Mendele: Yiddish literature and language
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Contents of Vol. 10.025
July 2, 2000

1) dalfen (J.B. den Besten)
2) Musical memories (Lucas Bruyn)
3) kale gevorn (Mikhl Herzog)
4) di zogerke (Sylvia Schildt)
5) di zogerke (Itsik Shteyn)
6) Pledge of Allegiance (Shloyme-Khayim Cohen)
7) Yiddish song books (Chane Honig)
8) "zay mir nit keyn feter.." (Lilian Dubb)
9) purimshpil (Moyshe-Shaye Steinlauf)

1)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 06:41:10 -0400 (EDT)
From: "J.B. den Besten" <h.den.besten@hum.uva.nl>
Subject: etymology of "dalfen"

In Dutch etymological discussions re "dalven" 'to beg, to vagabond' it is
universally assumed that yidd. "dalfen" 'poor man, pauper' derives from
hebr. "Dalfo:n", the name of one of the sons of Haman (scroll of Esther).

Now this is in accordance with the official spelling of "dalfen" of course,
which is <dlpwn>, but the everage Dutch etymologist cannot read Yiddish and
their universal belief re "dalfen" goes back to Voorzanger & Polak's book
on Dutch Yiddish (1915), where it is claimed that "Dalfo:n/Dalfen" could
acquire the meaning of 'poor man' because Dalfo:n is the sole one among
Haman's sons whose name does not contain an 'alef, which letter can be
related to concepts like 'thousand' and 'prince' (hebr. "'elef" and
"'alu:f" resp.).

This is an ingenious but rather fanciful etymology, however, and Voorzanger
& Polak concede that there may be alternatives. All alternatives I know of
somehow try to read hebr./yidd. "dal" 'poor' into "dalfen". [And Voorzanger
& Polak's alternative is again a very fanciful one, which I shall not
discuss here.]

My own hunch is that this is not good enough and that "dalfen" should be
analyzed as a Hebrew "-a:n" agentive, either as a direct descendant of
something like "*dalfa:n" or -- less likely -- as a folk-etymological
reinterpretation of "Dalfen" (< "Dalfo:n") as an "-en" agentive due to "dal".

My reasons for assuming this are the following:

(a)	The plural of "dalfen" is "dalfonim". [Cf. "lamden" - "lamdonim", etc.]
(b)	In West Yiddish there was an abstract noun "dalfones", comparable to
	"lamdones', etc.
(c)	On the basis of Bargoens and Rotwelsch evidence we may reconstruct a
	West Yiddish verb "dalfenen" 'to beg, to vagabond', which clearly
	derives from "dalfen", comparable to the derivation of de-agentive
	"-enen" verbs in Yiddish. [Cf. Neil Jacobs's 1989 article.]

Originally I did not dare to relate "dalfen" to the Hebrew root DLP 'to
leak, to drip -- partly because I overlooked the fact that "-a:n" just like
its Germanic counterpart "-er" has meanings going beyond a simple
agentive/instrumental reading. However, Shlomo Berger pointed out to me
that there is a Hebrew noun "dalfa:n" meaning 'somebody leaking' and he
suggests that this may be a case of semantic specialization. i.e. somebody
who leaks remains with nothing, ergo a poor man.

Now I would like to ask the readers of this list:

- Is there literature on this subject (the etymology of "dalfen")?
- What is known about the history of hebr. "dalfa:n"?
- When and why was it decided to write "dalfen" as <dlpwn>?

Please (also) send your replies to:

	h.den.besten@hum.uva.nl

Hans den Besten

2)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 07:11:23 -0400 (EDT)
From: Marion Troia/Lucas Bruyn <troia@wxs.nl>
Subject: Musical memories

In I. Kotik's "Mayne Zikhroynes" the author gives 4 short scores of music
composed by r' Yisroel, a Kostker Khosid, born in Serdlets, Poland ,who
lived in Kamenits with Kotik's grand-parents and father after the death of
his father in law, Mr. Eliezer. He was married to Sore-Beyle (who had two
brothers) and they had a daughter, Zisele. He died in Warsaw after the
Polish uprising of 1863. In Vol, I Chapt 5 we learn: "keyn notn hot er nisht
gekent, ..."

The scores were written out by Mr. Peysekh Kaplan, while Kotik sang him the
tunes from memory. There are two Polish Marches, a Cossack March and a
'nign'.

The melodies by Mr. Yisroel form an integral part of Kotik's memoirs, he
refers to them throughout the book. At the time Kotik wrote his memoirs
pianos were a standard item in a middle-class household and many of his
readers might have played the tune.

I wonder whether someone on the list could computerize these literary tunes,
to make them audible on computer by clicking a 'hotspot' in the electronic
text. I could scan the scores and attach them as graphic files to an E-mail
message.

Lucas Bruyn

3)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 27 Jun 2000 00:31:12 -0400 (EDT)
From: "marvin herzog" <mherzog@bestweb.net>
Subject: kale gevorn

[re: 10.023]

Not I!! I didn't cite the phrase "di kahle iz kayle gevorn" .... Please look
again. This is another example of "shraybn noyekh mit zibn grayzn".

