[1] "Drum ir liben Mannen un' Frauen, leient ir oft daraus so wert ir drinnen behäuen um nit zu leienen aus dem Bicher von Kühen un' von Ditrich von Bern un' Meister Hildabrant sollt ir ach euch nit tun müen, nun es sein wärlich eitel Schmitz, sie geben euch nit Warem noch Hitz, ach sein sie nit gettlich darbei." (Serapeum, Vol. XXVII. p. 3.)
[2] F. Rosenberg, Ueber eine Sammlung deutscher Volks-und Gesellschafts-lieder in hebräischen Lettern, Berlin, 1888.
[3] "Drum ir liben Frauen kauft ir sie behend, e sie werden kummen in fremden Länd, in Pehm un' in Reussen un' in Polen, aso wert man sie ach tun weidlich holen, un' andern Ländern mer, drum kauft ir sie ser, dernoch werd ir sagen, warum hab ich keins gekauft, da sie sein gewesen in Land." (Serapeum, Vol. XXVII. p. 3.)
[4] G. Karpeles, Geschichte der jüdischen Literatur, Berlin, 1886, 1029 pp.
[5] M. Steinschneider, Die italienische Litteratur der Juden, in Monatschrift für Geschichte und Wissenschaft des Judenthums, Vol. XLII. pp. 74-79.
[6] M. Grünbaum, Die jüdisch-deutsche Litteratur in Deutschland, Polen und Amerika (Abdruck aus Winter und Wünsche, Die jüdische Litteratur seit Abschluss des Kanons, Bd. III. s. 531 ff.), Trier, 1894, 8vo, 91 pp.
[7] B. Berenson, Contemporary Jewish Fiction, in Andover Review, Vol. X. pp. 598-602.
[8] J. Dienesohn, Die jüdische Sprache un' ihre Schreiber, in Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 1-20; N. Solotkov, A Maisse wegen Maisses; oder A Blick über die žargonische Literatur, in Stādt-anzeiger, No. I. pp. 11-16, No. II. pp. 17-22; J. Goido, Die žargonische Literatur in America, in Amerikanischer Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 73-77; Americanus, Die jüdisch-deutsche Literatur in America, in Neuer Geist, No. VI. pp. 352-355.
[9] Novosti žargonnoj literatury, in Voschod, Vol. IX. No. 7, pp. 19-37; see also Sistematičeskij ukazatel', pp. 285-287, Nos. 4651-4683.
[10] Cf. Ph. Wiernik, Wie lang wet unser Literatur blühen? in Neuer Geist, No. VI.
[11] The Pale of Jewish settlement is confined to the western provinces, coinciding almost exactly with the old kingdoms of Poland and Lithuania.
[12] To cite one example out of many: In the Journal of American Folklore, Vol. VII. pp. 72-74, there appeared a short appeal, by F. S. Krauss, to the folklorists of America, to collect whatsoever of Jewish lore may be found here ere the German Jews become entirely Americanized. It seems that Krauss had in mind the German language; but, for some reason, R. Andree, editor of the Globus, thought of Judeo-German, whereupon he made a violent attack upon it in an article, Sprachwechsel der Juden in Nord-America, in Vol. LXV. of his periodical, p. 363. Lenz, in his Eindringlinge im Wörter-und Zitaten-schatz der deutschen Sprache (Münster, 1895, 8vo, 28 pp.), caps, however, the climax in his antipathy for the Jargon by making it the subject of antisemitic propaganda!
[13] Even Frug, who is a master of the dialect, and who wields it with more vigor than the Russian language, thought it necessary to devote a whole series of poems to the reluctant defence of his vernacular, in Lieder vun dem jüdischen Žargon, in Jüdisches Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage) pp. 881-896; also reprinted in his Lieder un' Gedanken. Cf. p. 108 of the present work.
[14] Witness the frequent dogmatic statements and attacks on it by the historian Grätz. These finally brought forth a rejoinder by J. Dienesohn in the Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 33-43, entitled Professor Grätz un' der jüdischer Žargon, oder Wer mit wās darf sich schāmen? and this was followed by a similar article (ibid. pp. 65-68, 129-133) from the editor of the Volksblatt, in which Grätz's dogmatism is put in no enviable light. Even Steinschneider has no love for it; although he has written so much and so well on its literature, he knows nothing of its nineteenth-century development, and nearly all his quotations of Judeo-German words that in any way differ from the German form are preposterously wrong. Karpeles, writing the history of its literature, confessedly knows nothing of the language. M. Grünbaum, in his Jüdisch-deutsche Chrestomathie and Die Jüdisch-deutsche Litteratur, displays an ignorance of the dialect which would put to shame a sophomoric newspaper reporter of a scientific lecture. What wonder, then, that D. Philipson, devoting a chapter to The Ghetto in Literature (pp. 220-255 in Old European Jewries, Philadelphia, 1894), should not even suspect the existence of an extensive and highly interesting literature of the subject in the language of the Ghetto itself! Among the few memorable exceptions among German scholars are Güdemann and Strack, who approach Judeo-German in a fair and scholarly manner. See M. Güdemann, Quellenschriften zur Geschichte des Unterrichts und der Erziehung bei den deutschen Juden, etc., Berlin, 1891, pp. xxii, xxiii, and, by the same author, Geschichte des Erziehungswesens und der Cultur der Juden in Frankreich und Deutschland, Vol. I. note iii. pp. 273-287, and Vol. III. note vii. pp. 280-297. Still fewer are those who have subjected Judeo-German to a thorough philological investigation. All efforts in that direction will be found catalogued by A. Landau, Bibliographie des Jüdisch-deutschen, in Deutsche Mundarten, Zeitschrift für Bearbeitung des mundartlichen Materials, herausgegeben von Dr. Johann Willibald Nagl, Vienna, 1896, Heft II. pp. 126-132. To those mentioned by him must be added A. Schulmann's Die Geschichte vun der Žargon-literatur, in Jüdisches Volksblatt, Vol. II. pp. 115-134, which is very rich in data, and A. Landau's Das Deminutivum der galizisch-jüdischen Mundart, Ein Kapitel aus der jüdischen Grammatik, in Deutsche Mundarten, Vol. I. pp. 46-58. This is, outside of Şaineanu's work (mentioned in Landau's Bibliographie), the best grammatical disquisition on Judeo-German that has so far appeared.
