Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 10.054 April 26, 2001 1) New stories in Onkelos (Noyekh Miller, Leonard Prager) 2) Levi Yitzchak's kaddish (Ruben Frankenstein) 3) Weinreich quote and Yiddish in Czech literature (Paul (Hershl) Glasser) 4) Yugntruf-Yidish-vokh 2001 (Shoshke-Rayzl Juni) 5) Gender-neutral names (Yankev Berger) 6) Gender-neutral names (Zachary Baker) 7) Gender-neutral names (Mechl Asheri) 8) Yiddish language teaching position (Jeffrey Shandler) 9) Journal "National Identities" (Arieh Lebowitz) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Apr 2001 12:50:01 -0400 From: Norman Miller Subject: New stories in Onkelos Four new stories in modern Yiddish have been added to Onkelos: Peretz's "oyb nisht mor hekher", transcribed by Morrie Heller. Sholem-Aleykhem's "dreyfus in kasrilevke", transcribed by Berish Goldstein. Peretz's "mekubolim", transcribed by Benjamin Sadock. Lamed Shapiro's "der rov un di rebitsin", transcribed by Alicia Ramos Gonzalez. http://www2.trincoll.edu/~mendele/onkelos.htm. And coming soon: Lamed Shapiro's "gegesene teg", transcribed by Jan Jonk. An English translation of these stories, as with the others in Onkelos, is to be found in Howe and Greenberg's _A Treasury of Yiddish Stories_, Penguin. Noyekh Miller Leonard Prager 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 05:24:25 -0500 (EST) From: frankens@uni-freiburg.de Subject: Levi Yitzchak's kaddish To Larry Rosenwalds query about Levi Yitzchak's kaddish, an excellent source Chaim Kotylansky?s "Folks-Gezangen" Los Angeles 1944, with text, translation, explanatory notes in yiddish and english and piano arrangements. Here the text of the song, which is originally called: "A Din Toire mit Got" A gut morgn dir, riboinoi shel oilom ich, Leivi Itzchok ben Sore m?Barrditshev, bin gekumen tzu dir mit a din toire fun dain folk yisroeil vos hostu zich ongezetzt oif dain folk yisroeil? az vu nor epes a hor, iz - "dabeir el b?nei yisroeil" un vu nor epes a zach, iz - "tzav es b?nnei yisroeil" un vu nor epes a rir, iz - "emoir el b?nei yisroeil" tatenyu ziser in himl! kamo umois yesh booilom: modayim, parsayim, bavlayim, di Ruslener vos zogn? - az zeier keiser iz keiser un di Daitshlender vos zogn? - az zeier malchus iz malchus un di Englender vos zogn? - az zeier kenig iz kenig un ich, Leivi Itzchok ben Sore m?Barditshev, zog: "Hamelech hayoisheiv al kisei rom v?niso" un ich, Leivi Itzchok ben Sore m?Barditshev, hob ober noch epes tzu zogn: loi ozuz poi mimkoimi - ich vel mich fun main ort nisht rirn un a sof zol dos nemen! un an?ek zol dos nemen! Hamelech hayoisheiv al kisei rom v?niso" You should note that "ch" is always to read as "kh". Ruben Frankenstein, Freiburg 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 14:10:36 -0500 (EST) From: Paul Glasser Subject: Weinreich quote and Yiddish in Czech literature I was very glad to have the reference for the Weinreich quote - I did not realize that it had appeared in print. Thanks! On the matter of how much Yiddish was known/used by Czech Jews in the early 20th century, the short stories of the Czech-Jewish writer Karel Polacek are informative. I recall one story that uses a number of Yiddish words, mostly of Hebrew origin (e.g., names of holidays), but not only. I could provide specific references if necessary. Paul (Hershl) Glasser 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 5 Apr 2001 09:22:02 -0400 (EDT) From: "Susannah R. Juni" Subject: Yugntruf-Yidish-vokh 2001! ENGLISH BELOW Yugntruf-Yidish-vokh 2001! Di hayyorike vokh in yidish-land, vu di bateylikte bamien zikh tsu redn nor yidish, vet forkumen fun DONERSHTIK, DEM 23STN OYGUST BIZ MITVOKH, DEM 29STN OYGUST 2001, in Berkshire Hills Emanuel Adult Vacation Center in Copake, New York. Yugntruf Yugnt far Yidish tsilevet deroyf, az der yingerer - vi oykh der elterer - dor zol hobn gelegnhaytn zikh oystsulebn af yidish. Bateylikte af der yidish-vokh zenen nisht-baporte, yunge porlekh un yidish-redndike mishpokhes, mit hanokhes far studentn arbet-shtudirnikes. Eltere kumen oykh. S'iz do a shvimbaseyn un a prekhtik sheyne ozere. Ale aktivitetn zenen af yidish, tsvishn zey: sport, folkstents, yoga, lektsyes, diskusyes, a