Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 6.143 December 16, 1996 1) Jet lag (David Herskovic) 2) Vi zogt men...? (Sholem Berger) 3) Der zelbe kleyn lidl? (Bernard Katz) 4) Rochl Korn's a lid (Esther Goffstein) 5) Bimkem mit a mase (David Herskovic) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 16 Dec 96 09:53:50 EST From: 100114.750@compuserve.com Subject: Jet lag While I was thinking for a word in Yiddish for jet-lag I noticed that while Yiddish primarily consists of three languages: German, Aramaic, and Hebrew, recent additions are mostly from the German component or by yiddishising English words. This is especially true for Yiddish words formed by Yiddishists and may be partly because many of them are not familiar enough with Hebrew and Aramaic texts to draw words and phrases from them. So, I thought, to redress the balance why not offer up something Aramaic for a phrase. I have come up with 'khulshe de'porkhe'. Now an explanation. The phrase 'khulshe deorkhe' means tiredness from a journey. It is mentioned in the Talmud when explaining the events leading up to the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. The Talmud says that on the first day of the arrival of the Israelites at the Mount they were not told anything 'mishum khulshe deorkhe'. 'Khulshe', which has the same root as the Yiddish word 'farkhalesht', means weakness or tiredness, while 'orkhe' comes from the Hebrew word 'Oyrakh', and means a way or a path. The word 'porkhe' means flying and is derived from the root 'poyreyakh'. As it rhymes with 'orkhe' it lends itself nicely to the original phrase and implies a tiredness directly associated with flying. 'Khulshe Deporkhe', in my opinion, is a nice nifty little phrase which comprises within it the baggage of generations. Isn't that the point of Yiddish? David Herskovic 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 15 Dec 1996 23:18:49 -0400 From: bergez01@mchip00.med.nyu.edu Subject: Vi zogt men...? eyner shtelt a shayle: "vi taytsht men _hufalapufa_ af yidish?" eyner entfert, az _hufalapufa_ klingt nisht azoy yidishlekh, un me darf zogn "khifelepife" mit di khirikn. eyner pasknt andersh: az di gantse velt zogt shoyn _hufalapufa_, s'iz puste tirkhe oystsuzoygn fun finger a neologizm antkegn dem internatsionalizm. ober di ale tshuves zaynen take af nisht-yidish... ikh bin oykh shuldik say inem firleygn shayles, say inem opgebn tshuves. nor mir falt oykh ayn, az s'volt geven punkt azoy kosher optsuklaybn abi a vort in same shtrom fun shmues, eyder haltn a yishuv-hadas af english vegn di shprakhike alternativn. sholem berger 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 16 Dec 1996 00:16:00 -0500 (EST) From: bkatz@uoguelph.ca Subject: Der zelbe kleyn lidl? Harold Boll reports a little ditty sung by his mother. It sounded quite familiar and when I checked my books I found it reported by Y.L. Cahan in his Yidish folkslider mit melodiyen (ed. M. Weinreich, YIVO, 1957), with changes mainly in lines 2 and 4. Cahan collected the following in Minsk: Cahan: Boll: Ot azoy neyt a shnayder, Ot azoy neyt a shnayder ot azoy neyt a shnayder; ot azoy fardint er gelt er neyt un neyt a gantse vokh er neyt, er neyt... un krigt a gilden mit a lokh. es kumt oyf Shabes hot der keshen a lokh I like the Boll version better, even though it doesn't scan as well as the one reported by Cahan. Bernard Katz Guelph, Ontario 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 16 Dec 1996 09:41:47 -0500 From: Esterel@aol.com Subject: Rochl Korn's a lid Dos lid gefint zikh in Antologie fun der Moderner Yiddisher Poezie [Ruth Whitman]. A briv veyst libster-- haynt iz der tog azoy zunik un harb, vi a gold-gele frukht. ikh volt im genumen pamelekh un tsertlekh, az kh'zol nisht opmekn fun im di klore farb, ayngeviklt in dem veykhn flaks fun mayne troymen un geshikt tsu dir, vi a briv. Nor kh'veys, az volst dem "briv" tsurikgeshikt nor bald mit a rand-bamerkung gor tsikhtik un fayn, az oser, du farshteyst nisht, vos ikh meyn [es iz dokh, rokhl, mit dir azoy eybik, eybik} Un bist nokh beyz, Yo, beyz bistu afile. Vayl der kvert--iz leydik. Esther Goffstein 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 16 Dec 96 09:53:45 EST From: 100114.750@compuserve.com Subject: Bimkem mit a mase Az a bImkem iz a 'substitute' iz les man depalig. Vater tsi men zogt bemokem tsi bimKoym bin ikh noyte tsi zogen az bemokem iz gerekht. Es falt mir yetst nisht an kane rayes ober di vort mokem far plats iz asakh mer shkhiekh vi bimkoym. Tsim bayshpil es iz do a payrek in mesekhte psokhim vos hayst mokem shenohagi. Fin deym in fin andre pletser iz gevoren an osshprekh of a minheg fin a plats az 'do iz a mokem shenohagi'. Ikh mayn az ven men nitst a vort of anshtot volt men genitst bemokem endersh vi bimkoym. Agav az men ret fin a bimkem miz ikh dertsaylen a mase. Zol es shoyn haysen lekoved motse khanike. Di mase kimt fin vilyamsburg vos of deym shteytl ken men zogen az dort iz hant dos harts fin yiddish. In tomer halt ir as dos harts iz ergets vi in der ist sayd mist ir mir ober moyde zan az dos mol ligt zikher yo in vilyamsburg. Dort in vilyamsburg voynt a fro vos hayst Rifke. Ofen mishpokhe vays ikh nisht viazoy zi hayst ober men rift ir Rifke Mishkoltser. Mishkoltser al shem val zi iz a tokhter finem Mishkoltser ruv. A geshtel hot zi k'nayne hore vi an emese rebetsen. Dos oszeyn iz vi der rebe fleygt tachen in khayder 'yefas toyar' a noz vi a fas in a mol vi a toyer. Ofen vondze vaksen mahaykhe tayse a por hor okh azoy az tomer es feylt os ken zi geyben a glet in a tsi. Der resht iz epes shver ostsimoshlen ober azoy fil ken ikh zogen az borekh hasem zi hingert nisht. Der Rifke Mishkoltser hot a minheg az zi gayt of khasenes klapen mit a telerel. Ikh bin amol geveyzn in amerike of a khasene in ikh zey zi kimt aran tsi di mener. Ven es hot ayner gezeyn az ikh zits ershtont hot er mir gezogt az der Stamerer ruv hot gezokt az zi meyg val tsi ir vet zikh kayner nisht onshmekn. Ikh her shoyn vi ir freygt vos hot dos ales aher. Nu, hert os. Hot zikh amol gemakht in di yinge yoren ire az zi iz geveyzen a bimken in a maydel shule. Aleph Bays ken zi dokh, tsene rene min hastam okh, a tsip in bak ken zi okh derlangen nu iz zi dokh a fertige lerern. Kimt zi arof ofen bos mit a kite kinder inter di fis in zi shtelt zikh for tsim firer finem bos. Zi zokt eym in an ingerish/vilyamsburger nisekh, 'I am de prostitute'. David Herskovic ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 6.143