[15] Cf. Zunz, Die gottesdienstlichen Vorträge der Juden, historisch entwickelt, Frankfurt a. M., 1892, pp. 452-463, and Güdemann, as above.
[16] Cf. M. Steinschneider, Die italienische Litteratur der Juden, in Monatschrift für Geschichte und Wissenschaft des Judenthums, Vol. XLII. p. 74.
[17] Naturally, words belonging to that stage of the language have survived in the cheeder (school), where the melamed (teacher) is frequently compelled to fall back on the old commentaries for translations. Abramowitsch has, in his Dās klēine Menschele, the following passage (p. 49) bearing upon this point: "Die Talmudtōre hāt mir äuch gegeben a Bissel Deutsch vun die Teutschwörter in Chumesch, wie a Stēiger (for example): wealoto un' a Nepel, wesaadu libchem un' lehent unter euer Harz, jereechi mein dich, machschof entpleckt, boochu auf'n Gemeesachz, been hamischpessoim die Gemarken, wetchalelo un' du hāst sie verschwächt, kōmmijōs hofferlich, uchdōme noch asölche Teutschen."
[18] An example of this style is given by Linetzki, in Dās chsidische Jüngel, p. 32: "a Stēiger wie er hāt mit mir geteutscht: ischo an Ische, ki sitmo as sie wet tome weren, wessakriw un' sie wet makriw sein, korbon a Korben, wehikriw soll makriw sein, hakōhen der Kōhen, al hamisbeach zum Misbeach, beōhel mōed in'm Ōhel-mōed."
[19] Cf. A. B. Gottlober, Sichrōnes über žargonische Schreiber, in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 250-259.
[20] On the various dialects and styles, see Die jüdische Sprache, in Hausfreund, Vol. V. pp. 60-64; cf. also Rabnizki, Hebräisch un' Jüdisch, in Hausfreund, Vol. V. pp. 38-48.
[21] An excellent satire on the widely different styles of Judeo-German in vogue by their writers is given by S. Rabinowitsch, in his Kolmewasser (q.v.), under the title of Korrespondenzies (cols. 26-31).
[22] For a complete discussion of the subject, see L. Şaineanu, Studiu dialectologic asupra graiului evreo-german, Bucureşti, 1889, 8vo, 78 pp.
[23] Read, on this subject, Joseph Jacobs, Jewish Diffusion of Folk Tales, in Jewish Ideals and Other Essays, London, 1896, pp. 135-161.
[24] The following books and essays treat on Judeo-German folklore in general: Herman Lotze, Zur jüdisch-deutschen Litteratur, in Gosche's Archiv für Litteraturgeschichte, Vol. I., Leipsic, 1870, pp. 90-101; M. Steinschneider, Über die Volkslitteratur der Juden, ibid., Vol. II. pp. 1-21; S. Gelbhaus, Mittelhochdeutsche Dichtung in ihrer Beziehung zur biblisch-rabbinischen Litteratur, Frankfurt a. M., 1893, IV. Heft, pp. 59 ff.; Brüll, Beiträge zur jüdischen Sagen-und Sprach-kunde im Mittelalter, in Jahrbücher für jüdische Geschichte und Litteratur, IX. Jahrgang, Frankfurt a. M., 1889, pp. 1-71; J. Jacobs, Jewish Diffusion of Folk Tales, a paper read before the Jews' College Literary Society, in The Jewish Chronicle, London, June 1, 1888 (also published separately in Jewish Ideals and Other Essays, as above); M. Gaster, Jewish Folk Lore in the Middle Ages, in papers read before the Jews' College Literary Society during the Session 1886-87, London, 1887, pp. 39-51 (also published separately by The Jewish Chronicle, 1887, 8vo); G. Levi, Christiani ed Ebrei nel Medio Evo, Quadro di costumi con un appendice di recordi e leggende giudaiche della medesima epocha, Florence, 1866, 16mo (pp. 307-406); A. M. Tendlau, Das Buch der Sagen und Legenden jüdischer Vorzeit (2te Auflage), Stuttgart, 1845, 8vo, 335 pp.; the same, Fellmeiers Abende, Mährchen und Geschichten aus grauer Vorzeit, Frankfurt a. M., 1856, 16mo, 290 pp.; Israel Lévi, Contes juifs, in Revue des Études Juives, Vol. XI. pp. 209-234; Is. Loeb, Le folklore juif dans la chronique du Schébet Jehuda d'Ibn Verga, in Revue des Études Juives, Vol. XXIV. pp. 1-29. For general ethnographic sketches of the Russian Jews, containing a great deal of material of a folklore nature, see Sistematičeskij ukazatel' literatury o evrejach na russkom jazykě so vremeni vvedenija graždanskago šrifta (1708 g.) po dekabr' 1889 g., St. Petersburg, 1893, Part V. pp. 198-204 and 206-207; of the works mentioned there, Nos. 2831 and 2912 are especially important.
