From the Archives: Back to School
Workmen’s Circle Peretz School class, Toronto, December 1960. The origins of the Toronto Workmen’s Circle School (Arbeiter Ring) dates back to 1911 with the founding of the Toronto Yiddish National-Radical School. It was one of the first Yiddish secular schools in North America devoted to instruction in Yiddish culture and language. Ontario Jewish Archives, Blankenstein Family […]
Lipovitch: Can Yiddish rescue Yiddishkeit?
Jews in Canada are losing their Yiddishkeit. High rates of assimilation and intermarriage and the increasingly liberal trends in religious practice, combined with low birth rates and the high cost of Jewish living, have put Canadian Jewry in jeopardy of future extinction due to loss of identity.
From Yoni’s Desk: The only Yiddish word I needed to know
As a child, I couldn’t have told you what the lyrics to Yidden were, let alone what they meant. All I knew was that one word – “Yidden” – its meaning so obvious that it didn’t require translation.
Inside the burgeoning Yiddish renaissance
Picture a secular, global, urban hipster: that’s the face of the new Yiddish.
Ashkenaz to open with Soviet songs from the Second World War
Ruth Schweitzer writes about the genesis of Yiddish Glory: The Lost Songs of World War II, a concert that will be opening the Ashkenaz Festival in Toronto this summer.
Yiddish Corner: Love and lust – the poetry of Rokhl Korn
YidLife duo explore Krakow’s fascination with Jewish culture
Narishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Krakow is a humorous documentary co-produced by Eli Batalion and Jamie Elman about their trip to the Polish city a couple of years ago.
Shternshis: Yiddish culture is booming
Anna Shternshis writes that Yiddish culture is not going anywhere any time soon. In fact, it’s more popular than ever in Europe and North America.
Liba Augenfeld – the survivor who brought her love of Yiddish with her
I had the honour of knowing and working with Liba Augenfeld, the aristocratic doyenne of Yiddish language and culture at the JPL, who passed away a few weeks ago.
