Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 7.043 August 1, 1997 1) Drimpln (Alan Todres) 2) Mendele withdrawal, kalter indik (cold turkey)? (Louis Fridhandler) 3) Ikh gleich (Sema Chaimovitz Menora) 4) electronic dictionary (Marvin Glasser) 5) yiddish in israel (sylvia schildt) 6) Celia Zylbercweig (Michael Steinlauf) 7) drimpln (Itsik Goldenberg) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 10:57:46 -0400 (EDT) From: HATODRES@aol.com Subject: Drimpln With reference to Heynekh Sapoznik's question in Mendele Vol. 7.042, Harkavy's Yiddish-English-Hebrew Dictionary gives "drimblien" - meaning to jingle or to scrape, and the nouns "drimblie" - meaning drone or crembalum (perhaps the "r" is a typo and should be deleted) and "drimbelke" - meaning rebeck (a three-stringed precursor of the violin). Harkavy is a great resource, but often seems to need in addition an English dictionary to help with obscure or archaic terms in the definitions. Alan Todres 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 12:41:23 -0400 (EDT) From: Lfridhan@aol.com Subject: Mendele withdrawal, kalter indik (cold turkey)? Tsu Mendele hob ikh amol arayngetaynet azoyne gedanken: Az Mendele shikt mir nisht keyn briv etlekhe teg ver ikh oys mentsh. Ikh drey zikh arum on a kop. Ikh shray, Gevald! Vu iz mayn Mendele "fix?" Nu, hayntike teg bin ikh, layder, gevoynt gevorn tsu lebn vokhn lang on a shum briv fun Mendele. Nisht azoy tut men in a Yidisher mishpokhe. Haynt hob ikh bashlosn az ikh bin oykh a bisl shuldik un vel araynshikn briv a bisl ofter. Efsher vet dos helfn. Un efsher nit. Tsum bayshpil: Leybl Botvinnik's yedies vegn "Radio Programs" zenen ongekumen tsu shpet. Farvos hobn di Mendele redaktors zikh farshpetikt mit aza vikhtiker meldung biz der gants vert iz farshvunden gevorn? I once directed such musings to Mendele: If Mendele sends me no letter for a few days, I feel adrift and bewildered. I cry out, help! Where is my Mendele "fix?" Well, these days, I am, unfortunately, used to living for weeks without a single note from Mendele. That's not how it's done in a Jewish family. Now I've realized that I too am somewhat guilty, and I will send letters a bit more often. Maybe that will help. Maybe not. For example: Leybl Botvinnik's news about "Radio Programs" came through too late. Why were the Mendele editors so late with such an important announcement until all value disappeared? Louis Fridhandler 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 14:58:49 -0400 (EDT) From: Lights4607@aol.com Subject: Ikh gleich Having enrolled in Yiddish classes this past year, I have been getting a large dosage of grammar which enables me to now not be embarrased to speak Yiddish. Like many people of my generation, my parents spoke Yiddish to the grandparents or when they didn't want us to understand what was going on. One thing many of us remember is saying "Ikh gleich" for "I like." In my class, however, I learned that "Ikh gleich" is not really grammatically acceptable and we should instead be saying "es gefelt mir" or other appropriate substitutes. "Ikh gleich" is supposedly an Americanism and a true Yiddish speaker would not be using it. Yet I have spoken with many people who are sure that their yiddish- speaking parents did indeed use "gleich." Could any of the mendeleyaners enlighten me on the status of "ikh gleich?" By the way, I have also have missed getting Mendele on a regular basis. It is truly a wonderful "fix." I remember when I first joined and was overwhelmed with the frequency of postings. And now I can't get enough! Sema Chaimovitz Menora Chicago, Illinois 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 15:30:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Nivram17@aol.com Subject: electronic dictionary Does anyone know where one can get an electronic Yiddish to English translator? (Assuming they exist). Would greatly appreciate knowing