Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies

Yiddish 10a

Beginning Yiddish

Professor Ellen Kellman

Fall 2017

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 11-11:50 a.m.

Contact information for Professor Kellman

Office: Lown 300B, ext. 62129

E-mail: kellman@brandeis.edu

Course description and objectives

Yiddish is a language with a rich linguistic and cultural history. It has been spoken by Jews of Ashkenazic descent for more than 1000 years. The earliest written evidence of the language is an inscription in a festival prayer book from Worms, Germany, which dates back to 1272. In the past two centuries, Yiddish has been spoken mainly by Jews of Eastern European descent, who have created both sacred and secular literatures in the language. Yiddish flourishes today as a vernacular of ultra-orthodox Jews throughout the world. It is still spoken by secular Jews, and is enjoying a resurgence of interest on the part of young people in North America, Australia, Europe and Israel.

Yiddish 10a is designed to introduce students to the Yiddish language and the culture of Eastern European Jewry. The objectives of the course are twofold. Linguistically, students should master the mechanics of reading and writing Yiddish and the fundamentals of Yiddish grammar, particularly the case system and the three basic tenses, and begin to communicate freely in speech and in writing. The essential features of the Yiddish verbal system, including complemented, prefixed, modal auxiliary and periphrastic verbs will be introduced in Yiddish 10a, and taught in greater depth in Yiddish 20b. Pronunciation and vocabulary building will also be stressed. Beginning students who are not yet familiar with the printed and handwritten forms of the Hebrew/Yiddish alphabet will need to work on reading and writing skills outside of class, using special supplementary materials. The Yiddish vowel system will be taught during the first week of class.

While the primary emphasis of the course is on grammar and reading skills, group oral practice will take place regularly, in order to reinforce grammatical accuracy and idiomatic usage and give students an opportunity to communicate with one another in Yiddish. In addition to material drawn from the textbook College Yiddish, by Uriel Weinreich, supplementary grammar, reading and vocabulary materials will be used. A weekly syllabus including topics to be covered and homework assignments will be distributed each Monday in class.

The second important objective of Yiddish 10a is to offer students an introduction to the riches of Yiddish culture of the past two centuries. This component of the course will include occasional lectures and readings in English on topics related to Yiddish culture, Yiddish films (with subtitles), folk tales, proverbs and folk songs, and explorations of Yiddish dialects and family names.

Yiddish 10a is followed in the Spring, 2018 term by Yiddish 20b. This course will continue the study of Yiddish language and culture. In Yiddish 20b, readings from the textbook will be supplemented with materials drawn from literary and folkloric sources. In addition, students will be given several longer compositions to write. Students concluding Yiddish 20b will be able to read elementary texts in Yiddish. They will have a grasp of the basic grammar of the language and bring their knowledge of Yiddish grammar to bear in their oral and written work and in reading.

Course books (available in the Brandeis Bookstore)

College Yiddish by Uriel Weinreich

Modern Yiddish-English English-Yiddish Dictionary by Uriel Weinreich (optional)

Requirements

Attendance

Regular attendance is essential to learning a language in an academic setting, so it is a basic requirement of this course. You are expected to come to every class meeting unless you have a very good reason for being absent. If you must miss a class, contact a classmate and go over the notes for that day with him or her.

Readings

Readings on Yiddish culture will be assigned occasionally. They will usually be discussed during class on Thursdays. Readings will be available on LATTE.

Homework assignments

Homework will be assigned at each class meeting and will usually be due at the following class meeting. It will consist of oral reading practice, written exercises in grammar, answers to questions about reading texts, short compositions or preparation for oral work in class. Written assignments will be marked "excellent," "satisfactory" or "unsatisfactory." Depending on their length, compositions will be counted as one or two written assignments. Except in cases of prolonged illness or emergency, homework assignments will not be accepted more than one class meeting after they are due. If you have to miss class for any reason, contact a classmate and get the homework assignment for the next class meeting. Every homework assignment counts toward your grade.

Testing

Quizzes over grammar and vocabulary will be given weekly or bi-weekly, and will be scored on the basis of 100 percentage points. There will be cumulative midterm and final tests over grammar, vocabulary and readings. The midterm test will be given in class during the seventh or eighth week of the semester. The final exam will be scheduled during the university examination period. Each students oral and reading skills will be assessed formally on the day of the final exam.

Grading

Your final grade will be based on homework assignments (20%), quizzes (25%), midterm test (15%), final exam (25%), and oral and reading skills (15%).

Success in this four- credit course is based on the expectation that students will spend a minimum of 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class (homework assignments, readings, preparation for classroom dialogues, preparation for quizzes and exams)

Students with disabilities

If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see me immediately.

Learning Goals for Yiddish 10

* Students will be able to read printed and handwritten Yiddish texts and write comfortably by hand, including using diacritics required in the standard Yiddish spelling system.

* Students will be able to pronounce any Yiddish word that is written phonetically, and will acquire a small vocabulary of Hebrew-component sight words.

* Students will master the basic rules of Yiddish word order, including negations and question words, the use of verbs in the present and future tenses, the imperative mode and four essential modal auxiliary verbs.

* Students will master the concept of the Yiddish case system, and implement it by manipulating endings on articles, adjectives and selected nouns.

* Students will build a basic vocabulary of Yiddish words that will enable them to generate complete sentences on topics such as occupations, foods, holidays, family relationships, university life and friendships, weather and leisure time activities. They will be able to read and interpret short texts on these topics and write original paragraph-length texts.

* Working in pairs or small groups, students will comfortably conduct short conversations based on the topics listed above, in which they question one another, express agreement and disagreement, give commands and make polite requests, and discuss individual and group plans.

* Authentic folkloric texts, folk and theater songs, poems, newspaper articles and ads, posters, recipes, maps, photographs, films and videos will expose students to various aspects of Yiddish culture. Students will respond to these materials through verbal imitation, theatrical interpretation, paraphrasing ideas and following directions.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is central to the mission of educational excellence at Brandeis University. You are expected to be honest in all of your academic work, and to turn in work completed independently, except when assignments specifically authorize collaborative effort. Please consult Brandeis University Rights and Responsibilities for all policies and procedures related to academic integrity. Allegations of alleged academic dishonesty will be forwarded to the Director of Academic Integrity. Sanctions for academic dishonesty can include failing grades and/or suspension from the university.