[25] For stories of that period, cf. A. S. Isaacs, Stories from the Rabbis, London, Osgood (and New York, Webster), 1893, 8vo, 202 pp.; M. Gaster, Beiträge zur vergleichenden Sagen-und Märchenkunde, Bukarest, 1883, 8vo. Dr. B. Königsberger, Aus dem Reiche der altjüdischen Fabel, in Zeitschrift des Vereins für Volkskunde, Vol. VI., 1896, pp. 140-161; F. Baethgen, Salomo in der jüdischen Sage, in Allgemeine Zeitung, Nos. 151, 152, 181, 182 (Beilage). Other shorter articles on the same subject will be found in the Urquell, Vol. II. p. 209; Vol. IV. p. 76; Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 13, 14; Z. d. V. f. V., Vol. IV. p. 209; J. Trubnik, Talmudische Legenden, in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 264-279. Of special interest are the discussions of Talmudical legends and fables with their western developments or imitations, by L. Dukes, Übersicht der neuhebräischen Literatur weltlichen Inhalts in Prosa und Versen, in Israelitische Annalen (edited by Jost), 1839, No. 13, pp. 100 ff.; No. 17, pp. 131 ff.; No. 25, pp. 196 ff.; No. 31, pp. 244; No. 52, pp. 415 ff. Eisenmenger's Entdecktes Judenthum, Königsberg, 1711 (or Dresden, 1893), in spite of its bias, may be consulted for the legends; better than that is the English form of the same, The Tradition of the Jews; or, The Doctrine of Expositions Contained in the Talmud, etc., London, 8vo, (64) and 337 and 363 pp., the appendix of which has a Translation, by Way of Abridgement, of Buxtorf's Latin Account of the Religious Customs and Ceremonies of the Jews (Vol. II. pp. 225-363). See also G. G. Bredow, Rabbinische Mythen, Erzählungen und Lügen, nebst zwei Balladen der christlichen Mythologie im Mittelalter (2te Auflage), Weilburg, 1833, 16mo, 136 pp.; also C. Krafft, Jüdische Sagen und Dichtungen nach den Talmuden und Midraschen, nebst einigen Makamen aus dem Divan des Alcharisi, Ansbach, 1839, 16mo, 212 pp.
[26] The Sambation is mentioned in Eldad ha-Dani aus dem Stamme Dan; see for this Steinschneider's Jüdisch-deutsche Litteratur, in Serapeum, Vol. IX. (1848), p. 319, No. 13. See also Jüdische Litteratur, by Steinschneider, in Ersch und Gruber, § X, A. 2. Other essays and stories are: D. Kaufmann's Le Sambation, in Revue des Études Juives, Vol. XXII. pp. 285-287, and Der Sambation, eine etymologische Sage, in Allgemeine Zeitung des Judenthums, 1893, May 20, p. 247; Meisach, Sambation, in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), p. 53, and (the same story) in his Nissim we-Nifloes, q.v.
[27] In A. S. Isaac's Stories from the Rabbis (see above), there is a chapter on Elijah in the Legends (pp. 92-103). Other stories of Elijah: D. Cassel, Elia in der Legende, in Allgemeine Zeitung des Judenthums, 1892, Feb. 26, p. 104, and March 6, p. 115; Urquell, Vol. IV. pp. 11-14, 42-45, 120, 121; Z. d. V. f. V., Vol. IV. p. 209. An older story is mentioned in Steinschneider's Catalogue, Serapeum, Vol. IX. (1848), p. 384, No. 174. See also B. W. Segel, Materyały do etnografii žydów wschodnio-galicyjskich, in Zbiór wiadomości do antropologii krajowej, Cracow, Vol. XVII. pp. 296-298.
[28] Stories of Maimonides are contained in Maasebuch (or, rather in addition Maase Adonai), according to Steinschneider, Serapeum, Vol. XXVII. (1866), p. 5, No. 7. For other stories, see Bibliography.
[29] Nearly the same story is in Gaster's Jewish Folk Lore, etc.
[30] A similar story, also of a local character, is told by Dick in Alte jüdische Sagen oder Ssipurim, p. 42, where he mentions a Polish work, Przechadzki po Wilnie i jego okolicach przez Jana ze Śliwnia (A. Kirkor), Wilna, 1859, that contains many Jewish tales.
[31] Also told of a Rabbi of Prague, in Sippurim, Sammlung jüdischer Volkssagen, Erzählungen, Mythen, Chroniken, Denkwürdigkeiten und Biographien berühmter Juden aller Jahrhunderte, besonders des Mittelalters (Jüdische Universalbibliothek), Prague, 1895. These Sippurim have no great folklore value, as they show too much the hand of the literary worker. Of similar value is H. Iliowizi's In the Pale; Stories and Legends of the Russian Jews, Philadelphia, 1897.
