Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ____________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 16.019 January 22, 2007 1) Itche Goldberg (Susan Goldberg) 2) der sotn tantst oyfn dakh (Yael Levine) 3) Jewish women in prewar Shanghai (Josh Fogel) 4) "Erets yisroel" (Bernard Katz) 5) va pyervoye (Perl Teitelbaum) 6) definite article before names (Martin Jacobs) 7) farheltenishmesik (Martin Jacobs) 8) Yiddish textbook for Swedish speakers (Marvin Zuckerman) 9) Yiddish for beginners (Berta Kipnis) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 11, 2007 Subject: Itche Goldberg As wonderful as it has been to read so many prominent obituaries about my father and to know that so many people are reading about him, I have been feeling that some essence of who he was still needs to be expressed and shared. The following, though still only a beginning, attempts to fill out the picture a bit. Susan Goldberg Our beloved Itche died at home in NYC on Dec. 27, at the age of 102. From the day when, a streetwise and spirited 14-year-old in WWI Warsaw, he talked his way into a teaching institute for much older students by assuring the director that if he didn't admit him it would be a loss for the Jewish people, Itche devoted his life to the perpetuation of the Yiddish language and its literature at their most elegant, nuanced and sophisticated, stressing the quality of that literature and placing it alongside other great world literature; and to the social and humanistic values of the secular Yiddish movement of which he was a leader, values that emphasized the worth and dignity of the common people and the importance of freedom and justice for all people. He was a master of the language, a mesmerizing teacher, a compelling speaker and writer, and a critic and publisher of other Yiddish writers and poets. His friends were the many writers, artists, actors, musicians and activists of the international Yiddish community, as well as hundreds and hundreds of ex-students, representing every decade from the 1920s on. Warm, sharp, ironic, funny -Itche had time and space for everybody, no matter their size, their age, their position in life. He spoke with respect and interest to every person he encountered. It was never too late or too early to call him or to show up at his office for a cup of coffee, a parable, a conversation sprinkled with casual references to writers living and dead, quotations, fragments of poetry and song. He was charming, playful, and could be unexpectedly silly. He had a boundless capacity for friendship, and although he outlived all of his contemporaries and probably most in the generation after them, he continued to make new friends literally to the very end of his life, welcoming them to his home, his table, pulling them into his orbit, genuinely caring about them all. Most of all, he loved his family, and we all loved him beyond what words can express. His absence, his silenced presence, is tangible. He was always at the table, always with a book and pen in hand, always holding court. There were few dull moments around him; things, along with the coffee, were always percolating. He was the last in a family of six siblings, uncle to an array of nieces and nephews whom he loved. He never missed a performance or a graduation of his granddaughters, from preschool on. He was the first to arrive at the hospital to welcome the arrival of his great-grandchildren, whom he held and gazed at in wonderment for hours. He never missed a birthday and was always at pains to find the most fitting gift for each person. Most of all he loved and cherished Jennie, his wife of 66 years (and quite a few more years before that, if truth be known). He is survived by Jennie, who is 101; their children, Susan (and her partner Janet) and David (and his wife, Rita); his two adored granddaughters, Zoe (and her husband David) and Nana Catarina; and his adored great-grandchildren, Ollie (Yankl, to Itche) and Tessa. We love him and miss him already, and will miss him all the more as time goes on. He had no use for death--his own or that of his language. He published his last book (Esayen Tsvey) at 102, the last issue of his magazine (Yidishe Kultur) the year before. He was never ready to stop and would have continued if could have. He sang, recited, translated and quoted until his very last days. He refused to accept the murder of Yiddish and its literary figures as a final chapter, and he leaves us as his legacy, along with all of his scholarly and critical work, his optimism and determination that the language and all the words in which it has been given expression shall not die. Zog nit keyn mol az du geyst dem letstn veg! A memorial for Itche is being planned and will be announced soon. A fund is being set up in Itche's name to further the study of Yiddish literature. Donations can be sent to: The Itche Goldberg Memorial Fund c/o YIVO 15 W. 16th St. NYC, NY 10011 Attention: Ella Levine. 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 4, 2007 Subject: der sotn tantst oyfn dakh In a Yiddish story, I came across the expression "Der sotn tantst oyfn dakh." I was interested in knowing if anyone has encountered this expression in any text, or if anyone can offer any explanation or commentary. Yael Levine 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 8, 2007 Subject: Jewish women in prewar Shanghai A colleague in Chinese history and native Yiddish speaker in Israel wrote me recently of a project concerning two Jewish women who found themselves in Shanghai in the prewar era. "I am thinking of writing an essay about two Jewish ladies in China whose contribution is not negligible. One is Shoshana Kahan and her Yiddish Shanghai diary, but I must find out more about her life. The other is Luo Chen, or Rosenberg, from Poland who married a Chinese student in Paris, then