Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 10.026 July 3, 2000 1) Yosl Mlotek iz avek in der eybikeyt (Leybl Botvinik) 2) oyf un af (Lori Cahan-Simon) 3) opkirtzungs leksikon (Yankev Berger) 4) Peretz's tsvey brider in English (Ron Biderman) 5) Peretz in Spanish (Marcos Levin) 6) purimshpil (Yankev Berger) 7) Alter Esselin web page (Joseph Esselin) 8) dalfen (Gilad J. Gevaryahu) 9) der kabtsn (Mendy Fliegler) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 3 Jul 2000 02:20:17 -0400 (EDT) From: Leybl Botwinik Subject: Yosl Mlotek iz avek in der eybikeyt es tut mir zeyer leyd vos der vunderbarer folksmentsh, yosl mlotek iz avek oyf der eybikeyt. dos iz zikher a groyser klap far zayn mishpokhe un fraynt, un avade far undser azoy opgeshvakhter yidisher kultur-velt. mayn tifster mitgefil khanen un di zin moyshe un zalmen mit zeyere mishpokhes, vi oykh zyn shvester sore rozenfeld un ir mishpokhe. zoln zayne maasim zayn far unds a treyst un a likht vos zol far unds shaynen in der finsternish. eybik zayn ondenk leybl botvinik yisroyl 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 15:30:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Lori Cahan-Simon Subject: oyf un af I have a question as to the pronunciation of vav, yud, fey. I generally see it written as oyf, but have been told that it is generally pronounced af. Nu, who says what in what dialect? And then, what about vav, yud, fey, nun? Is it oyfn or afn, as in oyfn pripetshik (or is it pripitshok?) I know it is not this simple, but what does a "standard" Yiddish "du" speaker say as opposed to a "di" speaker? Help me, please! A hartsikn dank in foroys, Lorele Cahan-Simon 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 18:36:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Jack Berger Subject: opkirtzungs leksikon If khaver Sterlin is specifically interested in the opkirtzung Alef, Alef, Vov, Vov, I believe it to be for "Un Azoy Veiter," which might be the equivalent of writing "etc." in English. Regards Yankev Berger 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 1 Jul 2000 15:01:18 -0400 (EDT) From: "Ron Biderman" Subject: Peretz's tsvey brider in English Does anyone know of an English translation of peretz' poem tzvey brider? Ron Biderman 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2000 08:13:32 -0400 (EDT) From: marcos levin Subject: Peretz in Spanish I am very thankful to Mr. Taube for the information about Peretz' works translated into Spanish. About the IWO library in Burnos Aires: as far as I remember, this library was at AMIA building. Once, in 1957, I have been one ofthe readers there, not Peretz, but Chemistry. If it is so, I am afraid, what has been the fate of that library, when the AMIA building was blown by an explosion, some years ago. As far as I have been kindly illustrated by Mr. Taube and some other khaverim, I assume that either Peretz has been translated into Spanish long time ago, or/and his translated works are a small part of his writings.My intention is to go on and to translate his works, as far as I am able to, into panish. The contexts of Peretz' stories and tales is akin to the metaphysical and social atmosphere of the writings of many South American writers and authors, specially the modern ones. Marcos Levin 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2000 11:27:48 -0400 (EDT) From: Jack Berger Subject: purimshpil The translation of khaver Steinlauf's excerpt (10.025) is pretty straightforward. The interpretation is not evident without some further context. I have not seen this before, and would like to know what some of the preceeding dialogue was leading up to this exchange. Regards Yankev Berger 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2000 17:20:21 -0400 (EDT) From: "josephesselin" Subject: Alter Esselin web page "Honey and Arsenic" is the title of the web site devoted to the Yiddish poet Alter Esselin (1889-1974) The site was created by his son, Joseph: features 75 of Esselin's poems in