The development of the Modern Hebrew Language (based on an ancient language that had been out of use for hundreds of years) destroyed the tradition of the Yiddish language. That’s almost as bad as the French government’s attempts to regulate their language.
That’s why they have that outrageous accentah!
Or you could look at it like they revived one of the oldest languages in human history and made it modern and useful and vital, thus tying together 60 zillion years of Jewish history. 🙂 Plus, it’s not like they killed Yiddish — it was never an official language anywhere and it’s still very much alive and well in both Israel and the US. There’s even an all-Yiddish radio station broadcasting in Jerusalem (or at least there was when I lived there).
In the US, Yiddish is alive, but I don’t know if I’d go so far to call it “well.” I haven’t been to Israel, but I know that in New York there are no Yiddish radio stations. The article states that there used to be more than 20 (before Hebrew was revived). And I’m not sure, but I haven’t heard any New York Hebrew radio stations either. Oy.
I’m sure there were other factors that went into the disappearance of Yiddish radio, like the popularity of television and the desire of new Jewish immigrants to adapt to culture differently after the Holocaust… but when the official Modern Hebrew language became the Jewish language of choice, Yiddish was put away in the attic to be used much less frequently.And it seems to me that most people who still speak Yiddish fluently are not exactly young, and the language will die in this country if it is not taught to younger people.
hmmm…. maybe *you* need to go learn yiddish… 🙂
I actually started a Teaching Yourself Yiddish workbook when I was seven or eight or so. I remember very little… and after taking German in high school, it’s even harder for me to remember the Yiddish.
The only Yiddish I ever seemed to learn was curse words. 🙂
I know about 20 assorted Yiddish phrases — I wish I knew more, though. How’s that workbook? :)I do think it’s a shame that the young American Jewish community doesn’t know Yiddish, but I don’t think you can blame that on Hebrew. There are lots of causes (assimilation being foremost in my mind), but I don’t think the development of Hebrew is one of them… it’s not like the people who once spoke Yiddish in this country now speak Hebrew.My grandmother, for example, was raised in this country speaking both English and Yiddish, because Yiddish was the only way she could converse with some of her family. Now, of course, she speaks primarily English, with some Yiddish phrases thrown in for emphasis. So in this case, English is the culprit. Hebrew never even entered the equation — she doesn’t know a word of it.
You’re right… the kids who would speak Yiddish aren’t speaking Hebrew, they’re speaking English. But Yiddish in the United States was a second language for kids born in the US (okay, New York), so they were learning two languages probably concurrently. English didn’t replace Yiddish… it was always there. Now Yiddish is gone, except in older people who generally do not teach the language to their kids–at least not to a degree where the kids would be fluent.
But here is one example of what I meant earler: The Jewish tradition of rabbis giving kids Yiddish names at their Bris has changed to one of giving Hebrew names. My mother’s Yiddish name is Feygele for example. My father isn’t as much of a good example because his name is both Yiddish and Hebrew. And English. It’s all the same.
And here’s a book that I can’t personally vouch for, but the Amazon reviews sound pretty good: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Learing Yiddish.