Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 4.101 September 8, 1994 1) Introduction (Robert Fuhrmann) 2) Introduction (Liliane Weissberg) 3) Introduction (Isabel Marcus) 4) Chelm dialect (Ayelet Kuper Margalioth) 5) YIVO letter from Argentina (Fishl Kutner) 6) Lists of yiddish first names (Ruben Frankenstein) 7) Translation process (Louis Fridhandler) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 5 Sep 1994 22:48:01 -0400 (EDT) From: fuhrmann@sas.upenn.edu Subject: Introduction I am a Ph.D. student in Germanic Languages at the University of Pennsylvania. My studies focus primarily on German-Jewish literature from the mid-19th century to the present, though I have a special interest in Post-Holocaust fiction. Translation -- both theory and practice -- is another subject area in which I am interested, and I am currently involved in translating the two most recent works of Jurek Becker: Nach der Ersten Zukunft and Amanda Herzlos. I also write my own fiction, mostly short stories, but sporadically I work on a rather complicated novel set in the 1940's in Dresden. As for Yiddish, I will begin learning it soon, this Thursday in fact is my first lesson. Hopefully I can begin sending notes in Yiddish soon. With warm regards, Robert Fuhrmann 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 6 Sep 1994 13:03:33 -0400 (EDT) From: lweissbe@sas.upenn.edu Subject: Introduction I am Professor of German and Comparative Literature at the University of Pennsylvania and Co-Chair of the Program in Comparative Literature and Literary Theory. I am working on German-Jewish literature, primarily of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Although the authors I am concerned with are writing in German (at least, primarily), Yiddish was the mother tongue of many of them, for example Salomon Maimon or Rahel Levin. With all my best wishes for a happy New Year, Liliane Weissberg 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 07 Sep 1994 23:35:45 -0400 (EDT) From: IMARCUS@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu Subject: Introduction I teach law at SUNY (Buffalo). Parents spoke Yiddish but as the "adult" la language. So, I am familiar with the cadejnces and some phrases but need to focus on acquiring greater knowedlge. This past spring was my second time teaching law in Poland at Jagiellonian University in Cracow. Have travel;led extensively in Poland and spent time at Jewish sites in various cities, have done research on domestic violence in Poland (which I am now writing up), am still coping with the complexity of what I experienced there, as well as in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Serbia where I have spent some time. Isabel Marcus 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 5 Sep 1994 16:00:45 -0400 (EDT) From: ayelet@CAM.ORG Subject: Chelm Dialect As part of the Montreal Yiddish Theatre's Fall productions (two programs celebrating 100 years of Yiddish Theatre in Montreal, including many scenes from past productions, a multi-media presentation, and a historical overview by a (non-Yidddish-speaking!) Professor, Prof. Jean-Marc Larrue of the University of Montreal, who is an expert on Montreal Yiddish Theatre), the Theatre is producing a scene from the Wise Men of Chelm. For some reason, the cast has gotten into a number of arguments about the proper dialect to be used by the Chelmer characters, and particularly by Reb Yoysef Loksh, the lead role. We have several scenes (such as out of I.B. Singer's In My Father's Court) which require a thick Warsaw accent, and others which occur in Vilna (like Grade's The Agunah) which we are also clear on in terms of accent, but what about Chelm? (Answers would be helpful either in terms of vowel pronunciations or even in comparison to Lithuanian vs. Polish Yiddish; we have several native speakers of both in the cast who are always more than happy to differentiate that for the rest of us...) PS - if anyone is within range and interested, these Yiddish Theatre Shows (there are shows every spring and fall) run through most of October, Tue-Thu and Sat-Sun night and Sun matinee, at the Saidye Bronfman Centre on Cote-Ste-Catherine Road in Montreal, Telephone (514)739-2301. Simultaneous Live Translation (using earphones) into English and/or French is available at no cost to audience members. Ayelet Kuper Margalioth 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 6 Sep 1994 23:27:03 -0700 From: fishl@well.sf.ca.us Subject: YIVO letter from Argentina Dear Fishl, I really appreciate the space dedicated in your publication as regards what happened in the YIVO in Buenos Aires. My life was saved because of our programme on the radio on Sundays from 10 to 12 p.m. That's why on Mondays I arrive at the YIVO after 10 o'clock in the morning. That terrible Monday I should have begun my work with an interview at 10:15. Unfortunately the person that was waiting for me died in the attack. The hard work to rescue the library and the file didn't let me write to you before, but the information you received through Zachary Baker, given by my pupil and co-worker on my programme, Saul Drajer is correct. I hope to go on being in touch with you and keep on reporting to your readers what we are doing in Buenos Aires. I'm afraid I won't participate in the conference in Kiev or Toronto. All our efforts must be concentrated on rebuilding of the YIVO and this requires not only work but a lot of money. That's why I thank you for news of the account we opened in the U.S.A. and it would be very helpful if you could publish it again and also in all the Jewish community magazines and send it by e-mail. I'm deeply thankful and I wish you and your readers A GUT UN GEZUNT YOR. Abraham M. Lichtenbaum (Contributions may be sent to the attention of Mr. Kent E. Schiner, Intl. Pres., B'nai B'rith Headquarters, 1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20036). Fishl Kutner 6)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 2 Sep 1994 12:37:49 +0200 (MESZ) From: frankens@mibm.ruf.uni-freiburg.de Subject: Lists of yiddish first names The best list I know is to find in the Yiddish-English-Hebrew Dic- tionary of Alexander Harkavy (1988 Reprint of the 1928 2nd edition p. 525-530). It is a quite long list with english equivalents. A shorter list of the most frequent yiddish names is to be found in Salomo A. Birnbaums "Grammatik der Jiddischen Sprache" (Hamburg, my edition is the 4th of 1984). If you know the technique of changing hebrew words to yiddish, you may take almost any hebrew name (most of the biblical names). Exam- ples may be found in my favourite "Verterbikhl fun hebreyish-yiddi- she verter fun Yankef Levin (Cyco Froyen Centrale, New York 1958), p. 92-96. Alternative solutions are personal names out of the vast yiddish literature and if you want to save time, just open the first page of any yiddish play and look through the list of characters. Shana Tova with happy hunting and light birth! Ruben Ruben Frankenstein 7)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 07 Sep 94 16:10:41 EDT From: 74064.1661@compuserve.com Subject: Translation process For a nuts and bolts outline of a process used in translating from Italian into English, see _The Process of Translation_, by William Weaver, in THE CRAFT OF TRANSLATION, eds. John Biguenet & Rainer Schulte, University of Chicago Press, 1989, pp. 117-124. Weaver describes a method of complex revisions that he uses after dashing off a first draft until finding something that "feels right." Everything he says seems to fit somewhere in my experience of translating Yiddish to English (minus the macaronic language veytikn). Louis Fridhandler ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 4.101 Mendele has 2 rules: 1. Provide a meaningful Subject: line 2. Sign your article (full name please) A Table of Contents is now available via anonymous ftp, along with weekly updates. 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