Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 08.109 January 19, 1999 1) Mayn yingele (Itsik Goldenberg) 2) ich hob a kleynem yingele (Marvin Meyer Engel) 3) Mayn Yingele (Gitl Dubrovsky) 4) Mayn Yingele (Carl Goldberg) 5) ikh hob a klaynm yingele (Martin Davis) 6) a lid (Marion Herbst) 7) Lid -- "Mayn Yingele" (Ellen Cassedy) 8) Mayn Yingele (Morrie Feller) 9) Mayn Yingele (Arre Komar) [Moderator's note: Although this issue is a bit redundant, I beleive it may make an interesting reading. - i.v.] 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 10:56:22 -0500 (EST) From: "Robert Goldenberg" Subject: Mayn yingele David Herscovic asks about a lid about a yingele. The author is Morris Rosenfeld. The poem, " Mayn yingele," one of my personal favourites, is from Rosenfeld's ARBAYTER UN FRAYHAYTS LIEDER. Here is the complete poem, from the 1910 edition of his collected works. (Some of the daytshmerish spelling has been corrected): Ikh hob a kleynem yingele, A zunele gor fayn! Ven ikh derzey im dakht zikh mir, Di gantse velt iz mayn. Nor zeltn, zeltn zey ikh im, Mayn sheynem, ven er vakht, Ikh tref im imer shlofendik, Ikh zey im gor bay nakht. Di arbet traybt mikh fri aroys Un lozt mikh shpet tsurik; A fremd iz mir mayn eygn leyb! O, fremd mayn kind's a blik! Ikh kum tsuklemterheyt aheym, In finsternish gehilt, - Mayn blaykhe froy dertseylt mir bald, Vi fayn dos kind zikh shpilt, Vi zis es redt, vi klug es fregt: "O, mame, gute ma, Ven kumt un brengt a peni mir Mayn guter, guter pa?" Ikh her es tsu un ayl - es muz, - Yo, yo, es muz gesheyn! Di foterlibe flakert oyf: Es muz mayn kind mikh zeyn!.... Ikh shtey bay zayn gelegerl Un zey, un her, un sha! A troym bavegt di lipelekh: "O, vu iz, vu iz pa?" Ikh kush di bloye eygelekh, Zey efn'n zikh - "o, kind!" Zey zeyen mikh, zey zeyen mikh, Un shlisn zikh geshvind. "Do shteyt dayn papa, tayerer, A penele dir, na!" A troym bavegt di lipelekh: "O, vu iz, vu iz pa?" Ikh blayb tseveytikt un tseklemt, Farbitert un ikh kler: "Ven du ervakhst a mol, mayn kind, Gefinstu mikh nit mer".... Itsik Goldenberg Fort Erie, ON, Canada. 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 12:02:57 -0500 (EST) From: marvin engel Subject: ich hob a kleynem yingele David Herskovic(8.105) asked for the author of the poem that begins "ich hob a kleynem yingele". Morris Rosenfeld wrote it in 1887 according to Ruth Rubin. The poem appears on page 353 of her book: Voices of a People, and, I am sure, in many other books. It was very popular. I learned it in my IWO Yiddish shule in the 1930s. It was set to music by the prolific Anonymous. Marvin Meyer Engel 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 12:54:03 -0500 (EST) From: GDubrovsky@aol.com Subject: Mayne Yingele In response to David Hershkovics questions concerning a Yiddish lid his brother sent him, it is by Morris Rosenfeld and called, Mayne Yingele. It decries the terrible situation when a working parent leaves a child while he is still sleeping, and returns bone weary at night to find his child asleep again. Father and child, strangers to each other. I think of this poem often when I travel by early train to New York. At the Princeton station, at 6:00 AM, are what looks like hundreds of executives with brief-cases waiting for the train. And when I return at 7:00 PM, from New York, I find them again at Penn Station, waiting for the train. Back to a fourteen hour (or longer) work week, including travel. Morris Rosenfeld's protagonist, however, was not an executive, but a worker in one of NY's infamous 'sweat shops.' Nevertheless, the more things change, the more they remain the same, as a famous quote has it. Best wishes for a happy new year. Maybe this year the lion and the lamb will lie down in peace, somewhere in the world. Gitl Dubrovsky 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 13:14:41 -0500 (EST) From: BBNK42A@prodigy.com (MR CARL A GOLDBERG) Subject: Mayn Yingele David Herskovic asked about the lid "Ikh hob a klaynm yingele" and its author. The author is Morris Rosenfeld, the famous "sweatshop" poet who was born in Poland in 1862, emigrated to America in 1886 and died in New York in 1923. I believe he wrote this heartrending lid, "Mayn Yingele" in 1887. There are nine stanzas in all, of which Reb Herskovic gave us the first three. Here are the last six verses: Ikh kum tseklemterheyt aheym, In finsternish gehilt -- Mayn bleykhe froy dertseylt