Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 3.201 January 17, 1994 1) Yiddish in Universities (Jeremy Stern) 2) Introduction (Ari Maidenberg) 3) Learning Yiddish (Pierre Lewis) 4) Introduction (Steve Silbert) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun Jan 16 18:21:01 1994 From: Jeremy Stern Subject: Yiddish in Universities I would like to know how many universities have for-credit Yiddish courses. Obiviously there is no way to get a figure that includes every college in the world, but an approximate number would suffice. Also, could anyone list the universities that have major Yiddish programs (ie, offer Yiddish language and literature courses, have full-time faculty, etc.) Jeremy Stern 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun Jan 16 19:26:48 1994 From: Subject: Introduction I am currently attending McGill University and am taking an introductory Yiddish course this year. I found out about this through my Yiddish teacher who, as of yet, I don't think is on this list... I'm not exactly sure how much I can contribute as my conversational Yiddish is at best marginal... Az ich vell gepruven tzu chapn a shmuess... Ari Maidenberg 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon Jan 17 13:46:59 1994 From: "pierre (p.) lewis" Subject: Learning Yiddish I also found 'Learning Yiddish in Easy Stages' very useful as a first text before Weinreich's College Yiddish. I find Zuckerman/Herbst's text particularly useful if you're also learning, as I was, the letters (the print quality in Weinreich is a torture to the eyes, e.g. p. 26 with its inkblots, my only problem with this text). I now use Weinreich and, although I study only at home (not good for spoken Yiddish!), I very much like the book. Is there an alternative at that level? While we're on the topic, has anyone heard anything of 'Yiddish, an Introduction to the Language, Literature & Culture' by Sheva Zucker. It was in the 1993 catalog of the Jewish Book Center of the ArbeterRing, but is not in the 1994 one. When I tried to order it in early summer, I was told it was delayed. Since, nothing. Finally, does the NYBC really exist? I've written twice to them, still have no answer. The latest address I have is 48 Woodbridge St., South Hadley, MA. Pierrele 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon Jan 17 14:08:22 1994 From: Steve Silbert Subject: Introduction My name is Steve (Schmuel) Silbert. I am an engineer in the Mid-Atlantic. My interest in Yiddish has come about for two reasons, both of which can be traced back to my Zeide. As long as I can remember, Zeide has told me stories about when he was growing up on the family farm in Hamilton, Ontario. His parents (Alle Hashalom) spoke no English, only Yiddish. He and his multitude of siblings grew up speaking Yiddish in the home and english outside. My Zeide is a gifted (although not always 100 percent accurate) storyteller and writer. As he has gotten along in years I began to feel closer to him. I think that with his eventual passing, both of us were afraid that much of the family history and the history of our people would be lost. Because of this, I began to TRY and write letters to he and Bubbie in Yiddish. Without any real training, it takes about two weeks of spare time to translate about one page of Yiddish. As a side note, I have since purchased a program for Windows called Heb Type from Kabbalah Software that has the Hebrew character set and works as a Yiddish word processor. My Yiddish is good enough that Zeide recognizes it as Yiddish, but my grammar is non-existent. He still shows off my letters to his friends at the local shule gatherings (except the one letter that I wrote everything backwards -- it took Zeide a little while to figure out my secret code) Since I was married two years ago, I have gotten the genealogy bug from my Zeide. He started working on a family tree and newsletter in the early 80's but that died off due to a lack of the funds necessary to mail each letter. I have taken on the task of tracking down lost relatives, obtaining stories, etc. As I began to talk to some of the older relatives i found that though they spoke English it was more meaningful to them that I could understand at least some of a Yiddish conversation. I also found that the stories were conveyed in a warmer, more expressive and meaningful way when they were told in Yiddish. I have since become interested in literature by Yiddish authors (so far I have been reading Shalom Aleichem and Isaac Singer). I would be grateful for any suggested readings. For the present I have been confining myself to English translations. I am looking forward to future conversations with others of similar interests. Thank you to the administrator(s) of this listing for providing this service. Schmuel ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 3.201 To subscribe, send SUB MENDELE FIRSTNAME LASTNAME to: LISTSERV@YALEVM.YCC.YALE.EDU Mendele has 2 rules: 1. Provide a Subject: line. 2. Sign your article. Send submissions/responses to: mendele@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu Other business: nmiller@starbase.trincoll.edu Anonymous ftp archives available on: ftp.mendele.trincoll.edu in the directory pub/mendele/files