, IN, weekly _Nat'l Jewish Post & Opinion_ (Jan. 3, 1996, p. 10), in the column "Digest of the Yiddish Press" the ludicrous statement resurfaced that the name of the Satmer khsidim derives from the Rumanian town St. Mary. Dr. Mordkhe Schaechter, in response to a question submitted to the _Jewish Language Review_ (Haifa) wrote: "It is high time that this myth, concocted by Rumanianless English-speakers in the United States, be exploded: Satmer (not "satmar" as one sometimes sees) is the Yiddish name of Satur Mare, a city in Rumania whose literal meaning is 'big town.' It has absolutely nothing to do with St. Mary" (J.L.R., Vol. 2, 1982, p. 302, R909/1). This "digester" (a rabbi) knows little Yiddish, as I indicated in these pp. some time ago, as when he referred, for example, to "Aleykhem's House" as if Aleykhem were Sholem Aleylhem's last name, and constantly keeps referring to Yiddish by the schizographic name "mame lashon," instead of mame-loshn. As one who writes a weekly digest of the Yiddish press it would behoove the rabbi to check some evidently etymological nonsense before "digesting" it, and, occasionally, consult an expert in Yiddish, in this case indeed Dr. Schaechter, the famous Yiddish philologist, editor of the YIVO publication _Yidishe Shprakh_, author of several Yiddish textbooks for students, and recipient of the Itsik Manger Prize. Zellig Bach 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 08:35:47 -0500 From: sapoznik@aol.com Subject: Dona, Dona On the subject of "Dona, Dona" let's not overlook the wonderful English translation of the song penned by the New York Yiddish singer Teddi Schwartz. 'eynekh Sapoznik ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 5.231 Mendele has 2 rules: 1. Provide a meaningful Subject: line 2. 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