wrote a marvelous book that became very popular and was made into a movie around 1930, a rather amazing film that was sent to me by a former student." If anyone knows anything about Shoshana Kahan's life, especially after coming to New York, please contact me, and I'll pass the information along. Many thanks in advance, Josh Fogel 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 8, 2007 Subject: "Erets yisroel" In Vol. 16.014 (Nov. 14, 2006) Meylekh Viswanath asked about "Erets Yisroel" (New York, 1918), concerning which I had sent a long posting to the list. Anticipating that the answers to his questions also may be of interest to others, and with apologies for my long delay I'm responding to the list. ...How far back does it go? Is it restricted to modern Times or does >it go back to antiquity? The book starts from the Biblical period and goes through post-Biblical Middle Ages and Renaissance - but in a very abbreviated form (Biblical to 1500 in about 40 pages). From the early modern period on, it goes into much more detail. The authors state their sources at the end of each chapter, and there are photographs and illustrations throughout. ...Where might one get a copy? That's a much more difficult question to answer. To the best of my knowledge, the book is not in print. The out-of-print ABE Web site , turns up three copies for sale: from $55 to the astonishing price of $350 USD! The prices reflect varying levels of condition. All copies are of the 1918 edition. Because the titles are transliterated differently, here are all three of the dealers: 1. $55 - Schwartz Judaica (San Diego), inventory # 001919. 2. $220 - The Book Gallery (Jerusalem), inventory # A 194 014. 3. $350 - Howard H. Weetall, Bookseller (Las Vegas), inventory # 3226. Bernard Katz P.S. a reproduced copy can also be obtained ($53 for non-members and $41 for members) from the digital library project of the National Yiddish Book Center - I should have thought of them! will lead you to their catalogue - try "Erets Yisroel: in fergangenheyt" as a title. 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 12, 2007 Subject: va pyervoye In response to Roby Newman's question about the meaning of the phrase Ven der keyzer Nikolay fayerve hot gehot a milkhome... The writer used the Russian word pyervyi = first, which makes the sentence about Nikolay the First. In the next sentence va pyervoye= first of all. Mir past nit azoy fil oystsushraybn undzere palazene vi shlekht va fayerve. Ikh ken nit aroysgeyn in gas vintertsayt... Translation: It isn't so appropriate for me to describe how bad our situation is. First of all, I cannot go outside during the winter. Paula/Perl Teitelbaum 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 12, 2007 Subject: definite article before names Is the definite article ever used with people's names, perhaps in informal colloquial speech? For example, can one say, "Di Ester iz gegangen in shul mit der Soren"? If so, does this apply to both men's and women's names ("Der Moyshe iz gegangen in shul mit dem Yankevn")? I know this is done in German (for example, in the operetta "Der Fledermaus," the character Ida is sometimes referred to as "die Ida") and I suspect in other languages too, but is it done in Yiddish? Martin Jacobs 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 12, 2007 Subject: farheltenishmesik Can anyone tell me what "farelt(e)nishmesik" means? It occurs in a yisker book for the town of Goworowo, Poland in the following contexts: 1) In farloyf fun der poylisher hershaft biz tsum letstn krigs-oysbrukh iz dos lebn in shtetl geflosn fareltnishmesik ruik. 2) Di fareltenishmesik nisht shlekhte virtshaftlekhe lage hot gehat ir opshpiglung in der gaystiker un kultureler antviklung fun shtetl. Martin Jacobs [Moderator's note: Martin Jacobs seems to mean here "farheltenishmesik," meaning "relatively."] 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 12, 2007 Subject: Yiddish textbook for Swedish speakers In reply to the query below from Patrik Nilsson: Patrik, you can obtain a book for learning Yiddish for Swedish speakers that uses the YIVO orthography from the publisher MEGILLA-FORLAGET at Bjornsonsgatan 335, 168 44 Bromma, Stockholm 2000; Tel: 08-37 31 49. Ask for Lennart Kerbel, or email info@megilla.a.se The book is called in Swedish JIDDISCH 2000: LAROBOK FOR ALLA (ISBN # 91-89340-07-8). It is an adaptation and translation of the book I co-authored called in English, LEARNING YIDDISH IN EASY STAGES, currently being published and distributed by The National Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Mass., USA. Good luck in your desire to learn Yiddish, Marvin Zuckerman 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: January 13, 2007 Subject: Yiddish for beginners The best book for a beginner in Yiddish which slowly, friendly but firmly, leads you into the language is Sheva Zucker's "Yiddish" I and II. My students love it. She uses both YIVO transliteration and the Yiddish alphabet. The book is also a source of Yiddish culture. A set of CDs, beautifully done, is available, which helps a lot. All this is being sold at League for Yiddish, Inc. 45 E. 33rd Street #203 New York, NY 10016 USA Email: store@leagueforyiddish.org Good luck! Berta Kipnis ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 16.019 Please do not use the "reply" key when writing to Mendele. Instead, choose one of these, as appropriate: Material for postings to Mendele Yiddish literature and language: mendele@lists.yale.edu Material for Mendele Personal Notices & Announcements: victor.bers@yale.edu (in the subject line write Mendele Personal) Other messages to the shamosim: mendele@lists.yale.edu Address for the list commands: listproc@lists.yale.edu To signoff from the list, email to listproc@lists.yale.edu with the following request: signoff MENDELE or unsubscribe MENDELE