Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 6.290 April 25, 1997 1) Yidish verter fun an englishn lid (Shloyme-Khayim Cohen) 2) Patty-cake in Yiddish (Shloyme-Khayim Cohen) 3) Ashkenaz (Rick Turkel) 4) Stempeniu in English (Joachim Neugroschel) 5) Yiddish books translated into Finnish (Estelle Souche) 6) Tsvey kashes (Henik Sapoznik) 7) Feldafing (Hugh Denman) 8) Yiddish chad gadya (Daniel Soyer) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 13:38:22 GMT From: scohen@rutchem.rutgers.edu Subject: Yidish verter fun an englishn lid Tsi hot emetser ibergetaytsht oyf Yidish di verter funem lid "Sabbath Prayer" funem muzikal "Fiddler on the Roof"? A froy in mayn khor (LaShir, in Princeton, NJ) vil es zingn mit mir, ober undzer khor zingt nit keyn lider mit englishe verter, nor "fremde" shprakhn (ts.b. hebreyish, yidish, ladino,...). A dank in foroys. Shloyme-Khayim (Steve) Cohen 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 13:44:50 GMT From: scohen@rutchem.rutgers.edu Subject: Patty-cake in Yiddish In Mordkhe Shaechters 1991 verterbukh vegn kinder, er shraybt az "patty-cake" zogt men oyf yidish "patshi patshi kikhelekh". Er git bloyz di verter. Mayn zun iz itst 8 khadoshim alt, un er hot lib "patty cake", ober ikh vil zogn di verter oyf yidish. 1. Vos zaynen di verter funem *gantsn* poem "patshi patshi kikhelekh"? 2. Tsi iz do faran a lidele vos me ken zingn mit ot di verter? A dank in foroys. Shloyme-Khayim Cohen 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 10:54:17 -0400 From: rturkel@cas.org Subject: Ashkenaz [see 6.285 and later comments] Zachary M. Baker suggested on this issue in Mendele 6.288 that: perhaps knowledge of the coterritorial languages of the countries and regions where Ashkenazic Jews have resided over the centuries should also be a prerequisite for a scholarly research on topics subsumed under "Ashkenaz." While I'm hardly a professional in this area, I have to concur with khaver Baker's suggestion. As a Slavic linguist, I can't imagine how it's possible to deal with Yiddish etymology without at least a passing acquaintance with Polish and either Russian or Ukrainian, not to mention some of the other local languages of central and eastern Europe (depending on the specific area of study). Rick Turkel 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 10:57:54 -0400 (EDT) From: achim1@cris.com Subject: Stempeniu in English In regard to English and other translations of Stempeniu, I would like to add some information to what has already been posted in Mendele. There is an excellent Russian version that is true to the original in both tone and detail (I found it years ago in the Columbia University stacks, but unfortunately I can't recall the name of the wonderful translator. The German version by Samuel Meisels, which Hugh Denman finds inaccurate, is altogether clumsy and silly: the translator renders the dialogue into the most disgusting and supercilious yiddling imaginable--thereby managing to insult two of the major languages and literatures in Europe: German and Yiddish. My own translation, which renders the klezmer slang into slightly delapidated rock 'n roll lingo, is still available in my collection "The Shtetl" which is still in print. Readers might also be interested in Robert Rothstein's very informative and analytical paper on the Klezmer slang in _Stempeniu_. Joachim Neugroschel 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 22:17:54 +0200 (MET DST) From: esouche@ens.ens-lyon.fr Subject: Yiddish books translated into Finnish A Finnish correspondent of mine is interested in reading Finnish translations of Yiddish books (novels, poetry), does anybody know some good references about it (or where I could find some)? A sheynem dank in advance, Estelle Souche 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 16:41:45 -0400 (EDT) From: xanajew@aol.com Subject: Tsvey kashes These past sedorim I had the occasion to locate and use my late father's 1923 Hebrew Publishing edition of the Hagada with it's charming illustrations by the Jewish artist Lola. Over the years I have seen many of his drawing in the pages of Yiddish newspapers and magazines (like "Groyser Kundes") and on posters for Yiddish theater productions. Does anyone know anything about him? I was also wondering if anyone knew where I could obtain a copy of Shike Driz's poem "Dem Zeydn's Nign". Henik Sapoznik 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 00:38:34 +0200 (MET DST) From: h_denman@maier.vol.at Subject: Feldafing With reference to Goldie Morgentaler's query concerning Feldafing [6.289:7], no less an authority than the motoring atlas in the glove-compartment of my car tells me that it is situated on the western shore of the Starnberger See. That's the one in which Ludwig II of Bavaria drowned himself, you remember. Hugh Denman 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 24 Apr 97 22:56:54 EDT From: 74212.2700@compuserve.com Subject: Yiddish chad gadya A version of "Shikt der har" is included on the record "Chad Gadya [One Kid] issued by Folkways in 1982. The record includes 25 versions of Chad Gadya in Aramaic, German, Yiddish, Greek, Lad{no, Judeo-Provencal, Italian, Arabic, Russian, Kurdistan [sic], and Yemen [sic]. Its a great record. Unfortuantely I have it on LP and no longer have the equipment to play it. Daniel Soyer ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 6.290