4 ms·

There are more native speakers of Yiddish today than there were 10, 20 or 30 years ago. The trajectory is going in the opposite direction.

ido 6y ago
But they are only using it as a colloquial language, don't they? Is there significant amount of literature and media made in yiddish by native speakers? This used to be the case in Europe before the holocaust.
- nanna 6y ago
  They do produce literature - newspapers, magazines, posters, songs, plays, books, commentaries, and even films (Fill The Void being the pinacle), etc. But no, I don't think anyone would say this rivals the quantity and quality of the arts during the high point of Yiddish culture in the interwar period. Then again, who knows, maybe in the future they will?
- verbify 6y ago
  They do, I'm thinking of certain Ultra Orthodox sects (not all, but Skver for example). Most of their literature is religious in nature (the plays of Sholem Aleichem would be anathema to them), and religious books are traditionally written in Hebrew (Tseno Ureno is a notable exception, but it seems the author intended it for those who aren't scholars). But the point is that it is silly to talk about Yiddish being a dying language when it has so many native speakers with a very high birth rate (if I recall correctly approximately half the population are under the age of 18).
  - bradleyjg 6y ago
    When the Jewish culture I grew up in disappears, which seems inevitable at this point, I wonder if there will be some other secular Jewish community in a steady state driven by inflows from off the derech haredi and outflows to assimilation.
    - compsciphd 6y ago
      take Israel, there are people that consider themselves "datlash" (dati l'she'avar, formerly relgious). They are a distinct subgroup from chilon (secular) israelis, as their religious upbringing is very much a part of who they are. The question will be, what will happen to their children.

ido 6y ago

But they are only using it as a colloquial language, don't they? Is there significant amount of literature and media made in yiddish by native speakers? This used to be the case in Europe before the holocaust.

nanna 6y ago
They do produce literature - newspapers, magazines, posters, songs, plays, books, commentaries, and even films (Fill The Void being the pinacle), etc. But no, I don't think anyone would say this rivals the quantity and quality of the arts during the high point of Yiddish culture in the interwar period. Then again, who knows, maybe in the future they will?
verbify 6y ago
They do, I'm thinking of certain Ultra Orthodox sects (not all, but Skver for example). Most of their literature is religious in nature (the plays of Sholem Aleichem would be anathema to them), and religious books are traditionally written in Hebrew (Tseno Ureno is a notable exception, but it seems the author intended it for those who aren't scholars). But the point is that it is silly to talk about Yiddish being a dying language when it has so many native speakers with a very high birth rate (if I recall correctly approximately half the population are under the age of 18).
- bradleyjg 6y ago
  When the Jewish culture I grew up in disappears, which seems inevitable at this point, I wonder if there will be some other secular Jewish community in a steady state driven by inflows from off the derech haredi and outflows to assimilation.
  - compsciphd 6y ago
    take Israel, there are people that consider themselves "datlash" (dati l'she'avar, formerly relgious). They are a distinct subgroup from chilon (secular) israelis, as their religious upbringing is very much a part of who they are. The question will be, what will happen to their children.