[32] On the Khassidim, read M. Sachor-Masoch, Sectes juives de la Galicie, in Actes et Conférances de la Société des Études Juives, 1889, pp. cxli-clxiii, and S. Schechter, Studies in Judaism, pp. 1-45 and 341. For the Russian sources on the Khassidim, see Sistematičeskij ukazatel' literatury o evrejach, pp. 177-179 (Nos. 2424-2476). Stories of Adam Balschem are mentioned by Steinschneider, as Geschichte des R. Adam Baal Schem, and Geschichte des R. Adam mit dem Kaiser, in Serapeum, Vol. X. (1849), p. 9, No. 183. See also Urquell, Vol. V. p. 266, and Vol. VI. p. 33. B. W. Segel's Jüdische Wundermänner, in Globus, Vol. LXII. pp. 312-314, 331-334, 343-345, are merely translations from the Sseefer Ssipuree Maisses (Khal Chsidim); of similar origin is his O chasydach i chasydyzmie, in Wista, Vol. VIII. pp. 304-312, 509-521, 677-690; other stories by him are in his Materyały do etnografii żydów, as above.
[33] The older literature of that class is briefly discussed by Steinschneider in his articles in the Serapeum under the following numbers (for the years 1848, 1849, 1864, 1866, 1869): 392, Kalilah we-Dimnah; 393, Barlaam and Josaphat; 59, 399, Diocletianus; 266 b, Octavianus; 22, Bevys of Hamptoun; 51, Ritter Sigmund und Magdalena; 266, König Artus; 13, Eldad ha-Dani; 156-198, 410-413, 420, various stories; 212, 213, fables (Kuhbuch); 167, Maase Nissim; 156-158, Maasebuch. But the latter has been superseded by his Jüdisch-deutsche Litteratur und Jüdisch-deutsch, mit besonderer Rücksicht auf Avé-Lallemant; 2. Artikel: Das Maase-Buch, Serapeum, Vol. XXVII. (1866), No. 1. This Maasebuch is extremely rare now, but in its day it was enormously popular, having been used for regular religious readings on the Sabbath. Wagenseil and Buxtorf mention this fact, while Helwich thought it of sufficient importance to translate the book into German and supply it with critical notes. Helwich's book seems to have escaped the attention of all who have dealt on the Maasebuch, Steinschneider included; and yet without it a study of the Jewish folklore is very difficult, as the Maasebuch can hardly be procured. The title of the book is: Erster Theil jüdischer Historien oder Thalmudischer Rabbinischer wunderlicher Legenden, so von Juden als wahrhafftige und heylige Geschicht an ihren Sabbathen und Festtagen gelesen werden. Darausz dieses verstockten Volcks Aberglauben und Fabelwerck zu ersehen. Ausz ihren eigenen Büchern in Truck Teutsch verfertigt, von neuem übersehen und corrigiert durch Christophorum Helvicum, der H. Schrift und Hebräischen Sprach Professorem in der Universitet zu Giessen, Giessen, bey Caspar Chemlein, Im Jahre 1612, 16mo, 222 pp. Second part with slightly different title. After gelesen werden follows: Sampt beygefügten Glossen und Widerlegung, 16mo, 207 pp. See also Is. Lévi, Cinq contes juifs, in Mélusine, Vol. II. col. 569-574. On the König Artus, cf. Schröder, Mitteilungen über ein deutsches Wigaloisepos aus dem 17. Jahrhunderte, M. Hanau B. V. Hess. G. Some of these stories are discussed in Jacobs's Jewish Diffusion of Folk Tales (as above).
[34] A few scattered stories may be found in the following publications: M. Schwarzfeld, Basmul cu Pantoful la Evrei, la Români şi la alte Popoare, Studiu folkloristic, Bucureşti, 1893, 8vo, 27 pp. (Extras din Anuarul pentru Israeliţi, Vol. XV. pp. 138-165); by the same, Scrisoare către Dumnezeu, Cercetare folcloristică (Anuarul pentru Israeliţi, Vol. XV. pp. 191-198); R. T. Kaindl, Eine jüdische Sage über die Entstehung des Erdbebens, Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, Vol. XXV. p. 370; B. W. Segel, Jüdische Volksmärchen, in Globus, Vol. LX. pp. 283 ff., 296-298, 313-315. The largest collection of folk-tales by the same author are given in Zbiór wiadomości do antropologii krajowej, Vol. XVII., Cracow, 1893, under the title, Materyały do etnografii żydów wschodnio-galicyjskich, pp. 261-332; a review of this important work, in German, is given in the Urquell, Vol. V. pp. 183-186. Scattered through the Urquell there are many interesting tales, mainly on gilgulim, leezim, meessim; cf. Vol. IV., pp. 96, 97, 257; Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 80, 81, 121, 122, 344, 345, 351; see also Z. d. V. f. V., Vol. IV. p. 210. See also the bibliography of the legends, etc., in Sistematičeskij ukazatel, p. 211 (Nos. 3133-3136).
