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Yiddish : A Nation of Words
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Yiddish : A Nation of Words Paperback - 2002

by Weinstein, Miriam

  • Used

The first popular history of the Yiddish language is an engaging, lively, and accessible book that "reads like a folktale peppered with passionate characters" ("The Boston Globe"). 18-page photo insert.

Description

Random House Publishing Group. Used - Good. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages.
Used - Good
NZ$11.78
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Details

  • Title Yiddish : A Nation of Words
  • Author Weinstein, Miriam
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Reprint
  • Condition Used - Good
  • Pages 336
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Random House Publishing Group, NY
  • Date 2002-08-27
  • Features Bibliography, Index, Maps
  • Bookseller's Inventory # 8192788-75
  • ISBN 9780345447302 / 0345447301
  • Weight 1.01 lbs (0.46 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.54 x 5.62 x 0.87 in (21.69 x 14.27 x 2.21 cm)
  • Reading level 1130
  • Themes
    • Ethnic Orientation: Jewish
    • Religious Orientation: Jewish
  • Library of Congress subjects Jews - Civilization, Yiddish language - History
  • Dewey Decimal Code 439.109

First line

At the beginning of the High Holy Days that mark the Jewish New Year, Yiddish speakers often eat carrots.

From the jacket flap

About a thousand years ago, European Jews began speaking a language that was quite different from the various tongues and dialects that swirled around them. It included Hebrew, a touch of the Romance and Slavic languages, and a large helping of German. In a world of earthly wandering, this pungent, witty, and infinitely nuanced speech, full of jokes, puns, and ironies, became the linguistic home of the Jews, the bond that held a people together.
Here is the remarkable story of how this humble language took vigorous root in Eastern European shtetls and in the Jewish quarters of cities across Europe; how it achieved a rich literary flowering between the wars in Europe and America; how it was rejected by emancipated Jews; and how it fell victim to the Holocaust. And how, in yet another twist of destiny, Yiddish today is becoming the darling of academia. "Yiddish is a history as story, a tale of flesh-and-blood people with manic humor, visionary courage, brilliant causes, and glorious flaws. It will delight everyone who cares about language, literature, and culture.

Media reviews

“[A] charming and highly readable history of the language . . . Weinstein succeeds in her efforts to recreate the sound of a world that is gone forever.”
—The Washington Post


“[YIDDISH: A NATION OF WORDS] READS LIKE A FOLKTALE PEPPERED WITH PASSIONATE CHARACTERS.”
—The Boston Globe


“Almost everyone knows a little [Yiddish], a word or two, a joke perhaps, but what do they really know of the history, the tragedies, and bitter controversies that characterized a language now on the U.N.’s endangered list, but once spoken by eleven million people. . . . Part of the problem has been the lack of a serious, yet accessible book to fill the gap between glib entertainments. . . . Weinstein’s [book] aims to do that and her success . . . is substantial.”
—Los Angeles Times

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