leyenkrayz, lager-fayern, a talantarnye, kontsertn, filmen, a teglekher yidish-klas far avansirte onheybers un organizirte programen far kinder. Dos esn vet zayn kosher, mit vegetarishe breyres. Shabes vet men kenen davenen in shil. Di yidish-vokh hot zikh oysgefuremt a mishpokhedik svivele, vu undzere mitglider firn on mit di lektsyes, diskusyes un varshtatn. Undzere mitglider nemen arayn profesorn, aktivistn, mekhabrim un muzikers, vos teyln zikh mit zeyer visn, talant un libshaft tsu mame-loshn. Teyl af der yidish-vokh zenen gevorn gute-fraynd afn lebn; teyl hobn khasene gehat un kumen tsurik yedn zumer! REGISTRIR-TERMIN - shikt dem rezervir-boygn mitn tshek (af Amerikaner dolarn, oysgeshtelt tsu "Yugntruf") bizn 29stn Yuni. NOKH PROTIM - Yugntruf, 200 West 72 Street #40, New York, NY 10023-2824, USA; (212) 989-0212; yvokh@yugntruf.org; http://www.yugntruf.com Ale vos registrirn zikh veln bakumen a briv di ershte vokh Oygust mit di andere neytike protim vegn der Yidish-vokh 2001. This year's week-long retreat, where we strive to speak only Yiddish, will be held THURSDAY, AUGUST 23 through WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2001, at the Berkshire Hills Emanuel Adult Vacation Center in Copake, New York. The goal of Yugntruf, Youth for Yiddish, is to provide the younger generation and the older with opportunities for Yiddish immersion. Participants in the yidish-vokh are singles, couples and Yiddish-speaking families, with work-study discounts for students. Seniors are also welcome. There's a swimming pool and a beautiful lake. All activities are in Yiddish, including sports, folk-dancing, yoga, lectures, discussions, literary readings, campfire singing, talent show, concerts, films, Yiddish classes for the advanced beginner and organized programs for children. The food is kosher, with vegetarian options. On shabes, services will be available. The yidish-vokh is a real community, in which our members give the lectures, lead discussions and workshops. Our members include professors, activists, writers and musicians who share their knowledge, talent and love of mame-loshn. Many at the yidish-vokh have made lifelong friends; some have married each other and now return every summer! TO REGISTER - Return application with FULL PAYMENT (payable to Yugntruf, in US dollars) by June 29. MORE INFO - Yugntruf, 200 W. 72 St. #40, NY, NY 10023-2824, USA; (212) 989-0212; yvokh@yugntruf.org or visit Yugntruf web site http://www.yugntruf.com click on Calendar, and then Yidish-Vokh from the web site. All who register will receive a letter in the first week of August with the other necessary details about the trip. Shoshke-Rayzl Juni 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 6 Apr 2001 18:42:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Jack Berger Subject: Gender-neutral names With regard to the question on gender-neutral names, in my translation of the Dereczin Memorial Book, I encountered the "Last Will & Testament of Simkheh die Kremerkeh." Clearly a female storekeeper named Simkheh. Chag Sameach! Yankev Berger 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 6 Apr 2001 19:18:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Zachary Baker Subject: Gender-neutral names Re Yankev Lewis's posting [10.052] concerning "gender-neutral" names in Yiddish, specifically the Berl in Frume-Berl. Alexander Beider's forthcoming book, "A Dictionary of Ashkenazic Given Names," sheds light on that particular name. According to Beider, the feminine name Berl derives from Perle (and not from the masculine name Ber, which has a different etymology). In his entry for Perle he cites German Jewish sources for Berl (or Berle) dating back to the 14th century, claiming that "the forms starting with _Ber-_ are unknown outside of Germany." Depending on the geographic origins of the Frume-Berl in question, Beider may wish to revise this particular statement. "A Dictionary of Ashkenazic Given Names" is scheduled to be published by Avotaynu (a publisher of genealogical books in Bergenfield, NJ). I have been granted a sneak preview and in my opinion it is an absolutely prodigious work of scholarship. Zachary