Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 08.073 October 20, 1998 1) Secular Humanist blessing (Hershl Hartman) 2) yidishe ligatures (Andrey Bredstein) 3) yidish - a fremde shprakh (Feygl Infeld Glezer) 4) Are there Chanukka plays? (Andreas Fink) 5) yiddish story (Raizl Engel) 6) taytsh humash (Jeffrey Bennett) 7) correspondance course in Yiddish (Bryan Poulin) 8) Ikh Zing (Allan E. Blair) 9) oym ani khoymo (Yosef Gilboa) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 16 Oct 1998 18:14:12 -0400 (EDT) From: Hershl Hartman Subject: Secular Humanist blessing vi a veltlekher humanistisher vegvayzer (madrikh, Leader) un a shtikl yidishist nokh dertsu, nem ikh on fishl's (08.069) aroysruf tsu shafn a brokhe af kompyuters. tsum alem ershtn muz men bashtimen tsi di brokhe toyg bloyz far a PC, tsi zi ken oykh ongevendt vern af a mekintash. bay di frume, veys ikh, hit men zikh shtark far shatnes. ikh meyn ober az a veltlekhe, humanistishe brokhe muz zayn universal. iz ot hot ir mayn forshlag: "gebentsht zoln zayn di mentshlikhe moykhes un di mentshlikhe hent vos hobn antviklt un geboyt ot di mashinke mit ir gantser tekhnologye, vos lozt mikh klapn i af english, i af yidish, un vos derloybt mir zikh durkhtsushmuesn mit mentshn iber gor der velt, un oystsuzukhn vi fun unter der erd ale minim nayesn un tshikave faktn. mit derekh-erets bavunder ikh di kraft fun dem mentshlekhn gedank un fun der mentshlekher visnshaft. omeyn." As a Secular Humanist vegvayzer/madrikh/Leader, and a bit of a Yiddishist besides, I accept Fishl's (08.069) challenge to create a blessing for computers. First of all, it is necessary to determine whether the blessing applies only to a PC or whether it can also be directed at a Macintosh. The observant, I know, are careful not to mix things. I hold, however, that a Secular Humanistic blessing must be universal. Here, then, is my proposal: "We bless the human minds and the human hands that developed and built this machine and all its technologies, that lets me to type in both English and Yiddish and that allows me to converse with people all over the world and to unearth all sorts of information and interesting facts. Respectfully, I am in awe of the power of human thought and of human science. Amen." Hershl Hartman, Los Angeles 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 18 Oct 1998 14:21:10 -0400 (EDT) From: "Andrey Bredstein" Subject: yidishe ligatures Khosheve mendelyaner! Es tsit mikh shoyn fun lang tsu der yidisher kaligrafie, bazunders tsu der kunst fun shraybn mer vi tsvey oysies mit eyn linie, mit eyn hant-bavegung (ligatures). Keyn onvayzungen dertsu hob ikh in keyn bikher nisht gefunen; der eyntsiker moker bekheyn iz lernen zikh praktish ba di, vos kenen shraybn af aza oyfn. Derfar hob ikh zikh genumen skanirn un zamlen mustern. Kumt gebn a kuk af di ershte rezultatn: http://members.tripod.com/~Bredstein/ligatur/ligatura.htm Es iz shtark gevuntshn visn ayer meynung: i vegn dem boy funem zaytl, i vegn inhalt. Un az emetsn zenen bakant nokh alzelekhe oysies vos me kon zey shraybn tsuzamen, to zol er mir dos ibershikn glaykh afn adres: anbredstein@glasnet.ru Zayt ale matsliekh! Andrey Bredstein 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 18:41:53 -0400 (EDT) From: yiddish1@juno.com (Feigl I Glaser) Subject: YIDISH - A FREMDE SHPRAKH? Yiddish, mayn libe shprakh, mayn mame-loshn - Di ershte shprakh ikh hob ayngezapt in zikh Eyder kh'hob aroysgeredt eyn eyntsik vort, Eider nokh ikh hob ongehoybn beben; Mayn shprakh fun heym - fun mayne brider-shvester, Fun tate-mame, bobe-zeydes, kroyvim, Fun ur-eltern far knape toyznt yor -- O, zise, libe, tsum-hartsn-noent shprakh! Mame-loshn, geredt,gezungen in mayn shul; In ir kh'geshtift, geshpilt zikh oyf mayn Yidish-hoyf, In sho fun freyd kh'gelakht, gevitslt un gelibt, Gevebt khaloymes, un gelernt gvure, mut. Zey hobn zikh ale, oykhet oyf Yidish -- Di khurbn-heldn un di kemfer farn land. - Fun undz gelernt zayn shtoltse Yidn, zikh kegnshteln sonim mit gever in hant. Oyf Yidish hobn mir baklogt undzer khurbn, Bagleyt hot Yidish zey oyf zeyer letstn veg; Mit Yidish hobn mir gekemft far folk's kium; Mit yidish hobn mir gegvuret un derlebt. Inem land fun Yidn hot men bashpign say Yidish say di milyonen umgebrakhte; Arayngehoykht a botl in di kinder Say tsum "goles-folk", say tsum "goles-loshn". Endlekh hot men in Isroel onerkent, Az Yidish "oykhet" iz a Yidish-loshn, Ober nit kayn glaykhes, afile keyn tsveyts, Nor an oytser fun a fremder, vayter velt. Yidish fremd darf vern undz, undzere kinder, Un dos loshn fun amol - kinstlekh oyfgelebt -- On tife vortslen, ful fremde klangen, frazn, Darf vern, zogn zey, "undzer naye muter-shprakh". Genug genart zikh un Yidn oyf der velt Mit oysreyd undzer "yidish iz a fremde shprakh Far di falashes un far sfardim yidn", Un az Hebreish loshn iz zey noent , nit fremd. Fun Afrike -- "falashes", Sfardim iberal hobn biz nit lang tsurik nit gekent Yivrit; Gedenkt nor getseylte Yivre-davn verter, Terkish, Ladino, Arabish nor