Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the Yiddish language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews in Europe and still spoken by many Hasidic Jews today.
For more stories on Yiddishkeit, see Forverts in English, and for stories written in…
Yiddish
The Latest
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Film & TV The Yiddish Path to Acting Fame and Fortune
A version of this post appeared in Yiddish here Like all actors attempting to break into the notoriously difficult profession, Michael Levi Harris is seeking to stand out. Luckily, Harris has a talent that is almost unique: he has an exceptional knack for languages. Not only can Harris speak many tongues but he also has…
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Culture The Greatest Yiddish Writer You Never Heard Of
● Memories and Scenes: Shtetl, Childhood, Writers By Jacob Dinezon Translated from the Yiddish by Tina Lunson Jewish Storyteller Press, 240 pages, $19.95 In “Apocalypse,” a short story by Yiddish writer Jacob Dinezon, three elderly Jews get to talking about the concept of Rothschild, and about whether such a person actually exists. “In reality there…
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The Schmooze Mandy Patinkin Loves Model Trains
Mandy Patinkin’s beard (and its owner, I guess) was the star of last night’s 60 Minutes profile with Bob Simon. The best part? When Mandy — sporting a pretty rockin’ purple bandana — showed off his massive toy train collection (Skip to 9:20). Shenanigans ensued, and apparently the production team ended up playing choo-choo well into…
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News Jan Karski’s Relatives Angry at ‘Snub’ by Polish Jewish Museum
This article originally appeared in the Yiddish Forverts. At the core exhibition of the new Museum of the History of Polish Jews, which celebrated its official inauguration two weeks ago, there is a special corner devoted to Jan Karski, the officer of the Polish underground who was one of the first to alert the Western…
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Forward 50 2014 Henry Sapoznik
Perhaps the most famous event in modern klezmer happened when Henry Sapoznik, 61, went to North Carolina as a young man to study banjo with oldtime player Tommy Jarrell. Jarrell, realizing that Sapoznik was Jewish, asked the younger musician, “Don’t your people got none of your own music?” That question helped launch the klezmer revival,…
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The Schmooze Jewish Hoops Owner’s ‘Hoodish’ Email Snafu
Golden State Warriors owner Peter Guber with basketball star Jermaine O’Neal/Getty Images (JTA) — Oy. Talk about auto-correct fails. In an email to team employees, the Jewish owner of a pro basketball team said he wanted to learn “hoodish.” He apparently meant to write “Yiddish.” Golden State Warriors co-owner Peter Guber sent out a follow-up email…
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Culture The Secret Jewish History of ‘My Fair Lady’
● Alan Jay Lerner: A Lyricist’s Letters Edited by Dominic McHugh Oxford University Press, 336 Pages, $39.95 Sometimes the Yiddishkeit of a creative talent comes through only in private writings. Playwright and lyricist Alan Jay Lerner won immortality with the stage musicals “My Fair Lady,” “Camelot,” and “Gigi,” which are filled with British and French…
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The Schmooze ‘Yidlife Crisis,’ the First Yiddish Sitcom
A version of this post appeared in Yiddish here. “Yidlife Crisis” has been a long time coming. Back in the good old days — 60 or 70 years ago — there were Yiddish comedy serials on the radio, featuring the same cast of characters week after week. Unlike their English counterparts, however, these shows never…
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