Mendele: Yiddish literature and language
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Contents of Vol. 6.245
February 27, 1997

1) Yiddish and yiddishkayt (Peter Slomanson)
2) Yiddish music in a 'race' film (Ellen Prince)
3) Shul memories (David Herskovic)

1)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 97 16:41:15 EST
From: peter_slomanson@franklin.com
Subject: Vegn nit-yidn vos redn yidish

Meylekh Viswanath [6.242] is unimpressed by "recent developments where
more and more non-Jews are learning Yiddish, if their involvement will
further reduce the Jewish component of Yiddish.."

But _will_ their involvement reduce the Jewish component of Yiddish?
This is a very interesting question which extends to similar
developments in other minority language communities.  I definitely
understand the sentiment Meylekh is describing.  On the other hand, I
think that there is an important difference between non-Jews who learn
and use Yiddish as simply an interesting language, and non-Jews who
simultaneously acquire Yiddish and use it while successfully pursuing
some sort of substantive integration with the world of Yidishkayt,
supporting cultural authenticity and continuity, as opposed to
something disconnected from that.  The latter type of non-Jewish
Yiddish-speaker can contribute to maintenance and growth, as opposed
to cultural dilution and attrition.

Cultural and even ethnic outsiders are often a catalyst for language
maintenance and cultural regrowth.  Certainly, there have been many
cases historically of culturally assimilated _Jews_ "returning" to a
tradition they were not in any way a part of before who made
outstanding contributions to Yiddish-language culture and communities.

I have recently read several reports of Japanese graduate students
enthusiastically and effectively contributing to the diffusion of
endangered languages in various communities, one in Gaelic Ireland,
one in Brittany, and one teaching Polish Yiddish to Israelis in
Israel.  I think such contributions should certainly be welcome.  When
Yiddish starts to become just an in-group language for gentile
graduate students (or whatever), with no connection to the Jewish past
or present, I will see things the way Meylekh's mother does.  For the
moment, the fact that a certain type of non-Jew is learning and using
Yiddish might actually help.  In the Irish context, I have seen many
Irish-speakers positively impressed by interest in and successful
acquisition of their language by foreigners, and this has had
psychological benefits.

The real problem for Yiddish at the moment is of course that not
enough Jews are interested in rejoining the world of linguistic and
cultural Yidishkayt (secular or otherwise) and that Yiddish has far
too many _enemies_ in the contemporary Jewish world. Personally, I
can't see Yiddish ever becoming a "non-Jewish language," so I'm not
worrying about it.

Peter Slomanson
Philadelphia

2)----------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 1997 22:54:03 EST
From: ellen@central.cis.upenn.edu
Subject: yiddish music in 'race' film!

just saw a short (1-reel) 'race' film on the turner classic movies
cable channel -- didn't catch the title, unfortunately. imagine my
surprise when a music group (the washboard serenade or something like
that) broke into a yiddish song! they played it pretty straight, then
went into a somewhat jazzed up version of ochi chornia, then into a
pure jazz number. extraordinary. will try to find out the title of the
film and also the yiddish song (which was familiar but i couldn't
place it).

in case anyone isn't familiar with them, 'race' movies were movies
made by blacks for black audiences in the u.s. from 1918 to the 1940s.
often fascinating and wonderful stuff, even without yiddish music.
this particular one was full of goodies, including the nicholas
brothers as young children.

ellen prince

3)----------------------------------------------------
Date: 26 Feb 97 16:48:38 EST
From: 100114.750@compuserve.com
Subject: Shul memories

I recently came across a book which is a collection of sayings and
stories of the like recently mentioned under the heading 'Shul
memories', [vols 6.219, 6.220].

The anecdotes, sayings, witticisms and tatshen are from satirical
maskilim, witty rebes, shmatekep, misnagdim, henpecked husbands,
battered wives and a host of others. The themes are almost all of
Biblical and Talmudical homilies and phrases but distorted in an
unorthodox way.

Nowadays, most readers who can understand this kind of humour would
spurn a book like this, while most of those who would appreciate it
unfortunately do not understand it. Those were the days when to be a
shaygets one had to be a talmid khokhem not a tanis kholem.

The book _khokhme in kharifes_ was published in Vienna in tar pay
zayen aka 1926/7. The author is M. A. Vizen.

A similar book there was a collection of Sholem Aleichem sayings and
short extracts from his stories called 'koy omar sholem alaykhem'. The
'one-liners' like 'im begapoy...' are sorted in alphabetical order. It
was published by the Perets Farlag, Tel Aviv in 1992 [see vols.
6.224, 6.226-8, 6.230-1].

These reminded me of a story (not mentioned in these books) told in
the days when maskilim were decried from the pulpit and haskole was
the 'in' thing.

A simple Jew wanting a share of the publicity decided to become a
maskil. What exactly it is that he did to 'become' a maskil I do not
know, but after a few weeks he complained to the Ruv that although
he's been a maskil for some time no one is taking any notice.

The ruv asked this fellow whether he knew dikdek (Hebrew grammar),
which he said, he didn't. 'How about Nakh?' the ruv enquired. 'No',
answered our 'maskil'. The ruv went on, 'Do you at least know Hebrew?'
Once again it was responded to in the negative.

To which the ruv snapped, 'A maskil bist di', an am-ho'orets bist di!'

David Herskovic

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End of Mendele Vol. 6.245