geredt . Ober zer fil viln s'iz dertsu geven -- Un fil 'goles- gelt' oyf Yidish gezamlt -- In lender fun Azye zey oystsulernten "zeyer" naye shprakh, ashkenazims zitn. Dan ven zey zaynen in land ongekumen -- in "Merkaz Klitas" hot me zey genumen geknelt mit zey vayter "zeyer" nay loshn -- Di eyntsik-onerkente shprakh inem land". Iz freyt zikh sonim ale - freyt zikh alt un yung, Oyf mayn folk's umglik, oyf der gekirtster tsung! A groys "nitsokhn", zogt ir, iz Yidn bashert? Ir zogt "es shtarbt?" O, neyn, ir shekht es nokh atsind! Daytshn oysgekoylet hobn Undzer folk -- Yidish redndike mener, froyen, kinder -- Un isroel-firer mit meshorsim do hobn gebendikt undzer shprudldik loshn. Itst heybn men on farshteyn dem troyrikn farlust, Undzer kroyn-shprakh -- tife, doyres-lange vortslen; Endlekh hot der Isroel-kneset onerkent, Az oykhet Yidish iz "di Yidn's loshn". Un zey zaynen "makrev" zikh un zaynen greyt tsu derloybn lernen zikh - "vegn Yidish"; S'vert ober nisht tsugeteylt s'bashtimte gelt Tsu lernen Yidish - oyfn shpits tey-lefele. Un me redt shoyn vegn "goles-yidn" Nit nor vi tsum toyt gefirte bidne shof, Nor oykh vi groyse heldn vos gekemft Kegn Nazi-besties vos farvist di velt. Feygl Infeld Glezer 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 19:14:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Andreas Fink Subject: Are there Chanukka plays ? Dear Mendeleyeners, Last time in a train I met a christian priest, who told me children were performing small pieces of theater on Christmas Eve. So I told him jewish children were performing some plays at Purim. And through this conversation the priest had the idea to perform this Christmas a Chanukka Play. He asked me, whether I knew one, but I'm even unsure whether something like this exists. Now I'm going to ask you ... Would you tell me whether pieces like this exist and if so where to get one. Ikh zog aikh shojn hajnt a harzikhn dank Andreas Fink, Germany 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 20:48:37 -0400 (EDT) From: Rozyengel@aol.com Subject: yiddish story mendele chaverim, I'm hoping someone will be able to help me identify a particular story I heard in my first yiddish class. It is about a poor family celebrating a holiday and dividing up one precious orange among the whole family. Maybe teaacher Ida Selavan will see this. I would love to know the author and title of the storyand or where I might find it A sheynem dank. Raizl Engel 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 21:33:55 -0400 (EDT) From: Jeffrey Bennett Subject: taytsh humash Liebe khaverim ikh pruv zu shrayben oyf yiddush a sheilah vus ikh volt gevolt fregen. ikh hob keinmol nit geshrieben oyf yiddish. ikh tu es itzt zu ershtn mol. ikh lern zich yiddish aleyn. ikh ken daitch und a bissel russish und hebraish, und itzt vil ikh lernen sich yiddish. mein sheilah iz---vu kriegt men a taytsh humash. ikh hob geleyent a sakh mayse vus dermonen a taytsh humash. ikh volt gehat hanoe zu zen an ekhte taytsh humash. Zayt azoy gut und loz mir vissen oyb ikh kenn koyfen ot dos bukh. entschudigt mir az ikh bin an anheyber in yiddish und ikh kenn nit gut schrayben besondersh mit englishen oysyos. es volt geven gringer zu shrayben mit hebraische osyos. ober azoy gayt es. ikh hob gehat moire zu shrayben epes zu ot die mendelyane reshima vegn mayne shvach yiddish. ober den hob ikh zikh beshlossen az es iz besser zu shrayben wie nit zu shrayben. ikh entshuldig zich in faroys. ikh hof az alemen vellen mikh farrichten ven ikh mach a tayos. ikh hob khashek zu lernen zich yiddish und a shod vos iz bay mir in mayne stot az es existiert kayne gelegenhayt zu studieren yiddish. a harztiken dank Jeffrey Bennett 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 17 Oct 1998 20:28:20 -0400 (EDT) From: "Bryan Poulin" Subject: Information Please I am looking for a correspondance course in Yiddish. Can you make any suggestions? L. Poulin 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 18 Oct 1998 15:30:46 -0400 (EDT) From: ALLANBLAIR@aol.com Subject: Ikh Zing Does anyone out the have the lyrics to the beautiful Yiddish love song, Ikh Zing? I heard it sung by Deborah Davis, the vocalist for the Second Avenue Klezmer Ensemble, but I can't find the lyrics anywhere. (Perhaps I looked in the wrong place.) Allan E. Blair Columbus, Ohio 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 20 Oct 1998 06:31:43 -0400 (EDT) From: AJ Gilboa Subject: oym ani khoymo Marvellous! What is the melody? Who is the author? When is this paraphrase performed? In shul? The reference to "ani hoymo" in the piyyut is from Shir Hashirim. The beloved (knesses yisroel, in the figurative interpretation) says: "ani hoymo v'shodai kamigdoloys" - I am a wall and my breasts are like towers. So "oym ani hoymo" means - a nation that says "I am a wall ..." "Domso l'somor" is also an allusion to Shir Hashirim. Hodesh tov. Yosef Gilboa ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 08.073 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