Mikhl Herzog

4)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 11:53:31 -0400 (EDT)
From: Sylvia Schildt <creativa@charm.net>
Subject: di zogerke

Vegn "di zogerke" oder "zogerin" (10.024):

Rohkl Brokhes hot ongeshribn a kurtze maysele, ibergezetzed fun der khaverte
Shirley Kumove. Di iberzetung gefint zikh in s'bukh "Found Treasures "ISBN
0-929005-53-8.

Ikh tzitir fun araynfir  tzu der maysele (af english)...

     The zogerin is  virtually unheard of in Jewish communities today but in
     the communities of Eastern Europe she played a central in women's
     religious participation.

     .. To counteract their distance from what they consdered holy, women
     designated a zogerin, a speaker or teller -- a position which was
     highly respected and admired. The zogerin read the prayers aloud the
     women, leading them in the service. The zogerin had a special
     significance in representing the illiterate. Individual women would
     also ask her to intercede on their behalf for something personal ...
     from the serious, like the health of a child, to the more material or
     frivolous.

Sylvia Schildt
Baltimore, Maryland

5)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 1 Jul 2000 11:50:31 -0400 (EDT)
From: shteyn@juno.com
Subject: di zogerke

mayn mame o"h flegt nutzn dos vort"firzugern"oyf tsu batseykhenen a froy,
wos hot gut gekent di tfiles (basunders fun rosh hashune un yom kipur) un
flegt sey "firsugen" in der vayberisher shul far di andere froyen, velkhe
fleygn ir getray nokhzogn. Harkavi taytsht azoy i dos vort"zogerke" (zayt
213) i dos vort"firzugern" (zayt 408). mayn mame o"h flegt nokh dertseyln a
vitz:"der firzogerns meydele is aroyfgekumen in der vayberisher shul un hot
gemont essen. hot ir di firzogern oysgesungen mit dem selben nigun fun di
tfiles:"gey aheym un nem dir a shtikl koyletsh mit dimpekhts (flomen
ayngemakhts) un es". ale vayber hobn dos nokhgesogt". zayt ale gesund,

itsik shteyn

6)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 13:16:41 -0400 (EDT)
From: Steve Cohen <scohen@rutchem.rutgers.edu>
Subject: "Pledge of Allegiance" in Yiddish

Mayn kimat 4-yoriker heybt on zikh lernen dem tsuzog der amerikanisher fon
("The Pledge of Allegiance") in zayn biz-shul klas (af English). Tsi hot men
a tekst af yidish fun di verter? Far di vos voynen nit in di Fareynikte
Shtatn, me zogt ale tog in onheyb fun shul ot-di verter, mit der rekhter
hand ibern harts:

     I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to
     the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible,
     with liberty and justice for all.

Ikh vil mit mayn zun praktikirn af Yidish oykh.

My nearly 4-year-old is beginning to learn the Pledge of Allegiance in his
pre-school class in English. Does anyone have a Yidish text of the words?
For those of us who don't live in the USA, you say it at the beginning of
the school-day, while placing the right hand over your heart. (The words are
given above.)

I would like to practice with my son the Pledge in Yiddish

Shloyme-Khayim (Steve) Cohen

7)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 13:54:26 -0400 (EDT)
From: Alice Honig <ahonig@mailbox.syr.edu>
Subject: Yiddish song books

Gloria Cohen hot gefregt vegn yiddishe lider.  Ich hob gekoyft a sach bicher
mit lider..vunderbar f..vi Pearls of Yiddish SOng...at the Workman's Circle
Bookstore in Manhattan. they are a treasure trove!>

also, i ordered years ago.. many second avenue yiddish sheet music songs
from the Yiddish BOok Center in Amherst Massachusetts. nu,gay und koif..und
kvell fun a sach yiddishe lider.!

chane honig

8)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 14:37:48 -0400 (EDT)
From: "lilian dubb" <lildubb@iafrica.com>
Subject: "zay mir nit keyn feter.."

"zay mir nit keyn feter un ney mir nit keyn shich"  an expression used in
the handing over of the money  after paying a debt. I learnt Yiddish from my
parents who were from Lithuania, Poneveyz and Vilna and emigrated to South
Africa in mid twenties. Has anyone out there any explanation of this rather
strange saying? Many thanks!

Lilian Dubb

9)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 15:14:15 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Michael Steinlauf" <msteinlauf@earthlink.net>
Subject: purimshpil

Would any of our kluge mendelyaner like to take a stab at the following
exchange from a purimshpil published by Noyekh Prilutski in 1917? It's from
an akeydes yitshok shpil, part of an insulting exchange between Avrom and
Sotn. Although it appears in Polish dialect, to make things easier I'm
transliterating it into standard Yiddish.

Avrom: To zogt mir, ven di tkufe falt?

Sotn: Di tkufe falt dray teg in rosh-hoydesh tamuz. Demolt iz groyse hitsn
un groyse blitsn un groyse glitshn. Es zenen aroysgegangen tsvey yunge
meydlekh, eyns fun zibetsik yor, un eyns fun akhtsik yor, un gefaln un zikh
tsebrokhn a beyn in marz [sic].

A sheynem dank,
Moyshe-Shaye Steinlauf

______________________________________________________
End of Mendele Vol. 10.025

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