mir bald, Vi fayn dos kind zikh shpilt. Vi zis es ret, vi klug es fregt: -- O mame, gute ma, Ven kumt un brengt a peni mir, Mayn guter, guter pa? Ikh shtey bay zayn gelegerl Un ze, un her, un sha! A troym bavegt di lipelekh: -- O, vu iz, vu iz pa? Ikh kush di bloye eygelekh: Zey efnen zikh -- o, kind! Ze zeen mikh, zey seen mikh Un shlisn zikh geshvind. "Do steyt dayn papa, tayerer, A penile dir na!" A troym bavegt di lipelekh: "O vu iz, vu iz pa?" Ikh blayb tseveytikt un tseklemt, Farbitert, un ikh kler: Ven du dervakhst amol, mayn kind, Gefinst du mikh nicht mer. "Mayn Yingele" was set to music by a (to me) unknown composer. The text, English translation and melody were published in an anthology of Yiddlish songs, but I am embarrassed to say that I don't remember which one. There is also an excellent Russian translation to be found in "Yiddish Poetry (in Russian)-- An Anthology" by Leonid Grebnief (L. Feinberg) published in New York in 1946 by Futuro Press. Carl Goldberg Tempe, Arizona 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 14:11:40 -0500 (EST) From: martind@cs.berkeley.edu (Martin Davis) Subject: "ikh hob a klaynm yingele" David Herskovic asks about this song. I can't help with the author. But I well remember my mother singing it circa 1938. There are more verses. One has the child asking something like: Vu is pa? Mayn shayne gite pa. Ven brengt er mir ayn peninu? Mayn shayne gite pa. Martin Davis 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 20:13:55 -0500 (EST) From: Miriamke@aol.com Subject: a lid Dovid Herskovitz fregt vegn a lid "Mayn Yingele". me ken es gefinen af zayt 148 in "Mir Trogn a Gezang." Morris Rosenfeld hut es geshribn in 1887. Marion Herbst 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 09:26:26 -0500 (EST) From: CassBlum@aol.com Subject: Lid -- "Mayn Yingele" David Herskovic asks about the song "mayn yingele," the lament of a father who works such long hours that he never sees his son awake. Its author is Morris Rosenfeld, who wrote a number of songs about Jewish immigrant workers in New York early in this century. Ellen Cassedy Bethesda, MD 8)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 19:53:22 -0500 (EST) From: feller@indirect.com (Morris Feller) Subject: Mayn Yingele In reply to David Herskovic's request in 8.105, the poem is "Mayn Yingele" by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923). He is the best known of the "sweatshop poets". A complete version of the poem can be found in "Learning Yiddish in Easy Stages" by Zukerman & Herbst, 2nd Ed., p. 168. Morrie Feller 9)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 17:33:58 -0500 (EST) From: Arthur Komar Subject: Mayn Yingele Khaver Herskowic requested information concerning the poem Mayn Yingele, of which he quoted the first few verses. I delayed replying since I thought that a number of our readers would answer, this being a classic and very popular Yiddish poem of the sweat shop era. Perhaps since others expected a similar response it would appear that his request fell through the cracks. The poem is by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923). The full text and music can be found E. Mlotek's collection Mir Trogn a Gezang. I believe that a recording of it by Leon Lechner, is available on CD. The complete poem is as follows: Ikh hob a kleynem yingele A zunele gor fayn! Ven ikh derze im, dakht zikh mir, Di gantse velt iz mayn. Nor zeltn, zeltn ze ikh im, Mayn sheynem, ven er vakht, Ikh tref im imer shlofndik, Ikh ze im nor bay nakht. Di arbet traybt mikh fri aroys, Un lozt mikh shpet tsurik; O, fremd iz mir mayn eygen layb, O, fremd mayn kinds a blik! Ikh kum tserklempterheyt aheym, In finsternish gehilt --- Mayn bleykhe froy dertseylt mir bald, Vi fayn dos kind zikh shpilt. Vi zis es redt, vi klug es fregt: --O mame, gute ma, Ven kumt un brengt a peni mir, Mayn guter, guter pa? Ikh shtey bayzayn gelegerl Un ze, un her, un sha! A troym bavegt di lipelekh: --O, vu iz, vu iz pa? Ikh kush di bloye eygelekh; Zeyy efenen zikh -- o, kind! Ze zeen mikh, ze zeen mikh Un shlisn zikh geshvind. Ikh blayb tseveytogt un tseklemt, Farbitert un ikh kler: Ven du dervakhtst a mol, mayn kind, Gefinstu mikh nit mer.... On a personal note: I was such a child. Arre Komar ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 08.109 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://metalab.unc.edu/yiddish/mendele.html