Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 4.256 January 2, 1995 1) Fershtot (Raphael Finkel) 2) Matke Botke (Marjorie Schonhaut Hirshan) 3) Kholile (Jerry Gerger) 4) Goyishe verter (Mendy Fliegler) 5) On splitting the list (Patty Becker) 6) Giddyup (Perl Teitelbaum) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 31 Dec 1994 23:37:50 -0500 From: raphael@cs.engr.uky.edu Subject: Fershtot khosheve khaveyrim, mayn bobe, oleho hasholem, flegt zogn az zi shtamt fun fershtot, lebm grodne. ikh hob gezukht ot dem shtot in plener, i hayntike i fartsaytike, un nit gefunen. efshr iz 'fershtot' a nomen fun a gas, oder a teyl fun grodne aleyn? oyb emetser ken helfn in dem, geb ikh faroys a sheynem dank. ikh vinsheve aykh ale a gezuntn yor, a yor fun sholem un nakhes. Raphael (refoyl) Finkel 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 1 Jan 1995 12:25:30 -0500 From: shirshan@aol.com Subject: Matke Botke In my youth when something appeared old - a dress, chipped dish, dogeared book - my mother would say, "Dos zet ois vie es iz fun der Matke Botke's tzeitn." Anyone have a clue who she/he was? Last summer in a collector's book store, I spied a book called "Matke Botke" but it was written in Czech and nobody there was so versed. Also, a friend tells me her mother, in the same context, used the phrase, "Eretze Betskes tzeitn." Marjorie Schonhaut Hirshan 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 01 Jan 1995 19:01:34 EST From: hrmv59a@prodigy.com Subject: kholile I am new to the list (my first outgoing message) and so I wish to say how happy I am to have found so many kindered hearts. Most of you know "tons" more of Yiddish than I and I am most appreciative for the opportunity to learn from you. In my introduction I said that I woud contribute "vus ich kenn" and take " vus ich darf". I have taken much for which I thank you all. I am wondering if anyone noticed or mentioned in the past, that beautiful piece of Yiddishkayt on the last page of every message, we all get. On line d. it says "To unsubscribe kholile: unsub mendele" The "kholile" makes my day every time I see it. Whoever thought of it, thanks a million! If I may, I will enter into your discussions at a later date. Jerry Gerger 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 1 Jan 1995 21:52:34 -0500 From: sroolik@aol.com Subject: a pur goyeshe verter farn nayyur. Mayn mame, sol sikh mien, hot gehat a pur sheltvertlakh, dus meynt in 'goyish', vie men redt... alzo, ikh vet gevolt visn vus meynt: der tug Seredepisk: Dus sugt men az eymitzer iz foyl in vil nisht arbetn in dem tug.... vieste khogge=??? a serematere (yeho) =??? Zaytz mir moykhl if it offends you, but I never found out and its 55 years later.... Mendy Fliegler 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 1 Jan 95 19:26:50 EST From: patty_becker@mts.cc.wayne.edu Subject: Split the list On Louis Fridhandler's plea for more of us to participate: Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I am _not_ fluent in Yiddish. I happen to have a barrier to learning languages (I'm hard of hearing and it's hard to lip read and understand at the same time), so while I had 7 years of formal Arbeter Ring shule, ending some 40+ years ago, I cannot speak Yiddish or understand more than a few hundred words. Accordingly, I am frankly not interested in the great detailed discussions of language structure, and even less in the questions of how to transliterate. I sometimes think this list should be split, into one dealing exclusively with language and another dealing with Yiddish culture. I'm much more into the latter. The postings have become so voluminous that, many days, I have to just look at Noyekh's helpful listing of subjects and then hit the delete button. I do read the introductions because I'm interested in how different people have come to Yiddish interest and to Mendele. It is too expensive to read everything, especially when so much of it is of little interest. I'd be interested in others' opinion of this issue. Meanwhile, I join in wishing everyone a Happy Secular New Year (yes, that much Yiddish I do know!). Patty Becker 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 01 Jan 95 18:29:49 EST From: 74031.775@compuserve.com Subject: Giddyup Eli Katz writes, "Brr or prr were sounds used by Eastern European horse drivers to make the horse go, the equivalent of 'giddyup' in the U.S." I have to respectfully disagree. When I was a little girl in Poland, my father had a horse and he used to say "vyo!" to make the horse go and "prr!" to make him stop. You may also recall a Yiddish song in which a balegole sings about how his passengers take turns complaining that he is driving too slowly, or to fast, or that the ride is too bumpy, and the refrain is: Vyo, vyo ferdelekh...... firt di parshoyndelekh iber di veygelekh. Vyo! Az geyn zol a roykh! Perl Teitelbaum ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 4.256 Mendele has 2 rules: 1. Provide a meaningful Subject: line 2. Sign your article (full name please) A Table of Contents is now available via anonymous ftp, along with weekly updates. Anonymous ftp archives available on: ftp.mendele.trincoll.edu in the directory pub/mendele/files Archives available via gopher on: gopher.cic.net Send articles to: mendele@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu Send change-of-status messages to: listserv@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu a. For a temporary stop: set mendele nomail b. To resume delivery: set mendele mail c. To subscribe: sub mendele first_name last_name d. 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