Decade after decade, yiddish proverbs continue to capture the humor, warmth, and traditions of jewish life. We hear words like nosh, schlep, and schmutz all the time, but how did these words come to pepper american english. Stream adfree with amazon music unlimited on mobile, desktop, and tablet. Yiddish literature began with translations of and commentary on religious texts. To learn more about the yiddish book centers wexler oral history project, visit. Goldsmith relates the growth of yiddish to the explosion of jewish literature, the surge of zionism, and the popularity of socialism that impacted upon the jews of europe, america, and israel. In her fascinating new book, wonders of the new world. National yiddish theatre folksbiene 4th annual gala eleanor reissa sings my yiddishe mama. The glorious debut of traditional yiddish songbird eleanor reissa as the. Yiddish was the secret code, therefore i dont farshtaist, a bisseleh maybe here and there, the rest has gone to waste.
Yiddish manuscripts and printed books from the 15th to the 17th century manoscritt e libri a stampa in yiddish dei secoli xvxvii, edited by chava turniansky and erika timm, with the collaboration of claudia rosenzweig. A look at the history of the yiddish literature in america. This name was traditionally given to a sickly newborn by jewish parents in order to confuse the angel of death, in the hopes that he would go looking for somebody younger or somebody else. Antique yiddish books and yiddish chinuch at jewish used. The yiddish voice store commercial ira krakows jewish web page commercial broders books, yiddish section commercial yankl halperns yiddish page. The most important writer of old yiddish literature was elijah levita known as elye bokher who translated and adapted the chivalric romance of bevis of hampton, via its italian version, buovo dantona. Eleanor reissa, singer, was interviewed by christa whitney on august 22, 20 at klezkanada. Lebn fragn, digitalization of all 63 years of the organ of the arbeterring in israel. On broadway, she was in the cast of paula vogels indecent as well as being nominated for a tony award as the director of the musical, those were the days.
Fluent in two languages, english and yiddish, she has lived a life in the theatre for over thirty years, in nearly every entertainment medium and in many parts of the world. Frank london klezmer brass all stars with eleanor reissa perform an original yiddish translation of a joni mitchell song live at the yiddish book centers yidstock. The 826page comprehensive englishyiddish dictionary, with almost 50,000 entries and 33,000 subentries, is the work of gitl schaechterviswanath, a yiddish editor and poet, and paul glasser, a. The phenomenal rise of yiddish language and culture is one of the most interesting and colorful sagas of modern jewish history. Books and readers in yiddish in the united states, 18901940, hagit cohen examines the physical and ideological ground that made possible the rare flowering of yiddish literature in america. Frank london klezmer brass all stars with eleanor reissa perform an. The number of translations available into english is increasing. Buy books make a donation about cyco our blog calendar of yiddish events history of yiddish for beginners yiddish links cyco publishing housecyco records tel.
Eleanor reissa is an american actress, singer, theatre director, playwright, librettist, choreographer, and translator based in new york city. Millions of yiddish speakers survived the war including those living in america, yet further assimilation in the united states and the soviet union diminished the daily use of yiddish. She works and performs in english and yiddish speaking stages. He received the hungarian order of merit knighthood for his work in jewish music. A yearbook of yiddish studies ii volume 2 of a yearbook of yiddish studies volume 2 of oksforder yidish. Written by leo rosten over 50 years ago the information is timeless. Mar 15, 2012 yiddish was the secret code, therefore i dont farshtaist, a bisseleh maybe here and there, the rest has gone to waste. Even as the great cataclysms of the terrible century recede in time, recent years have given rise to a growing body of thirdgeneration literature, written mostly although not only by the indirect heirs of. Yiddish books from the harvard college library contains the full text of 2,601 works in yiddish on microfiche.
The turbulence endemic to yiddish literature stems from a variety of sources. Common knowledge book awards the great 100 jewish books from the yiddish books center judges. May 12, 2017 that is presumably the reason the phenomenon continues to mystify. Now, the beloved yiddish wisdom more than 100,000 copies sold has been expanded with even more proverbs and fresh illustrations to be cherished by a new generation.
Eleanor reissa director,writer,singer, actor in nyc. A brooklynborn daughter of holocaust survivors, the new york times said that eleanor reissa s work as a leading singer of yiddish. Reissa s solo and collaborative music projects are fueling the new yiddish music movement with traditional and original compositions that are rocking the yiddish world. In the second decade of the twentyfirst century, we are not yet done with the ghosts and demons of the twentieth. Yiddish uses the letters of the hebrew alphabet, and is written from right to left like. Associazione italiana amici delluniversita di gerusalemme, 2003. Teach yourself yiddish book teach yourself complete. Enjoy the most comprehensive and hilariously entertaining lexicon of the colorful and deeply expressive language of yiddish. We are not currently fulfilling online orders, as the yiddish book center has closed its building to protect visitors and staff during the covid19 pandemic. The items here represent only a portion of yales holdings in yiddish literature. These titles were scanned under the auspices of the steven spielberg digital yiddish library, and have been made available online through the internet.
