Yiddish at Stanford
The Yiddish language offers a window into the cultures and history of the Jews of Eastern Europe and their descendants in the United States, Israel, and all over the world. Yiddish has been spoken for centuries by Jews in Eastern Europe, the United States and Canada, Latin America, and elsewhere. Its grammar is close to that of German (and English); its vocabulary comes from early German, Hebrew, and Slavic sources. From the sixteenth century, Jews developed a rich and multifaceted literature in this language. Today Yiddish is the primary language of some ultra-Orthodox and Hasidic communities. Among other Jews and non-Jews around the world it is enjoying a revival as a language for reading, speaking, and singing.
Stanford is a premiere institution for the study of Yiddish language, literature, culture, and history.
Stanford offers introductory Yiddish language classes and literature courses where students read the works of Sholem Aleichem and Y. L. Peretz, Yiddish modernist poets, and the intellectuals who worked to understand the place of a minority language in modern society. Jon Levitow is lecturer in Yiddish, and Yiddish literature classes are taught by Gabriella Safran, the Eva Chernov Lokey Professor of Jewish Studies. Beyond course offerings, the Taube Center presents two annual lectures: the Clara Sumpf Yiddish Lecture Series with lectures delivered in both English and Yiddish and the Eva Lokey Lecture in Yiddish Studies (delivered in English). Additionally, intermediate to advanced students and faculty are invited to join Leyenkrayz, the Stanford Yiddish reading group, now a regular virtual gathering of Yiddish students and scholars around the globe.
For more information, reach out to the Leyenkrayz coordinator and alumna, Adrien Smith aismith [at] stanford.edu (aismith[at]stanford[dot]edu).
For more information, please visit this website.