A weekly New York radio program is where I first heard and fell in love with Yiddish. I had grown up singing Schubert Lieder with my father, so I could recognize the Teutonic base of the language. It was the musical quality of Yiddish that appealed to me then. Much later, when I learned German I began to understand a lot of Yiddish, as well as many regional dialects, and even some Dutch. Yiddish is having a renaissance. In Germany, it is now offered as a course at the Heinrich-Heine University in Düsseldorf and at the University of Trier. According to Wikipedia, "in a study in the 1st half of 2024, the German media association Internationale Medienhilfe (IMH) found that the number of Yiddish media is increasing again, due to an increase in the Yiddish-speaking population, especially in the USA. According to IMH estimates, the number of speakers worldwide is approaching two million."
I always considered Yiddish a cute language. Not sure why but having grown up with strong German dialects around me, I was able to understand other variations of German quite easily, which helps also with Yiddish.
I have no family or personal cultural history with the language but always loved hearing songs and exposing myself to it, it’s so soothing in a way 😅 I think I came across it first because I used to play the clarinet and eventually got exploded to klezmer music…then jiddisch songs
A large group of Jews sat by me on the train in Switzerland this summer. The woman closest to me talked with her son in English. She and her together Hebrew, and then sometimes Yiddish. Like Swiss German dialects, but different.
I grew up listening to Yiddish and although I understood it I didn’t want to speak it as a child and so I responded to my parents with English. Not until I was an adult did I regret that and although I did speak it with my parents as they aged I am far from fluent. Now the last Yiddish-speaking family member has died and I very much miss the language.
Since you are coming to it through songs, don’t miss listening to The Shvesters on Instagram. Two young women who are not actually sisters but who are jazzing up the old songs with great singing talent.
I'll find them! Thank you 💜 The songs that used to hear as a child were performed by The Barry Sisters I think. I wonder what it is about Yiddish and sister duos :)
Yiddish is also on my list to learn. I have to make pease with Dutch and Swedish first, but Yiddish is around the corner. I may be a goy but I grew up surounded by Jews. I friend took me to Temple (over his grandmother's objections) when I was ten. I was very impressed. And I heard a lot of Yiddish, and many Yiddishisms. schlepp, tsuris, schmuck, and, of course—á propos of your father's sensitivities—tuchus.
After I went to Germany in the 1960's and spent some time polishing up my college class German, I returned home and was invited one late summer Saturday to go with my father to a service at his boss' (reformed) temple. A guy stood up and gave an announcement in Yiddish, and I was floored by how much I could understand.
Wow, that's so cool. I guess you learned more than you'd thought as a child.
There is really not many people here to practice speaking it with, as the community that speaks it are a very closed community. It's probably easier to go and practice speaking Arabic in a Bedouin village.
A weekly New York radio program is where I first heard and fell in love with Yiddish. I had grown up singing Schubert Lieder with my father, so I could recognize the Teutonic base of the language. It was the musical quality of Yiddish that appealed to me then. Much later, when I learned German I began to understand a lot of Yiddish, as well as many regional dialects, and even some Dutch. Yiddish is having a renaissance. In Germany, it is now offered as a course at the Heinrich-Heine University in Düsseldorf and at the University of Trier. According to Wikipedia, "in a study in the 1st half of 2024, the German media association Internationale Medienhilfe (IMH) found that the number of Yiddish media is increasing again, due to an increase in the Yiddish-speaking population, especially in the USA. According to IMH estimates, the number of speakers worldwide is approaching two million."
Very interesting. Yes, there has been a revival movement in the past 30 years I think.
It’s beautiful really, the places we find hope. Thank you for sharing this one of yours.
Thank you for reading and commenting, Holly 💜
I always considered Yiddish a cute language. Not sure why but having grown up with strong German dialects around me, I was able to understand other variations of German quite easily, which helps also with Yiddish.
I have no family or personal cultural history with the language but always loved hearing songs and exposing myself to it, it’s so soothing in a way 😅 I think I came across it first because I used to play the clarinet and eventually got exploded to klezmer music…then jiddisch songs
It's very interesting where our feelings about different languages come from, but yeah it has a lot to do with what we grew up around I guess
A large group of Jews sat by me on the train in Switzerland this summer. The woman closest to me talked with her son in English. She and her together Hebrew, and then sometimes Yiddish. Like Swiss German dialects, but different.
That should read *she and her husband
yes i figured :)
For me, it was bits of understanding with lots of static between.
Really cool! Maybe I'll be able to understand Swiss German now :)
God, Tan’ka…
I am sitting in my car and crying…😭
💜💜
I grew up listening to Yiddish and although I understood it I didn’t want to speak it as a child and so I responded to my parents with English. Not until I was an adult did I regret that and although I did speak it with my parents as they aged I am far from fluent. Now the last Yiddish-speaking family member has died and I very much miss the language.
Since you are coming to it through songs, don’t miss listening to The Shvesters on Instagram. Two young women who are not actually sisters but who are jazzing up the old songs with great singing talent.
I'll find them! Thank you 💜 The songs that used to hear as a child were performed by The Barry Sisters I think. I wonder what it is about Yiddish and sister duos :)
I love this. My grandma used to sing that song to me!
I think it's one of the best songs! But then I'm biased.
Yiddish is also on my list to learn. I have to make pease with Dutch and Swedish first, but Yiddish is around the corner. I may be a goy but I grew up surounded by Jews. I friend took me to Temple (over his grandmother's objections) when I was ten. I was very impressed. And I heard a lot of Yiddish, and many Yiddishisms. schlepp, tsuris, schmuck, and, of course—á propos of your father's sensitivities—tuchus.
After I went to Germany in the 1960's and spent some time polishing up my college class German, I returned home and was invited one late summer Saturday to go with my father to a service at his boss' (reformed) temple. A guy stood up and gave an announcement in Yiddish, and I was floored by how much I could understand.
Mazel tov.
Wow, that's so cool. I guess you learned more than you'd thought as a child.
There is really not many people here to practice speaking it with, as the community that speaks it are a very closed community. It's probably easier to go and practice speaking Arabic in a Bedouin village.