Mendele: Yiddish literature and language
______________________________________________________
Contents of Vol. 4.148
October 21, 1994

1) Transliteration (Sam Kowarski)
2) Yekes - mir zenen do! (Ruben Frankenstein)
3) Raboysay, raboysay, khakhomim on a breg (Ruben Frankenstein)
4) A "translation" (Pinyeh Weichsel)
5) Query re poem (Herb Mirels)
6) Tekhnishe inyonim (Noyekh Miller)

1)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 20 Oct 1994 19:19:09 -0700 (PDT)
From: martinko@sfsuvax1.sfsu.edu
Subject: transliteration

A thought on transliteration: the problem would be moot if we could find
a way to use the native alphabet when we wrote yiddish. On computers it
shouldn't be too hard. Where are the yiddish speaking computer mavens?

Sam Kowarski

2)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 1994 12:08:34 +0100 (MEZ)
From: frankens@mibm.ruf.uni-freiburg.de
Subject: Yekes - mir zenen do!

Joseph Sherman asks for the correct explanation of the term YEKE (Mendele
4.146). Being a yeke ben yeke or if you don`t mind a yeke meyukak I would
like to comment on this.

There are at least as many solutions and explanations as for the english
"O.K.".  Here are the most common ones:

1. The big bulk of German jews came to Erez-Israel (Palestine) in the
years 1933-39 and with the high percentage of academics, they brought
with them high skill, professionality and capital to the land but also
west european manners, that seemed strange and funny to the veterans, who
came from eastern Europe. The newcomers were not very good in learning
the language of the land--Hebrew--, sticking to their German and old
habits. In conversations they uttered very often their "Ja, ja" that is
"yes, yes" and thus they were soon called Yekes, to say: those who say
very often "Ja".

2. Another strange habit of the newcomers from Germany was: wearing those
short jackets, called "JACKE" in German, in the Berlin style, no matter
which weather they found in the new country and in spite of the heat of
Palestine, where everybody goes just with open shirt. This Jacket--Jacke
--gave them the name.

3. This very style of dressing seemed so funny that the newcomers were
very much like coxcombs in the land scenery. "JECK" and "GECK" are the
typical kind of jester or buffoon acting like a fool in the carnaval in
the Rhein-region. So the newcomers took the role of the Buffoon or the
fool - JECK in the country.

4. Very near to the explantion Joseph Sherman has heard: JEKE are the
hebrew initials: Jod-Kof-He, the abbreviation for: Jehudi k`she havana,
that is: "a Jew slow to grasp, a slow-witted Jew". This had to do not
only with their sticking to their native language but also with their
uneasy way giving up their old manners and getting absorbed in the
half-oriental scenery.

5. Perhaps the most interesting explanation has to do with exquisite
knowledge of the Bible, many of the veterans had in contrast to the
German jews. The Book of Proverbs, Chapter 30 begins with the words:
"These are the words of Agur-ben-YAKE... Since I am sillier than anybody
and lack human brains". This could be a well hidden mockery teasing the
YEKES.

Ruben Frankenstein

3)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 1994 13:09:34 +0100 (MEZ)
From: frankens@mibm.ruf.uni-freiburg.de
Subject: Raboysay, raboysay, khakhomim on a breg

Ikh vel aykh fregn, ikh vel aykh fregn, entfert ale oyf mayn shayle: Vos
iz di zakh mitn Groysen Verterbukh fun der Yidisher Shprakh? Mit
drayundraysik yor tsurik, 1961 hobn Judah Joffe un Yudel Mark ongehoybn
aroyszubringen yenes groys verk mitn ershtn band. 1966 iz dos zweyte band
aroysgekumen, 1971 dos drite band, fun Yudel Mark aleyn. 1975 iz Yudel
Mark nifter gevorn, ober dos firte band iz aroysgekumen 1980.  1961 biz
1980--nor eyn oys aleyn!

A matematiker meg zogn, az oyb eyn oys badarf tsvontsik yor, mistome
badarfn ale tsveyuntsvontsik oysiyes - firhundertfertsik yor - 440
yor! Megn mir ale derlebn un zeyen!

Gut, mir wisn az der ershte os Alef iz kimet a dritl fun gantsem
verter-oytser fun yidish, ober es zenen 14 yor fargangen un es pasirt
nisht, gornisht.  Veys epes eyner vos vert zayn? Farnemt zikh, gipt zikh
keyner nit dermit? Iz do keyner wos ken mamshikh sayn un oysfirn dos
vikhtike verk?

A gut yor af aykh ale un zayt mir gesunt!

Ruben Frankenstein

4)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 20 Oct 1994 10:27:14 -0500
From: weichsel@symcom.math.uiuc.edu
Subject: A "translation"

Al Strauss characterizes the "translation" of his Royte Pomerantzen story
(Nomen) as one that "hot nisht kayn tam".  I would add that it is an
example of an attempt at a "farbesserung" that displays the arrogance of
the "author". Shame on him (or her).

Pinyeh Weichsel

5)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 20 Oct 1994 16:35:53 -0400 (EDT)
From: hmirels@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
Subject: Query re poem

I'd appreciate any help in tracking a poem of which I recall only the
first two lines:

Es shaynt di levone
Es glantsn di shtern

Where might I find it in Yiddish, in transliteration, and in translation?

Herb Mirels

6)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 1994 14:12 (EDT)
From: nmiller@trincoll.edu
Subject: Tekhnishe inyonim

The shames regrets any hard feelings caused by referring to the Arbeter
Ring bbs as unreliable.  $25 a year is a metsie and, besides, other
systems occasionally go awry.

However, since the matter of service providers (netcom, aol, etc.) has
come up this may be the time to say to those Mendelniks who use commercial
services that some are cheaper _and_ better than others.  It breaks the
shames' miserly heart to see subscribers throw their money away.  So if
you live in NYC, Boston, St. Louis, Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Atlanta,
Phoenix, and just about anywhere in California you can get fast unlimited
service with full Internet access for under $20 a month.  Write for details.

Noyekh Miller

______________________________________________________
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