[35] On the customs, beliefs, superstitions, etc., of the Jews, see A. P. Bender, Beliefs, Rites, and Customs of the Jews Connected with Death, Burial, and Mourning, in Jewish Quarterly Review, Vol. VI. pp. 317-347, 664-671, and Vol. VII. pp. 101-118; Dan, Volksglauben und Gebräuche der Juden in der Bukowina, in Zeitschrift für österreichische Volkskunde, Vol. II. Nos. 2, 3; Hedvige Heinicke, Le carnaval des juifs galiciens, in Revue des Traditions populaires, Vol. VI. p. 118; I. Buchbinder, Jüdische Sabobones, in Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 167-170; Steinschneider mentions books dealing on superstitions in his catalogue in the Serapeum, under the numbers 219 and 421. This subject is treated extensively in the Urquell, Vol. II. pp. 5-7, 34-36, 112, 165, 166, 181-183; Vol. III. pp. 18, 19, 286-288; Vol. IV. pp. 73-75, 94-96, 118, 119, 141, 142, 170, 171, 187-189, 210, 211, 272-274; Vol. V. pp. 19, 81, 170, 171, 225-228, 290, 291; Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 9, 46-49, 270, 271; Vol. II. pp. 33, 34, 46, 108-110. See also Segel, Materyały do etnografii żydów, etc., pp. 319-328; S. Abramowitsch, Dās klēine Menschele, pp. 76-77; Linetzki, Dās chsidische Jüngel, pp. 29-31, 114. For a general work on Jewish superstitions, see M. Schuhl, Superstitions et coutumes populaires du Judaisme contemporain, Paris, 1882, 4to, 42 pp. The most important contribution on the beliefs of the German Jews in the early Middle Ages is given by Güdemann, Geschichte des Erziehungswesen und der Cultur der Juden, etc., Vol. I. Chap. VII. pp. 199-228, under the title, Der jüdische Aber-, Zauber-und Hexen-glaube in Frankreich und Deutschland im 12. und 13. Jahrhunderte. See also the bibliography of the subject in the Sistematičeskij ukazatel', pp. 211, 212 (Nos. 3137-3159). A large number of superstitions, beliefs, etc., are scattered throughout the Judeo-German literature: probably the most important of such works is Schatzkes' Der jüdischer Var-Peessach (q.v.).
[36] For proverbs and the discussion of the same, see: M. Spektor, Jüdische Volkswörtlich, in Jüdisches Volksblatt, Vol. VI. pp. 63, 95, 112, 128, 191, 304, 423, 488; I. Bernstein, Sprichwörter, in Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 89-112, and Vol. II. pp. 1-49 (second part); S. Adelberg, Przysłowia żydowskie, in Wisła, Vol. IV. pp. 166-187; M. Schwarzfeld, Literatura populară Israelită ca element etnico-psichologic, in Anuarul pentru Israeliţi, Vol. XII. pp. 41-52; the same, Evreii in Literatura lor populară sau Cum se judecă evreii insusi, Studiu etnico-psichologic, Bucureşti, 1898, 8vo, 37 pp. (Anuarul pentru Israeliţi, Vol. XIX. pp. 1-37). In connection with the last two, though not strictly on Jewish proverbs, see his Evreii in Literatura populară Romană, Studiu de psichologie populară,—Anex, Evreii in literatura populară universală, Tablou comparativ, Bucureşti, 1892, 8vo, 78 pp. (Extras din Anuarul pentru Israeliţi, Vol. XIV. pp. 97-172). A large number of proverbs from various Slavic localities are given in the Urquell: Vol. II. pp. 26, 27, 66, 112, 131, 163, 178, 196; Vol. IV. pp. 75, 76, 194, 212, 215, 256, 257; Vol. VI. pp. 33, 34, 69, 119-121; Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 14, 15, 119-121, 172-175, 271-279; Vol. II. pp. 221, 222, 311-313, 338-340. For the proverbs of the German Jews, see A. Tendlau, Sprichwörter und Redensarten deutsch-jüdischer Vorzeit, als Beitrag zur Volks-, Sprach-und Sprichwörter-kunde, aufgezeichnet aus dem Munde des Volkes und nach Wort und Sinn erläutert, Frankfurt a. M. (1860).
[37] The older books on Eulenspiegel are given by Steinschneider in the Serapeum, under Nos. 10, 288, and 388; in the Urquell, there are a few stories on Chelm in Vol. III. pp. 27-29, and Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 345, 346. A large number is given by Segel in his collection in the Zbiór wiadomości do antropologii krajowej, pp. 303-306.
[38] In a general way the Judeo-German folksong was treated by I. G. Oršanskij, in his Evrei v Rossii, Očerki ekonomičeskago i obščestvennago byta russkich evreev, St. Petersburg, 1877, 8vo, on pp. 391-402; more specially by J. J. Lerner, Die jüdische Muse, in Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 182-198, from which a few songs are quoted here. The most of the songs given here are from my manuscript collection made in Boston and New York among the Russian Jews. In the Urquell folksongs are given in Vol. IV. pp. 119, 120; Vol. V. p. 196; Vol. VI. pp. 43, 158; Neue Folge, Vol. I. pp. 45, 50, 82, 83, 175, 239-242; Vol. II. pp. 27-29, 39, 40. Cf. B. W. Segel, Materyały do etnografti żydów wschodnio-galicyjskich, in Zbiór wiadomości do antropologii krajowej, Vol. XVII. pp. 306-319.
[39] The legend has been admirably treated by the historian, S. A. Beršadskij, in Evrej korol' polskij, in the Voschod, Vol. IX. Nos. 1-5.
