In case the title is confusing, 'goy' is Yiddish for non-Jew, goyim is the plural. Now, why would such a thoroughly goyish family have a book on Yiddish? For that matter, why would that family have an Elijah cup? (A cup traditionally used during the Passover.) Well, why not? We worship a Jew, after all.
9 comments:
Oy, goyim...
I believe that it was actor and comedian Billy Crystal (himself a Long Island Jew) who once commented that all of his relatives “spoke Yiddish, which is a combination of German and phlegm. It’s not a language, it’s an ailment.” :P
@Dan: Considering what German sounds like to begin with, that might be considered redundant. :P
I'm glad you shared that, Brigid. Quite aside from our faith, it's a wonderful world out there - and I've made it a point to learn as much about as many facets of it as I can.
Languages, particularly, can be intriguing. Not just how people express their thoughts - but indications of why they do, some particular way.
Hey, I'm part German (on my Mom's side, third generation American), and may have a teensy bit of Jewish blood waaaaay back on Dad's side, or else I might take offense at that (kidding)! :D
On the other hand, German probably doesn't score very high on anyone's list of the world's prettiest languages...
@Dad: Of course, no one expresses themselves quite the way you do, no matter the language.
@Dan: I'm part German, too. (Mom's side, also Dutch and Swiss. Interestingly enough, the family name means 'cheese.') German might not be pretty but it makes for really scary, and uber cool, rock music.
I admit German doesn't sound so pretty compared to Italian or other Romance languages.
But being a lover of languages, I find German interesting. Especially German dubbing. Sometimes when something is really well spoken or written in German, it can sound really cool.
BTW, it is possible I have a random German ancestor from my Dad's mother's side, coming from a province that switched hands between France and Germany.
As far as Yiddish goes, sometimes I admit it sounds funny. Certain words like:
bupkes, faygelah, tuches
(Add words as appropriate)
Journo: German is also good if you want something to sound scary. Some of the most bone-chilling rock music I've ever heard was in German.
(Ain't family history fun!? ^_^)
And Yiddish is great for a laugh. Just about anything starting with 'sch' sounds funny and feels funny to say.
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