“An earthquake in biblical scholarship” is how the discovery has been described. That’s true, as are the connections it reveals between ancient languages and modern ones.
In some cases, changes were minor. In others, Yiddish phrases were transformed nearly beyond recognition.
The Jewish Soul: Classics of Yiddish Cinema, a recent collection from a major distributor, adds to the canon of Jewish movies in fascinating new ways.
With its new Yiddish course, the language-learning app Duolingo sparked major disagreements over Jewish identity. One of the course developers joins us to discuss what happened.
A brief look at some of the many Jewish words relating to alcohol.
Why do Yiddish speakers refer to children by terms of endearment seemingly meant for adults?
A versatile fellow, this Cossack, identified simultaneously with Israel’s prime minister and his bitterest opponents! Who is he and who robbed him?
A brief history of an indifferent word.
The cadences of the Talmud left their mark on Yiddish, and Israeli, speech patterns.
And most of them reveal a hidden admiration for the person who’s had the wit and the grit to get away with it.
Alter Leyb Robinson and his friend, Shabbos.
Let us sing of rodomont, Sinon, proditomania, and, in particular, grobian.
Lucy Dawidowicz.