Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 6.194 January 9, 1997 1) Shpigel shprakh (Leybl Botvinik) 2) Storm in a teacup (David Herskovic) 3) Mendele un derekh-erets (Al Grand) 4) Microwave oven af yidish (David Sherman) 5) Microwave oven af yidish (Khane-Faygl Turtletaub) 6) Khezhbm/kheshbn (Zachary M. Baker) 7) Nevura (Goldie Morgentaler) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 8 Jan 1997 15:19:21 +0200 (IST) From: leybl@telecomm.tadiran.co.il Subject: Shpigel shprakh "shpigl-ksav" fun y. un b. kerler a dank der letst-dermonter frage vegn "shpigl-shprakh" (V 6.173), hob ikh sof-kol sof zikh genumen tsu farefntlekhn a kurtsn iberblik iber a nayem bukh derhaltn dem zumer fun eyne fun di mekhabrim. ikh hob take dos gevolt ton frier, ober kh'hob es opgeleygt oyf der pasiker moment. der moment iz take gekumen. "shpigl-ksav" iz a nay eygnartik bikhl lider fun di dikhters yoysef kerler un zayn zun dov-ber, vos shraybt untern nomen Boris Karlov (farvos davke "boris", veys ikh nit). es vert aroysgegebn durkh dem farlag "yerushalaymer almanakh" beshutfes mit "di dray shvester" farlag baym oksford institut far yidish (@1996). dos bukh anthalt 25 lider funem tatn, un 25 funem zun. dem tatns a lid, un nokh dem, dem zuns a lid, un azoy vayter. lemoshl "gedenkstu..." (fun y.k.) un glaykh nokh dem "gedenkstu?" (fun b.k.), oder "muter" (fun y.k.) un glaykh nokh dem "mame" (fun b.k.). di lider zaynen farshidnartike, mit kolerley stiln un ritmen. amol shpiglt zikh op fun dem tatn inem zuns baytrog tsum lider-por, un amol nit. di lider funem tatn shpanen a lengerer tkufe, un vayte mehalekhn [=distantsn]. mir trefn, lemoshl lider fun viazme (1941) un fun moskve (1968) un fun eretz yisroyl. baym zun, fun yisroyl un fun veyls (?=Wales). me treft deriber, baym tatn, lider fun an ander tkufe, fun an ander ort (viazme 1941), ober geshribene in dem fuln bren fun yunger perspektiv, in dem zelbn elter vi es hot letstns der zun geshribn. ot lemoshl der tate shraybt vegn a shpatsir mit zayn nay geboyrn nefeshl, inem lid "vundervelt": ... a kleyn, a varem nefeshl zikh tulyet tsu mayn brust un s'dukht, az gor mayn lebn kh'hob keyn tsores nit gevust... (y.k. moskve, 1958) mit 36 yor shpeter bashraybt der zun zayn shpatsir mitn foter inem lid "shpatsirndik mitn tatn un zun": ... tsvey veltn haltstu bay der hant un beyde veltn zaynen dayne, dayn morgn un dayn nekhtn haynt dem veg dem zunikn bashaynen... (b.k. yerushalayim, 1994) dos bukh darf bakumen a sakh a besern un tifern analiz vi mayn basheydener, kurtser iberblik. es geyt do arayn nit eyns nor tsvey veltn, vos amol zaynen zey bazunder, un amol eynik. ikh bagris di tsvey gute yidishe dikhter, un vintsh zey lange sheferishe yorn tsuzamen, vi oykh yederer oyf zayn eygener veg. leybl botvinik netanya 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 08 Jan 97 09:25:55 EST From: 100114.750@compuserve.com Subject: Storm in a teacup My thanks to Joachim Neugroschel for the inspiration for a Yiddish translation of a storm in a teacup: a mikve in a mayim akhroynim tepl. My offspring too wish to pass on their gratitude for permission to speak the way their taty does. David Herskovic 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 8 Jan 1997 01:11:21 -0500 (EST) From: savoyid@aol.com Subject: Mendele un derekh-erets With regard to the mean spirited tone of some recent postings that Marjorie Hirshan has aptly characterized as "bullying", may I say to all those on this list who share her concerns, that they can only bully us to the extent that we allow ourselves to be bullied. Why not simply ignore the self-appointed _baleyoyetsim_ who come forth with their gratuitous advice on how we ought to behave ourselves, Yiddishwise? Correcting a Yiddish misstep that may be less than graceful can be done with _khsodimdikayt_. But when it's done with bitterness and condescending sarcasm it deserves nothing better than to be disdained and ignored. So let's just brush aside the postings of those who will continue to dazzle us with their matchless Yiddish refinement and mind-blowing erudition. And let those of us who revel in the Yiddish language resume sharing with each other the joyous and pleasure-giving Yiddish expressions _vos mir hobn geyarshnt_ from our parents. Mit file yidishe grusn, Al Grand 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 8 Jan 97 15:43:51 EST From: dave@cai.lsuc.on.ca Subject: Microwave oven af yidish We use mikro-khvalnik at home with our kids. (Except when we get lazy, and use maykroweyv.) David Sherman Toronto 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 09 Jan 1997 00:07:33 +0100 From: doctorkf@gte.net Subject: Microwave oven af yidish Vegn vi m'zogt "micro-wave oven" af yidish: mir in chicago nitsn oder "mikro oyvn" oder "gikh oyvn." Khane-Faygl Turtletaub 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 8 Jan 1997 17:38:02 -0500 (EST) From: yivo1@metgate.metro.org Subject: Khezhbm/kheshbn "Khezhbm" is only a *rough* transcription for the way Dr. Mordkhe Schaechter taught us how to pronounce the now notorious word. Not being a linguist I hestitate to formulate it this way, but it's essentially one elongated syllable, and not two (khezh-bm). The "m" is all but swallowed at the end. There must be more scientific ways of rendering it phonetically. (Cf. the swallowed "n" in "khapn.") Zachary M. Baker 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 8 Jan 1997 19:53:57 -0500 From: 105341.3550@compuserve.com Subject: Nevura About "nevura." My mother, who hails from Lodz, is well aware of the term. She says that it was commonly used among Yiddish-speakers in Lodz, and especially in Baluty, in the form of "zug mir di nevuret," meaning "tell me the truth." Or, "ikh vel dir zugn di nevuret," "I will tell you the truth." She speculates that the word is a corruption of the German "warheit" (truth). Goldie Morgentaler Montreal, Canada ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 6.194