Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 07.154 February 23, 1998 1) nivroko (Steve Berr) 2) Nivroko (Shaya Mitelman) 3) Nivroko (Bob Rothstein) 4) shvantz (Mendy Fliegler) 5) Dos Broytele (Pessl Beckler-Semel-Stern) 6) Yidish, literatur un loshn (Louis Fridhandler) 7) Breast Plate (leon rosenberg) 8) Yiddish for Breastplate (Morrie Feller) 9) Torah Breastplate (Norma Brewer) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Feb 98 21:40:12 -0000 From: Stephen Berr Subject: nivroko This is also hare-brained. I got an idea as a result of an anecdote I heard many years ago (perhaps a precursor to the urban myth). Apparantly,in Russia, (according to the story), the author of a book about Nebuchadnezzar was arrested because on 5 lines running down the spine, the book's title read Ne Bog ad Ne Tzar (something like it in Cyrillic) which was translated by the thought police of the time as "no God and no Tsar". That story rang in my ears as I Iooked at the nivroko request. I am no chochem, and not much of a linguist, but when I read nivroko I thought it sounded like part Russian and part Hebrew for "ni bracha" or "no blessing". It is pure intuition, and therefore has no yichus. Anyway, just throw it in the pot and see what happens. Steve Berr 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 21:09:49 -0500 From: Serge Mitelman Subject: Nivroko. Gabriella S. Safran posted a question on I.Babel and nivroko [07.151]. You won't find the word in any Russian-English dictionaries, since it isn't Russian. It sounds as if it should be Ukrainian (ni v roku),- and in some places it is pronounced "nivroku" - but (for unascertained reasons) it is found predominantly or exclusively in the Ukrainian and Moldavian Jewish lexicon. It may be, that it was simply a suitable translation for ken-ore, and somehow became a vertl in its own right. But it's not a normative Russian language. There are many expressions and idioms in Russian, used only by Jews and not by other Russian speakers unless in stylization, because they are, essentially, ingrained calques from Yiddish; these are used by younger generations, who do not speak Yiddish, but retain the expressions. This early story by I.Babel (1916) confirms that the word was already in use at the time, and it is still associated with the Yiddish-inflected language only. Incidentally, in his other novella "Konets Bogadel'ni" (The End of an Almshouse), he uses the word "smit'yo" (in another place - "smet'yo"), which is also used by some other authors from Odessa (variant: smittyo) as a substitute for drek. This word is limited to the Jews of Odessa, though, and I'm not aware as to where it comes from. Now you've got the second opinion from Kishinev. Shaya Mitelman [Moderator's note: _Nivroku_ is a common Ukrainian word and literally means the same as _keynenore_, however in modern Ukrainian it is used also for "not bad" and "better than expected". _Smittia_ is Ukrainian for "sweepings".] 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 21 Feb 1998 23:47:11 -0500 (EST) From: ROBERT A ROTHSTEIN Subject: Nivroko Gabriella Safran asked (7.151) about the expression _nivroko_ used in a story by Isaac Babel. This is presumably the Ukrainian (and Southern Russian, e.g., Odessan) _nivroku_ 'may no evil eye befall', i.e., _keyn eynore_. Ukrainian _uroky_ means 'evil eye'; Polish _urok_ can mean '(evil) spell'; cf. Russian _rok_ 'fate'. Bob Rothstein 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 17:19:34 -0200 From: emenems@juno.com (Mendy Fliegler) Subject: shvantz Nu, the German/Yiddish word for serpent/tail.... isn't it shvantz?? That's a bit vulgar, too. And the word for smelling something is also: shmekn. Where is this all leading us? Mendy Fliegler 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 11:28:36 -0800 From: pessl@juno.com (pessl beckler-semel-stern) Subject: Dos Broytele Tsi veyst emetser fun di Mendelyaner ver es iz geven der farfaser un ver der kompoziter fun lid Dos Broytele. Mir dakht zikh az der poet Avrom Reisen hot geshafn di verter, ober ikh ken dos lid nit gefinen bay mir in bibliotek. A sheynem dank Pessl Beckler-Semel-Stern Lake Worth, FL 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 20 Feb 1998 14:04:59 EST From: Lfridhan@aol.com Subject: Yidish, literatur un loshn Tsayt zikh umkern tsum ikerdikn inyen, tsu der yidisher literatur un loshn. Sholem-Aleykhem iz durkhgegangen a komplitsirte shrayberishe antviklung. Zayne ershte verk zaynen zeyer farsheydndik. Az men vil bakumen a tifere, genoyere hasoge vi azoy Sholem-Aleykhem hot gepruvt farsheydene stiln un leshones zol men leyenen eyns nokhn andern 1) Shomers Mishpot gedrukt in 1888, un 2) di ershte mayse, ershtn nusekh, fun Tevye, Tevye der Milkhiker, gedrukt in 1895. (Ikh meyn nisht dem tsveytn, azoy-gerufenem _oysgebesertn_ nusekh, Dos Groyse Gevins, 1903, fun der ershter Tevye mayse.) Nor zibn yor iz fargangen tsvishn di tsvey verk, ober di shprakh un stil hobn zikh ibergebitn. Shomers Mishpot hot er geshribn far andere shraybers un kritikers fun zayn gegnt, un oykh farn yidishn oylem leyeners in eyrope. In Amerike hobn demolt nisht gevoynt azoy fil yidish-leyeners. In Shomers Mishpot iz nishto keyn shpur fun ironie oder humor. Es iz ernst