Yiddish Studies

Contact the program coordinator for more information.

For a millennium, Yiddish has been the spoken and literary language of Ashkenazi/European Jewry. As a language it entails the fusion of three major components – German, Hebrew/Aramaic and Slavic. There is a vast corpus of Yiddish literature published from the 14th century until the present day.

Since 1997, Yiddish has been available at the tertiary level for those beginning the language. The junior units of study do not require a previous knowledge of the language, but are intended to give a firm grounding in the skills on which all senior studies will be based. Yiddish at both junior and senior levels is available in the Faculty of Arts.

Students who wish to major in Yiddish must complete 36 senior credit points consisting of 24 senior credit points from Yiddish (YDDH2603, 2604, 3605 and 3606) plus 12 senior credit points in JCTC and/or HBRW units (Classical).

Honours
Students must complete 48 senior credit points consisting of 24 senior credit points from Yiddish and 24 senior credit points from JCTC and/or Hebrew (Classical) all at Credit level or above.

Please note that not all of the units listed below may be offered in any given year. For a complete list of what units are currently available and unit of study outlines, visit the Units of Study Online website.

• YDDH1101 Yiddish 1
  This unit introduces students to Yiddish through a study of its grammar, as well as exercises in conversation and reading. In addition, discussions on the history, linguistics and dialectology of Yiddish will be given in order to prepare students for readings at the senior level.
• YDDH1102 Yiddish 2
  This unit further develops the study of Yiddish language, building upon the foundations set in YDDH1101. Students continue to learn grammar and vocabulary, through exercises in conversation and reading. As with YDDH1101, discussions on history as well as Yiddish culture and literature will be given in order to prepare students for readings at the senior level.
• YDDH2603 Yiddish 3
  This unit will continue to develop the language foundations built in Yiddish 1 and 2. The unit will focus upon conversation and composition, and includes the reading of selected texts from modern Yiddish literature, as well an introduction to various media sources. The unit consists of: practical language skills including conversation, composition and comprehension exercises (3 hours per week) and readings from modern literature (1 hour per week).
• YDDH2604 Yiddish 4
  This unit continues the program outlined in Yiddish 3: conversation, composition, readings from Yiddish literature, as well as discussion of material gleaned from various media sources. As with other senior Yiddish units, Yiddish 4 consists of practical language skills (3 hours per week) and readings from modern literature (1 hour per week).
• YDDH3605 Yiddish 5
  This unit is designed to strengthen the language foundations built in Yiddish 3 and 4. The unit will continue to focus upon conversation and composition, and includes a reading of selected texts from Yiddish literaure, as well as discussion of topics presented in various media sources; each semester's emphasis will vary. The unit of study consists of: practical language skills including conversation, composition and comprehension exercises (3 hours per week) and readings from modern literature (1 hour per week).
• YDDH3606 Yiddish 6
  This unit focuses on the developing proficiency of the student. Discussion around current events, historical enquiry and linguistic issues (historical and dialectology) will augment the unit's textual studies. As with other senior Yiddish units, Yiddish 6 consists of: practical language skills including conversation, composition and comprehension (3 hours per week) and readings from modern literature (1 hour per week).