[40] The Urquell (see above) gives some children's songs. See also L. Wiener, Aus der russisch-jüdischen Kinderstube, in Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für jüdische Volkskunde, herausgegeben von M. Grunwald, Hamburg, 1898, Heft II, pp. 40-49; R. F. Kaindl, Lieder, Neckreime, Abzählverse, Spiele, Geheimsprachen und allerlei Kunterbuntes aus der Kinderwelt, in der Bukowina und in Galizien gesammelt, in Z. d. V. f. V., Vol. VII. pp. 146, 147. In Linetzki's Dās chsidische Jüngel, p. 23, a number of children's songs are mentioned by title.
[41] See the prototype of this song in K. Francke, Social Forces in German Literature, p. 120.
[42] See p. 142 ff.; add to these A. M. Dick, Der soldatske Syn. Wilna, 1876, 16mo, 108 pp., which gives a graphic description of the career of a cantonist.
[43] Cf. Dr. Sokolowski, Die Gseere vun Gonto in Uman un' Ukraine, in Volksbibliothēk, Vol. II. pp. 53-60.
[44] Max Weissberg, Die neuhebräische Aufklärungs-literatur in Galizien. Eine literar-historische Charakteristik. Leipzig und Wien, 1898, 8vo, 88 pp.
[45] The first two weeklies of Galicia, the Zeitung and Die jüdische Post, published in 1848 and 1849 respectively, are not in the vernacular, but in a slightly corrupt German.
[46] The love for songs is very old with the German Jews. Steinschneider's catalogue in the Serapeum mentions a very large number of songs. See also L. Löwenstein, Jüdische und jüdisch-deutsche Lieder, in Jubelschrift zu Ehren des Dr. Hildesheimer, Berlin, 1890, pp. 126 ff., and under the same title, in Monatschrift für Geschichte und Wissenschaft des Judenthums, Vol. XXXVIII. pp. 78-89; A. Neubauer, Jüdisch-deutsches Weingedicht, in Israelit Letterbode, Vol. XII. 1. p. 13 ff. But the most thorough work is by F. Rosenberg, Ueber eine Sammlung deutscher Volks-und Gesellschafts-lieder in hebräischen Lettern, Berlin, 1888, 8vo, 84 pp. That the modern songs are set to music is generally indicated in the title-pages or the introductions to the printed collections, as, for example, Lieder zu singen mit sēhr schoene Melodien; Schoen zum Singen un' zum Lesen; Mit sēhr schoene Melodien. In one of his books Zunser (see pp. 90 ff.) informs us:
While another, B. Z. Rabinowitsch (in Disput vun a Schüler mit a Klausnik), thinks he must offer an apology for not having composed a tune for his poem:
Zunser, who did not scruple to make use of other people's property (see p. 92), objects, in Kol-rina, to the people's appropriation of his songs in the following words:
[47] Voschod, 1886, No. 5.
[48] The only collection of Judeo-German poetry accessible to those who do not read the Hebrew type is G. H. Dalman's Jüdisch-deutsche Volkslieder aus Galizien und Russland, Zweite Auflage, Berlin, 1891, 8vo, 74 pp.; unfortunately there are a number of errors in it that destroy the sense of some lines. See also L. Wiener, Popular Poetry of the Russian Jews, in Americana Germanica, Vol. II. No. 2 (1898), pp. 33-59, on which the present chapter is based.
[49] His poems have been printed in the following periodicals: Kolmewasser, Vol. I. Nos. 4, 5, 6 (Dās Gräber-lied) et seq.; Warschauer jüdische Zeitung; Jisrulik, No. 13; Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. II. No. 10; Wecker, pp. 26-29; Jüd. Volksbibliothēk, pp. 148-153.
[50] Katzenellenbogen, Jüdische Melodien (q.v.), p. 55, note.
[51] This I merely surmise, from the statement in the Sseefer Sikorōn, that he wrote it in 1863, in Kiev, though it is probable that he did not print it before 1869. For biography of Linetzki, see pp. 161 ff.
[52] For short notices of Gordon and his work, see B. Woloderski, A kurze Biographie vun Michel Gordon, in Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 147-149, and necrology in Hausfreund, Vol. III. p. 312.
[53] Other poems by M. Gordon than those contained in his collective volume are to be found in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage) pp. 93, 94, 362, 363; Vol. IX. No. 16; Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 39-43; Vol. II. pp. 73-75, 261-264; Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 3-6.
[54] In this conjunction a few of the very many cradle songs will be mentioned here as an offset to the statement, frequently heard, that the Jews have no songs of that character; in the chapter on the traditional folksongs there have been mentioned a few such; add to these the one given in Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für jüdische Volkskunde, Heft II. p. 49. Of the literary cradle songs, the best are Abramowitsch's Alululu, bidne Kind, Wēh is' der Mame, wēh und wünd (in Dās klēine Menschele, p. 121); Linetzki's Varschliess schōn deine Äugen (in Der bœser Marschelik, p. 66); Goldfaden's Schlāf' in Freuden, Du wēisst kēin Leiden (in Die Jüdene, p. 6); S. Rabinowitsch's Schlāf', mein Kind (with music, in his Kol-mewasser, col. 25, 26).
[55] Some of Goldfaden's poems may be found in: Kol-mewasser; Jisrulik; Wecker, pp. 7-15, 56-62; Der jüdischer Handelskalender, pp. 114-118; Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 27-35, Vol. II. pp. 57-59; Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 5-7; Volksbibliothēk, Vol. II. pp. 188, 247, 267, 268; Dās hēilige Land, pp. 25-29; New Yorker Illustrirte Zeitung.