iber der moz un er hot Shomern shtark tsekritikirt, hot aroysgezogt zayn shlekhter meynung fun Shomer, der shund romanist, on rakhmones, vider un ober amol. Zayn loshn (demolt ongerufn zhargon) fun zayn tsayt un svive, iz ibergezalstn un ibergefefert mit a sakh verter (far undz zeyen zey oys fremde) vos raysn zikh arayn vi nit-gebetene gest. (Demolt volt Sholem-Aleykhem geshribn _fil_ fremde, nisht _a sakh_ fremde, u.z.v.) Me ken tsebrekhn a kop nishtern in daytshe, rusishe, yidishe un hebreyishe verterbikher. Der oysleyg iz altmodish, umreguler, un me darf zikh tsuhern tsu zikh aleyn, tsum klang, beshas me leyent. Amol zenen tsvey verter tsunoyfgegosn un zeyen oys vi eyn vort, un amol farkert. Tevye der Milkhiker (1895) iz gor epes andersh, oykh geshribn far andere shraybers un kritikers un farn yidishn oylem. Der oysleyg iz oykh altmodish, ober di shprakh iz nisht azoy ongelodn mit rusish un daytsh. Un me ken dershpirn a gayst fun mentshlekhn mitgefil. A briv tsu dubnovn May 29, '88, (Fun Zhargon tsu Yidish, Vilna, Kletskin, 1929, z. 64) derklert epes vegn der iberbayt. Bayleygndik derbay mayn khibur "Dos Bintl Blumen" oder "Der Buket", ferzn in prose (in der Yidisher shprakh der ershter pruv tsu shraybn azelkhe lider, vos derfirt di shprakh tsu fulshtendikeyt, nisht onkumendik nisht tsu keyn daytshe, nisht tsu keyn rusishe oysdrukn un verter), bet ikh aykh tsu gebn vegn dem a por verter inem noentsn bukh fun "Voskhod". Andere sibes zenen oykh zeyer vikhtik. [English] Time to return to the main topic, Yiddish language and literature. Sholem Aleichem traversed a very complicated development as a writer. His early works were very diverse. To develop a deeper, more accurate conception of how Sholem Aleichem tried out various styles and language modes, one should read one after the other 1) Shomer's Mishpot (The Trial of Shomer), 1888, and 2) the first story, first version of Tevye, Tevye the Milkman (inadequate translation of der milkhiker), 1895. I do not refer to the second, revised version, Dos Groyse Gevins, 1903. Only seven years had elapsed between these two pieces, but the language and style were transformed. He wrote Shomer's Mishpot for other writers and critics of his region, and also for the Yiddish-reading public in Europe. Not so many readers of Yiddish lived then in America. In Shomer's Mishpot lies no trace of irony or humor. Its earnestness is over the top, and he lambasted Shomer, expressed his unfavorable opinions about the trash novelist without pity, again and again. His language (then called Zhargon) of his time and region, is over-seasoned with many words (alien for us) that intrude like uninvited guests. One can get dizzy rummaging in German, Russian, Yiddish and Hebrew dictionaries. The spelling is old-fashioned, irregular, and you have to listen closely to yourself as you read, to the sounds you make while you read. Sometimes two words are put together and look like one word. Sometimes, the reverse. Tevye der Milkhiker of 1895 is quiet something else. It was also written for other writers and critics and for the Yiddish-reading public. The spelling is also old- fashioned but the language is not overburdened with Russian and German. Further, one can sense a spirit of humane sympathy. A letter to Dubnov of May 29, 1888 (From Zhargon to Yiddish, Vilna: Kletskin, 1929, p. 64) sheds some light on this transformation. I enclose my prose poem, The Bunch of Flowers, or The Bouquet. This is the first attempt at writing such poems that brings the language to wholeness without resorting to German or Russian expressions or words. Please say something about it in the next volume of Voskhod [a Russian language monthly for Jewish readers]. Signed, Sholem Aleichem. No doubt there are other important background reasons. Louis Fridhandler 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Feb 1998 16:42:05 -0800 From: leon t rosenberg Subject: Breast Plate Breast Plate? Abelson gives "brust-shild" and "brust-pantzer" Mer vays ich nisht. leon rosenberg 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Feb 1998 18:34:18 -1000 From: feller@indirect.com (Morris Feller) Subject: Yiddish for Breastplate In response to Yankev Lewis (07.151), the Hebrew word for "breastplate" is found in Exodus 28, v.15, and it is "khoshen". Checking in Yehoash's Yiddish translation of the Torah, I found that he uses the same term: "khoshen". The only difference between the two terms is in the spelling. The Hebrew is spelled without a "vov" while Yehoash spells it with a "vov". Morrie Feller Phoenix 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 22 Feb 98 23:54:02 GMT From: Norma Brewer Subject: Torah Breastplate Yankev Lewis asked in the latest edition of Mendele what the Yiddish for Torah breastplate was. I asked in shul yesterday and learnt that the Hebrew was 'choshen' /-chess/vov/shin/mem. My informant thought that the Yiddish word would be something like 'choishen'. I hope this is of use. Norma Brewer ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 07.154 Address for the postings to Mendele: mendele@lists.yale.edu Address for the list commands: listproc@lists.yale.edu Mendele on the Web: http://www2.trincoll.edu/~mendele http://sunsite.unc.edu/yiddish/mendele.html