Introduction • Graduate Program • Undergraduate Program • Faculty • Courses • Links
Yiddish Studies at Harvard were formally inaugurated in 1993 with the establishment of the Martin Peretz Chair in Yiddish Literature. Courses in Yiddish literature are offered regularly in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC houses Jewish Studies) and in Comparative Literature. Yiddish language is taught at the introductory, intermediate, and advanced levels. The program specializes in modern Yiddish literature and cultural history, with occasional offerings in Yiddish linguistics and Old Yiddish.
In common with other areas that are staffed by a single senior faculty member, Yiddish offers a rotating series of courses for undergraduates and graduates--courses in translation for students with little or no knowledge of the language, and graduate level courses conducted in Yiddish or with readings in Yiddish. A regular Core course in Modern Jewish Literature includes works in Yiddish and Hebrew.
The Graduate Program
Graduate students in Yiddish Studies may enroll in either the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Literatures or the Department of Comparative Literature, and are expected to fulfill the requirements of
their respective departments. Reading knowledge of Hebrew and Yiddish
and strong background in Jewish Studies are normally prerequisites for
admission.
Students pursuing a graduate degree in Yiddish Language and Literature are required to meet the general graduate requirements for all students pursuing graduate degrees in the Department of Near Eastern Language and Civilizations.
During their two-year period of coursework, doctoral candidates take a rotating series of courses covering Yiddish literature of the 19th century; the crisis of modernity (1897-1919); the inter-war period (1919-1939); the Shoah and after. The same time frames are sometimes covered through genre courses (the Yiddish novel; the Yiddish short story; the Yiddish lyric), thematic courses (folk influences in Yiddish poetry; homeless and home); or courses on a particular Jewish center (America; Poland).
The general examinations inYiddish follow the different guidelines of NELC and Comparative Literature. In each case students are expected to be familiar with the major works and authors of modern Yiddish literature.
Students of Yiddish work within a contextual or comparative framework. Since Yiddish Studies in NELC is considered a subsection of modern Jewish studies, students take half their required courses in related areas of Hebrew literature, modern Jewish thought, liturgy, history of Eastern Europe, etc. They are also encouraged to study Slavic and German languages and cultures. Those in Comparative Literature may design individual programs of study, but they are encouraged to do work in modern Hebrew literature.
Language requirements for NELC include reading knowledge of German and French in addition to Yiddish and Hebrew.
Students specializing in East European literature are also encouraged to know Russian or Polish.
Comparative Literature students are required to have reading knowledge of at least four languages, to be determined in consulation with the departmental advisor.
The average student will take general examinations after three years. Generals in NELC typically include three-hour examinations on Yiddish literature, East European culture (including Hebrew literature), and reading proficiency. The third of these involves close reading of text and familiarity with critical terminology.
A typical reading list for generals will include such works as Max Weinreich, A History of the Yiddish Language; Dan Miron, A Traveler Disguised: The Rise of Modern Yiddish Fiction in the Nineteenth Century; David G. Roskies, A Bridge of Longing: The Lost Art of Yiddish Storytelling; Mikhail Krutikov, Yiddish Fiction and the Crisis of Modernity, 1905-1914.
Part of the critical bibliography will be in Yiddish and Hebrew.
The Undergraduate Program
Although several undergraduates have designed individual programs in NELC to honor in Yiddish language and literature, most of the undergraduates take Yiddish courses as electives or in connection with other programs. Undergraduates with reading knowledge of Yiddish are welcome in graduate courses. Students taking two years of Yiddish receive a language citation.
Yiddish works are included in a number of courses that are offered on a rotating basis: The Comic Tradition in Jewish Culture, Literature of the Holocaust, American Jewish Literature, The New York Intellectuals.
Faculty
| Yuri Vedenyapin, Preceptor in Yiddish |
| Ruth Wisse, Martin Peretz Professor of Yiddish Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature |
Yiddish Programs and Organizations:
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research: a major center of Yiddish scholarship and Yiddish research archives in New York City
National Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts
Uriel Weinreich Summer Program in Yiddish at YIVO/New York University
Yiddish Research Tools and Forums:
Yiddish and Computers: A User's Guide
Judaica Division at Widener Library, Harvard University
Index to Yiddish Periodicals at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
RAMBI: index of articles on Jewish studies
ShtetLinks: a directory of places of Jewish settlement in Eastern Europe and beyond
Mendele: Forum for Yiddish Literature and Yiddish Language
Yiddish Press, Literature and Music:
Di Velt fun Yidish—The World of Yiddish: includes audio recordings of selections from Yiddish literature, the text of the Yiddish translation of the Bible, and a number of Yiddish scholarly reference tools
Onkelos: a large collection of texts in Yiddish (with some audio)
The Yiddish Forward: a New York Yiddish weekly
Der Algemeiner Zhurnal: an Orthodox Journal in Yiddish
Der Yidisher Tam-Tam: a Paris Yiddish newsletter for students of Yiddish
Dos Yidishe Kol—The Yiddish Voice: a Boston-based Yiddish-language radio show
Zemerl: Yiddish songs (texts and audio)
from www.sholom-aleichem.org