[56] A song expressive of this sentiment, under the title Unsere liebe Schwester un' Brüder, appeared in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. I. (1881), No. 2. Other poems were printed in the same year in Nos. 1 and 5; another poem was printed in Jüd. Volksbibliothēk, Vol. I. pp. 295, 296. A review of his collected poems is given in Voschod, Vol. VI. (1886), Part. II. pp. 26-31. For necrology see Hausfreund, Vol. III. p. 312.
[57] Cf. Abrahams, Jewish Life in the Middle Ages, pp. 198 ff. It is not uncommon in Judeo-German literature to meet with the description of the old-fashioned badchen and his craft, but probably the best illustrations of his performances are to be found in the following works: Linetzki, Dās chsidische Jüngel, pp. 94 ff.; Gottlober, Dās Decktuch, pp. 43 ff. (2d act, 2d scene); Der krummer Maschelik mit a blind Äug', Es is' sēhr schoen zu lejenen die Lieder, wās der Marschelik hāt gesungen, un' wie er hāt Chossen-kale besungen, un' see sennen noch kēin Mal nit gedruckt gewor'en: Kukariku! Der Marschelik is' dā, Warsaw, 1875; U. Kalmus, Geschichte vun a seltenem Bris un' a genarrte Chassene, Theater in vier Akten, Warsaw, 1882, pp. 65-72.
[58] In addition to the large number of collective books of poetry, Zunser has published his poems in: Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. V. pp. 51, 67; Wecker, pp. 74-88; Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 6-27; Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 99-108; Spektor's Familienkalender, Vol. IV. pp. 94-103; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 273, 274; Dās hēil. Land, pp. 134-141.
[59] Other works by Zweifel than those given in the Bibliography are: Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 73-78, Vol. II. pp. 143-145; Spektor's Familienkalender, Vol. II. pp. 82-87; Jüd. Volksbibl., Vol. I. pp. 48-61, Vol. II. pp. 132-135.
[60] For note on Abramowitsch, see pp. 148 ff.
[61] Mordechai Suchostawer, Der wōler Eeze-geber, in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. V. p. 310.
[62] Several of the poems contained in the volume of his poetry had appeared before: Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. I. No. 12, Vol. V. pp. 239, 357, Vol. VI. pp. 83, 717 ff.; Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 86-93. The Astor Library of New York possesses a manuscript of Ettinger's fables.
[63] Vol. IV. p. 175.
[64] This is also true of the poets who contributed to 'Der jüdischer Wecker,' a similar volume published in the same year at Odessa.
[65] His poems were printed in: Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. V. p. 515; Vol. VII. No. 36; Vol. VIII. No. 10; Beilage No. 3 passim; Vol. IX. No. 3 passim; Hausfreund, Vol. I. p. 44; Vol. III. pp. 172-175 (On the death of M. Gordon); Jüd. Volksbib, Vol. I. pp. 260-263; Vol. II. pp. 1-6, 120-125, 139-141, 167-168, 195-204; Jüd. Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 117-124.
[66] Jüd. Volksbib. Vol. I. pp. 148-158; better than this is his own edition of the ballad in a separate pamphlet (q.v.).
[67] Jüd. Bibliothēk, Vol. II. pp. 170-180.
[68] Ibid., Vol. III. pp. 123-155.
[69] Ibid., Vol. I. pp. 246-257.
[70] Ibid., Vol. I. pp. 276-285.
[71] Jontew-blättlech, Zweite Serie, Ōneg Schabes, pp. 27-31, Chamischo Osser, pp. 22-31.
[72] His legend Ophir, printed in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 211-224.
[73] His poems appeared in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. I. Nos. 10, 11; Vol. II. Nos. 9, 46; Vol. III pp. 402; Vol. IV. p. 94; Vol. V. pp. 565, 664; Vol. VI. pp. 190, 195; Vol. VII. pp. 277, 759; Hausfreund, Vol. III. pp. 304-306; Spektor's Familienkalender, Vol. V. p. 71; Lamteren, col. 26.
[74] B. Lesselroth, Polnische vollkommene Grammatik in jüdisch-deutscher Sprache, für solche, die diese Wissenschaft ohne Hilfe eines Lehrers erlernen wollen, Warsaw, 1824, 16mo, 76 pp.
[75] This is the name given by Gottlober in his Sichrōnes, in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. p. 255, for the author of the 'Columbus,' but it appears that it was Günsburg who wrote it in Hebrew; and as in the Judeo-German translation the translator speaks of having translated this work from his Hebrew form, it is likely that Günsburg ought to be substituted for Hurwitz. There are four copies of that work in the Harvard Library. Two of them are late remodellings; the other two have no title-pages and seem to have had none, so that I cannot ascertain the dates of their printing.
[76] J. B. Levinsohn, Die hefker Welt, in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 133-147. His biography is given in the same place, by B. Natansohn, on pp. 122-132. Both together are to be found in Natansohn's Die papierne Brück' (q.v.).
[77] For review of his works see O. Lerner, Kritičeskij razbor pojavivšichsja nedavno na evrejsko-německom žargoně sočinenij I. Aksenfelda, etc., Odessa, 1868, 8vo, 15 pp.
