f
Mendele: Yiddish literature and language
______________________________________________________
Contents of Vol. 14.033
February 22, 2005

1) Bum in Yiddish (Zulema Seligsohn)
2) Bum in Yiddish (M. Ronn)
3) Bum in Yiddish (Jack S. Berger)
4) spodek and shtrayml (Lazar Greisdorf)
5) Sefardim and Yiddish (Gille Rozier)
6) Chofetz Chaim (Hershl Bershady)
7) Yiddish curricula (Elizabeth Loentz)

Visit Mendele on the Web: http://www.mendele.net

1)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 21, 2005
Subject: Re Bum in Yiddish

"trombenik" does appear in Harkavy, but under neologisms.  The meaning given
is "sponger or parasite."  In the regular text, "tromben" is referred to
"truben," and the meaning is straight "blowing a trumpet" and not pejorative.

"toygenikhts" is "good-for-nothing," but with the meaning of "ne'er-do-well."
A "leydikgeyer" used to be a bum, one not just unemployed but not really
looking for work, a habitual "bum."

Zulema Seligsohn

2)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 21, 2005
Subject: Re: Bum in Yiddish

Paul Ilie [Mendele 14.032] noted the word "trumbernik" which he heard used as
a "bum." The word appears on p. 552 of Harkavy as "trombenik" and is defined
as a "sponger" or a "parasite." "Trombe" denotes either a trumpeet or a trunk.

Many might refer to a "bum" in Yiddish as a "leydikgeyer" or a "batlen,"
among many other synonyms in Yiddish.

M. Ronn
Brooklyn, NY

3)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 21, 2005
Subject: Re: Bum in Yiddish

I think the word is trombenik.

My guess is that it may be a pejorative reference to a trombone player, not
unlike the American reference to a saxophone player, i.e. someone not good for
much else..... I think there is a American-Yiddish song, or expression,
somewhere or another, that has a reference of this sort to a 'Saxophone
shpiller.'

I think musicians were, in fact, considered 'bad' in the sense that they were
not the type of people considerd to be able to earn a steady income, support a
family, etc.

Jack S. Berger

4)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 21, 2005
Subject: spodek and shtrayml

I am also familiar with the expression, fardrey mir nit dem spodek, which
means roughly, don't bother me, or, I'm wise to your tricks. Spodek is simply
a saucer. Mention of a 'shtrayml' you will find toward the end of _tevye der
milkhiker_. Fun a khazershn ek ken men keyn shtrayml nit makhn.  The English
equivalent is, you can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear.

Lazar Greisdorf

5)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 21, 2005
Subject: Sefardim and Yiddish

As an answer to Alan B. Berkowitz's query (Mendele 14.031):

There are some other examples of Sefardim learning Yiddish.
1. A cousin of mine, born in Jerusalem in the 1920's from parents
coming from Greece and Yougoslavia (Sefardic Jews), learnt Yiddish when
playing in the streets of the old Yishouv city of Jerusalem, where both
communities, Ashkenazim and Sefardim, were living together.

2. I met once a Jew from Tunisia who learnt Yiddish when he was
imprisoned during about one year in a camp in Cyprus before the
creation of the state of Israel, after having tried to immigrate
illegally to Palestine. Most of the prisoners were Jews from Eastern
Europe, from the shayres hapleyte, and one of the most popular
languages of the camp was Yiddish.

3. Haim Vidal Sephiha, as French specialist of Judezmo and Ladino,
learnt Yiddish during his deportation in Auschwitz.

4. In Paris, you would meet a few decades ago, Sefardic employees in
Ashkenazic Kosher butcheries, who had quite a good knowledge of
Yiddish, just because they heard the conversations between their boss
and the clients.

5. At the Paris Medem Library, we sometimes receive young men who want
to buy our Yiddish-French dictionary because they are plaaning to study
in a Yeshiva in Manchester or in Jerusalem, and the only language of
teaching is Yiddish. So I guess that those people learn Yiddish in the
following months after their visit.

Gilles Rozier

6)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 22, 2005
Subject: Re: Chofetz Chaim

To the fellow Mendelyaners who responded so wonderfully and knowledgeably to
my question on the identity and meaning of the Chofetz Chaim, I give my
thanks.  It is a part of relatively recent Jewish history about which I knew
nothing and now know a little bit.  I am not a Yiddish scholar and too full of
years to pursue this subject very far.  Still, it is good to learn.

Hershl Bershady

7)----------------------------------------------------
Date: February 22, 2005
Subject: Yiddish general education/diversity curricula

I am currently applying to my university for support for several Yiddish
courses, and I would like to give the reviewers an idea of how our current
courses correspond to those taught in other universities or colleges. We
currently offer two courses:

1) Introduction to Yiddish Literature and Culture (Germanic Studies 123/Jewish
Studies 123): This is an undergraduate course taught in English. It counts for
Humanities Course Distribution Credit and Cultural Diversity Credit.

2) Yiddish for Reading Knowledge (Germanic Studies 404): This course teaches
reading proficiency only. It is open to graduate students and upper-level
undergraduates who are already proficient in German.

I would appreciate it very much, if those of you who teach Yiddish at the
college/university level could tell me the following:

1) Does your college/university offer Yiddish literature in translation (NOT
Jewish literature or American Jewish literature with a Yiddish component) at
the undergraduate level?

If yes, is this course for Jewish Studies or Yiddish majors/minors or is it a
general education course? Can students earn cultural diversity credit for this
course? What are your typical enrollments? Does your university have a Jewish
Studies minor or major? Does your university have a large Jewish student
community? Do many non-Jewish students take this course?

2) Do you offer Yiddish for Reading Knowledge?

Please feel free to respond privately (loentz@uic.edu). I will be happy to
tell you about our courses, if you are interested. Thank you in advance for
the information.

Elizabeth Loentz

______________________________________________________
End of Mendele Vol. 14.033

Address for the postings to Mendele: mendele@lists.yale.edu
Address for the list commands: listproc@lists.yale.edu