Baker Stanford, CA 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2001 16:31:36 -0400 (EDT) From: "Donn O'Meara" Subject: Gender-neutral names In answer to the recent communication in "Mendele" regarding gender-neutral names [10.052], the two examples mentioned are quite peculiar in nature, but well-defined. In brief, Yona (Yoine) is always a man's name among Ashkenazim and always a woman's among Sephardim. I say "always" only because I don't know of any cases to the contrary: the two that you cite should be looked into from that perspective.Of course there is a sort of explanation which may explain its use among Ashkenazim: Yona is the prophet's name, all right, but it also means "dove". In other words two separate names are involved. The case of Simcha is similar: it is an Ashkenazi man's name but a Sephardi woman's name. But here no such ambiguity is involved. As for "Frume-Berl", I wonder if somewhere along the line this wasn't intended to be Frume-Perl. I have real difficulty in believing that Berl, which is a diminutive of Ber (Dov) could really be applied to a woman, unless, perhaps, her English name is Beryl and it was somehow combined with the Jewish name Frume (Pia or Chasida). There is a parallel in other languages: Carmen, a common man's name in Italian is always, as far as I know, only a woman's name in Spanish (my home language). In the latter language it is short for Mar?del Carmen the explanation of its use in Italian, I don^? know. The same holds for Evelyn which is fairly common among men in England, but I know of no case in the United States. Carol and Robin, on the other hand are genuinely gender-neutral names on both sides of the ocean, though far less in the States than in England. Florence is gender-neutral but only among the Irish. In Yiddish the nearest thing to a gender-neutral name I can think of is Nuche, which is spelled with a "chaf" for women and a "ches" for men and represents in reality two quite distinct names (Menuche and Menachem) even if they are pronounced the same in the apocopated form. With regards, Mechl Asheri (Donn O'Meara) 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 14 Apr 2001 10:20:56 -0400 (EDT) From: JAShandler@aol.com Subject: Yiddish language teaching position Rutgers University seeks a teacher of Elementary Yiddish for the 2001-2002 academic year. The year-long course, which meets 3 times a week, provides students with an introduction to reading, writing, and speaking standard Yiddish, focusing on fundamentals of grammar, basic vocabulary, as well as familiarizing students with a range of songs and other introductory cultural texts. All those interested in applying for the position should contact me at the telephone number, fax, address, or email listed below. Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life Rutgers University 12 College Avenue New Brunswick, NJ 08901 Tel: 732-932-3573 Fax: 732-932-3052 Email: shandler@rci.rutgers.edu Many thanks, Jeffrey Shandler 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 13:09:17 -0500 (EST) From: "Arieh Lebowitz" Subject: Journal "National Identities," calls for papers/articles/reviews CALL FOR PAPERS for the journal "National Identities". 'National Identities' is a scholarly, peer-reviewed journal that appears three times a year. It focusses upon national identities and their relationship between territory, political structures and cultural traditions. We believe that national identities are primarily constructed and are not confined to what is called the nation as it is understood in the Western world since the late c18th. We encourage scholars from various disciplines to explore the ways social, political and regional groups constructed their identities, to what aims and how these identity constructions and images have changed through time. For further information see: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/ Arieh Lebowitz ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 10.054 Address for the postings to Mendele: mendele@lists.yale.edu Address for the list commands: listproc@lists.yale.edu Mendele on the Web: http://www.mendele.net http://ibiblio.org/yiddish/mendele.html