this because it is obviously very tiring looking up words in the dictionary. Thanks, Marvin Glasser, New York City 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 15:57:34 +0100 From: creativa@charm.net (sylvia schildt) Subject: yiddish in israel allevay volt men eykh gekent forn in isroyl sof detzember-yanuar afn FESTIVAL YIDISH vos kumt for in Yerushalayim (protim shaybt neve-ilan@kibbutz.co.il) Ober afile in oygust ken men oysgefinen vos es tut zikh in yisroyl benugeye mame loshn. me darf zikher bazukhn bet sholem aleykhem ( muzee ful mit bikher, portretn, kleynikeytn funem lebn fun undzer balibtn klasiker) vos gefint zikh in tel aviv. me ken efsher makhn a bazukh in di yidish opteylungen fun alle 5 universitetn. Di farlagn zaynen eykh ofn. Min hastam zaynen eykh faran kontzertn. Efsher ken Leybl Botvinik undz opshraybn vos kumt for afn moment. Un ir ruf eykh fortreter fun andere yidishe organizatzies in yisroyl, zey zoln zikh bamiyen reglmesik opgebn azelkhe nayes. Ikh meyn az der inyen "yidish in yisroyl" iz an inyen far "kol isroyl." Yidish iz nebekh geborn in goles, ober eykh yidish makht itzt aliyah. Me darf sheyn zogn kadish iber dem falshn idey az es iz nito kin yidish in medines yisroyl. Allevay one could also travel to Israel at then end of December-January for the YIDDISH FESTIVAL which takes place in Jerusalem (for details write neve-ilan@kibbutz.co.il) But even in August one can find what's going on in Israel about Mame Loshn. One shouldsurely visit Beit Sholem Aleykhem (a museum full of books, portraits, minutiae of the life of our beloved classicist) which is located in Yel Aviv. One can perhaps visit the Yiddish departments in the 5 universities. The publishing houses are surely open. Very likely there are also some concerts. Perhaps Leybl Botvinik can write for us what is going on at the moment. And I call on representative of other Yidish organizations in Israel, let them make the effort to regularly give out such news. I believe that the subject "Yiddish in Israel" is a subject for all of "Israel." Yiddish may have been born in exile, but even Yiddish is "coming home." It's time to say kaddish over the false notion that there is no Yiddish in the state of Israel. Sylvia Schildt Baltimore, Maryland 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 16:19:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Michael Steinlauf Subject: Celia Zylbercweig Celia Zylbercweig, who passed away earlier this month in Los Angeles, was long a mainstay of the Yiddish theater. As a student in Poland before the war, she performed in Goldfaden plays, often in the lead roles because of her fine soprano voice. She studied drama and voice at the Warsaw Conservatory, then in Germany as well. She toured with Yiddish theater companies throughout North and South America. In 1948, she settled in Los Angeles, along with her husband Zalmen Zilbercweig, the historian of the Yiddish theater and editor of the 6-volume "Leksikon fun yidishn teater." For twenty years,the Zilbercweigs had their own daily Yiddish radio program in Los Angeles. Ms. Zilbercweig also continued to perform in Yiddish at the Wilshire Ebell Theater, and lectured for many years throughout the LA area. Koved ir ondenk. Those interested in sending condolences to her family may contact me directly. Michael Steinlauf 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 23:55:18 -0400 From: "Robert Goldenberg" Subject: drimpln Heynekh Sapoznik freygt vegn a vertl genitst ba zayn tate-mamen, opmoshlen der klang fun zayn bandzsho shpiln: er vider. In Harkavy's yidish-english-hebreyish verterbukh, gedrukt in 1928 hob ikh gefinen "drimblyen," fartaytsht "to jingle, scrape." Oyb dos iz an emese shilderung fun zayn bandzsho-shpiln in yene yorn, iz Heynekh take kekumen a langer veg. Itst s'iz a mekhaye im tsu hern! Itsik Goldenberg ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 7.043