both English translation and the Yiddish originals. Selected from the hundreds of bittersweet lyrical poems that appeared in his three books, including the 1954 Kovner Prize Winning volume, Lider fun a Midbarnik (Poems of a Hermit). Plus critical commentary, biographical memoirs, significant documents, portrait gallery, and audio interviews. The site address is http://www.esselin.com. Joseph Esselin 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2000 17:41:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Gevaryahu@aol.com Subject: etymology of "dalfen" I am not a linguist and the discussion below is a speculation. Dalfon in modern Hebrew is a poor person. According to both Gur and Even Shoshan dictionaries this is a relatively new word to the Hebrew. Even Shoshan dates it to the haskala period (~1700s) and Gur to 'sifrut me'ucheret' probably referring to the same haskala period. I suspect that in the haskala period the term 'dalfon,' with the meaning of poor person was borrowed by the Hebrew from Yiddish. Even Shoshan suggested that the meaning is based on a folkloric Midrash of Megilat Esther (9:7) based on 'Dalfon' the name of the second son of Haman, and because it has the 'dal' (=poor person) prefix to it. (Even Shoshan in 7 Volumes, Jerusalem 1966, 1st Vol. p. 435) I speculate that because poor Dalfon not only was hung (or crucified) in the story, he was decapitated first according to the Tosafot based on the Targum (Yoma 31a, s.v. amah.) So he had all the trimming to depict a real poor person, a true loser. Weinreich list it on page 655 as 'poor man,' but Harkavy, Yiddish-English Dictionary, 1898, as 'poor devil.' The 'devil' in Harkavy is to give us that extra dimension of the true loser, he was decapitated and hung. Note that Harkavy explained the other three terms: 'evion,' 'ani,' and 'orim' as poor or needy man without the 'devil.' So initially 'dalfon' might have had an extra dimetion of poorness. Note that 'dalfon' is not only Haman's son, but it was also used for the big fish. Today this fish is called 'dolphin' in Hebrew and in English, but Rambam called it 'dalfon' (Yad, Ma'achalot Asurot 2:12). But this meaning has nothing to do with the discussion. In modern Hebrew a person who leaks information is a 'madlif,' but this one comes form 'dolef,' (=leaks), a word used for leaky liquids. In Aramaic it is used also for leaks (Jastrow, p. 311.) I do not think that the 'leak' meaning has anything to do with the 'poor' meaning. Gilad J. Gevaryahu 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2000 22:26:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Mendy Fliegler Subject: der kabtsn...a poeme far Mendlyaner.. Far ale Mendlyaner iz es mir ongekumen az ikh zol araynshikn a shtikl arbet. Ikh hof az es vet aykh gefeln.. Mendy Fliegler Der Kabtsn A Rikhtiker Mentsh fun Mendy Fliegler Di Mame: Hot im keynmol nisht gezogt Az "ven du vest oysvaksn... Vestu zayn a kabtsn." Zi hot im keynmol nisht dertseylt Vos a kabtsn tut, un vi er lebt. Un der Tate: Hot im keynmol nisht gelernt: ...Vi azoy tsu zayn a kabtsn. ...Fun vanen tsu krign di kabtsn-vare... Un vi azoy men ken es farkoyfn... Un tsu vemen tsu farkoyfn. Vi azoy kumt es? Tsu visn vegn kemlakh, shpilkes, Shikh bendlakh, hor-bendlakh, Kneplakh, vayberishe tshatshkes, Lyalkes un shmontses, a shteyger?? Ver hot im dos gelernt?? Un amol khapt zikh aroys... A meydl, a kabtsnte!! Un fun vanen lernt zi zikh oys aza fakh? Herts oys...efsher ken men gefinen... Dem Lerer?? Der vos iz amol geven.. Der Risiker, Ershter, KABTSN?? Avu ken men im gefinen? Zayts mir moykhl, Ober a kabtsn meg nisht zayn a shnorer, Khas v'kholile! eyner vos fardint nisht gornisht... Ober a Kabtsn? Er iz take...A rikhtiker Mentsh!! ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 10.026 Address for the postings to Mendele: mendele@lists.yale.edu Address for the list commands: listproc@lists.yale.edu Mendele on the Web: http://mendele.commons.yale.edu http://metalab.unc.edu/yiddish/mendele.html 0