Exhibit looks at golden era of yiddish childrens literature. Songs in the key of yiddish by eleanor reissa on amazon music. Some works are in translation from other languages. Comprehensive yiddishenglish dictionary by solon beinfeld. Including over 37,000 entries compiled by a team of expert yiddish linguists, comprehensive yiddish english dictionary surpasses all its predecessors in the number of words and rich selection of idioms, examples of usage, and coverage of stylistic levels and dialect forms. Yiddish language and culture in all of its moods paperback by. Eleanor reissa sings original translation at yidstock facebook. Anshel m yiddish rare yiddish form of anselm, used as a vernacular form of asher. Sadly when i hear it now, i only get the gist, my bubbe spoke it beautifully. The maturing of yiddish literature by liptzin, sol and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. You will find books on the history of yiddish, how it relates to english, and insights into the languages parallels between jewish culture and other cultures. Listen to your favorite songs from songs in the key of yiddish by eleanor reissa now. Including over 37,000 entries compiled by a team of expert yiddish linguists, comprehensive yiddishenglish dictionary surpasses all its predecessors in the number of words and rich selection of idioms, examples of usage, and coverage of stylistic levels and dialect forms.
Multtalented theatre director, writer, actor, singer in english and yiddish based in nyc. The easyshmeezy guide to yiddish is a handy guide that will help you on your way to learning yiddish, and like any language guide, it is a handy book to slip into your pocket when venturing into areas where yiddish is widely spoken. The great 100 jewish books from the yiddish books center. So oi vei as i should say, or even oy vai iz mir, though my pisk is lacking yiddish, its familiar to my ear. Yiddish literature, first edition abebooks passion for books.
Eleanor reissa singer, actress, and director in both english and yiddish was interviewed by christa whitney on august 22, 20 at klezkanada in the laurentian mountains, quebec, canada. Eleanor reissa is a tony nominated director, international concert artist, award winning playwright and broadway actor. Now, the beloved yiddish wisdom more than 100,000 copies sold has been expanded with even more proverbs and fresh illustrations to be cherished by a. See article on the yiddish language for a full description of these texts. A history from colonial times to today by pamela s. The yiddish book collection of the russian avantgarde contains books published between the years 19121928 by many of the movements best known artists.
Eleanor reissa keeps yiddish alive through music and theater. Yiddish was the language of eastern european or ashkenazic jews. After each entry there is a joke popular to those who already grew up in this culture. This interview was conducted in yiddish and english. Popular yiddish books showing 150 of 464 born to kvetch. When he was a 23yearold graduate student, lansky stumbled upon an alarming fact. Browse, read, download or print any or all of these books, free of charge. The great books list, released by the national yiddish book center, and wisses book the modern jewish canon discuss works in yiddish, hebrew, english, russian, french, dutch, polish and czech. With the recent renaissance of interest in yiddish, and in keeping with a language that embodies the variety and vibrancy of life itself, the new joys of yiddish brings leo rostens masterful work up to date. The last survivor and other modern jewish plays by eleanor reissa.
Eleanor reissa keeps yiddish alive through music and theater the queen of yiddish cabaret, eleanor reissa, is a brooklynborn native yiddish speaker whose work in theater as a director, actor, writer, and choreographer garnered her a tony award nomination and propelled her into the front ranks of yiddish theater and music. Oct 05, 2016 the 826page comprehensive english yiddish dictionary, with almost 50,000 entries and 33,000 subentries, is the work of gitl schaechterviswanath, a yiddish editor and poet, and paul glasser, a. National yiddish book center in amherst, ma librarything local. Yiddish, shmiddishwhy do we repeat a word but start it with. We are not currently fulfilling online orders, as the yiddish book center has closed its building to protect visitors and staff during the. Jan 01, 2015 listen to your favorite songs from songs in the key of yiddish by eleanor reissa now. Jewish vernacular and the new land, harvey pekar and paul buhle trace the influence of yiddish from medieval europe to the tenements of new yorks lower east side.
Eleanor sings through her heart and brings you right there. The yiddish book center national yiddish book center, located on the campus of hampshire college in amherst, massachusetts, united states, is a cultural institution dedicated to the preservation of books in the yiddish language, as well as the culture and history those books represent. In this yiddish section of jewish used books, you will find many used yiddish short stories to have in your home or library. Yiddish literature, the body of written works in the yiddish language of ashkenazic jewry. It has been in decline since the nazi genocide of the 20th century. The nazis destroyed schools, shuls, books, yiddish theaters, movies, and radio programs, and the holocaust led to a dramatic decline in the use of yiddish.
Teach yourself yiddish will be the first choice for students of the yiddish language. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Frank londons klezmer brass allstars with eleanor reissa performing an original yiddish translation of a song live at the yiddish book. Hebrew is the 3,000 year old language used by the jews for prayer and religious ceremonies along with aramaic and is the official language of the state of israel.
A brooklynborn daughter of holocaust survivors, the new york times said that eleanor s work as a leading singer of yiddish songs is a tribute to her familys resilience. The national yiddish book center was founded in 1980 by macarthur fellow aaron lansky, who continues to lead the organization as its president. These days she collaborates with exciting new bands as well as solo concerts. The national yiddish book center offers online access to the full texts of nearly 11,000 outofprint yiddish titles. That is presumably the reason the phenomenon continues to mystify. The joys of yiddish is partly a dictionary and partly an explanatory nonfiction of the yiddish language and the jewish religion. How a mensch from massachusetts saved yiddish literature for generations to come by sue macy. Exhibit looks at golden era of yiddish childrens literature an image from the cover of mayselekh, a 1928 collection of stories by jewishamerican writer herman gold. The yiddish book center interviewed eleanor reissa for the. Yiddish book collection of the russian avantgarde beinecke. Dec 25, 2009 teach yourself yiddish will be the first choice for students of the yiddish language. Face in yiddish, translation, englishyiddish dictionary. Its history can be divided into old yiddish literature c.
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