Yiddish Studies

Yiddish Studies

Yiddish is a High German language that has borrowed many words from Hebrew and Slavic and is usually written in Hebrew characters. Yiddish was once widely spoken, chiefly as a vernacular, in eastern European Jewish communities and by emigrants from these communities throughout the world, including in the United States.

Currently, the Department of Germanic Studies, in conjunction with the Jewish Studies Program, offers four courses in Yiddish language skills and two courses in Yiddish literature, film, and culture in English translation. The English-language courses examine the history, literature, drama, and film of Eastern European and American Yiddish culture.

Learn more about the Yiddish Studies minor

Professor Dov-Ber Kerler resources