[78] She was very fond of Jean Paul Richter, and it is not at all impossible that the peculiar humor contained in her husband's books is due to a transference of that author's style to the more primitive conditions of the Judeo-German novel. His was a gifted family: one of his sons became an artist, the other a famous professor of medicine at Paris.
[79] A. M. Dick, Der erster Nabor, etc., Wilna, 1871.
[80] Short biography in Sseefer Sikorōn, p. 97.
[81] For fuller information on the life and works of Abramowitsch see his autobiography in Sseefer Sikorōn, pp. 117-126; see also the references in the Sistematičeskij ukazatel', p. 286, Nos. 4663-4669, of which No. 4665 is the most important.
[82] Translated into Russian by Petrikovski.
[83] Reviews of this work are in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 1385-1396, by J. Levi; and Voschod, 1889, Nos. 1, 2, 4, by M. G. Morgulis.
[84] Translated into Polish by Klemens Junosza.
[85] Translated into Polish by Klemens Junosza.
[86] His shorter stories have appeared in Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 128-134; Vol. III. pp. 1-9; Vol. IV. pp. 3-25; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. II. pp. 7-93; Jüd. Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 53-64.
[87] Short notice of his works in Sseefer Sikorōn, pp. 59, 60; cf. also notices mentioned in Sistematičeskij ukazatel, p. 286, Nos. 4670-4672.
[88] Shorter stories have appeared in Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 84-86; Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 121-128; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 62-92; Vol. II. pp. 98-119; Volksfreund, pp. 14-16.
[89] Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 62 ff.
[90] His name does not appear on any of the editions of his comedy. Early in the seventies he had turned his work over to Wollmann for publication; the latter surreptitiously published it over his own initials.
[91] Short mention in Sseefer Sikorōn, p. 26; necrology in Hausfreund, Vol. III. p. 312.
[92] Der Schiwim-māhlzeit, p. 10.
[93] Cf. S. Rabinowitsch, Schomer's Mischpet, and Seiffert's Dās Tellerl vun 'm Himmel (Ein Entwer auf M. Schaikewitsch's Taines), in Die neue Welt, No. 5, pp. 11-21. To his detractors Schaikewitsch answered in his pamphlet Jehi Ōr. Other reviews in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 335-361, 455-467, 707-714, 738-743, 763-773.
[94] Cf. Sseefer Sikorōn, p. 80. Reviews of his works in Voschod, Vol. VII. No. 12, pp. 18-21; Vol. IX. No. 7, pp. 30-37.
[95] In addition to his separate works the following periodicals contain Spektor's stories: Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. III. and following (very many); Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 109-121, Supplement; Vol. II. pp. 1-5, 116-143; Vol. III. pp. 9-28, 38-101, 149-172, 277-294; Vol. IV. pp. 81-95, 107-131; Vol. V. pp. 123-136; Familienfreund, Vol. II. pp. 66-91; Spektor's Familienkalender, Vol. II. pp. 51-54; Vol. III. pp. 81-85; Vol. IV. pp. 63-93; Vol. V. pp. 45-51, 52-58; Widerkol, pp. 19 ff.; Jontewblāttlech, I. Series, No. 3, 4, 9; Klēiner Wecker, pp. 43-48; Literatur un' Leben, pp. 67-89. Reviews by him, under the pseudonym Emes, in Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 143-160; Vol. II. pp. 170-176; Vol. III. pp. 251-260.
[96] In Hausfreund, Vol. I. p. 67; Vol. II pp. 108-116; Jüd. Bibliothēk, Vol. I. pp. 41-74.
[97] Other articles by him: Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. V. pp. 329 ff.; Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 33-43; Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 1-21; Vol. II. pp. 75-99; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 244-248; Jüd. Bibliothēk, Supplements.
[98] Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 75-99.
[99] His stories, dramas, and poems have appeared in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. III. p. 387, hence continuously up to the ninth volume of that periodical; Familienfreund, Vol. I. pp. 73-84; Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 45-63; Vol. III. pp. 321-326; Vol. IV. pp. 63-81; Vol. V. pp. 97-123; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 1-47, 241-243, 351-378; Vol. II. pp. 205-220, 304-310; Wecker, pp. 88-91.
[100] Voschod, Vol. VII. No. 6. Reviews of his other works are in Voschod, Vol. VII. Nos. 7, 8; Vol. VIII. No. 10, and in later numbers; of Sender Blank, by J. J. Lerner (unfavorable), in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. VIII. (Beilage), No. 29, pp. 864-876, under the title Lebendige Meessim. Short mention of his works in Sseefer Sikorōn, p. 105.
[101] Other articles by Rabnizki in Wecker, pp. 62-74, 115-122; Hēilige Land, pp. 13-25.
[102] In his Kol-mewasser, col. 31-34.
[103] Lokschen and A Flōh vun Tischebow; see Bibliography, under Frischmann.
[104] Frischmann's stories, reviews, and poems may be found in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 92, 93; Vol. IX. Nos. 23, 30, 32, 51, 52; Familienfreund, Vol. II. pp. 47-49; Hausfreund, Vol. II. pp. 22-25, 66-73, 151-170; Vol. III. pp. 175, 176; Vol. IV. pp. 167-176; Vol. V. pp. 7-21, 159-161; Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 211-224; Handelskalender, pp. 100-104.
[105] His stories appeared in Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 183-210; Vol. II. pp. 225-246; Jüd. Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 70-81.
[106] In addition to the very large number of stories, etc., in his own publications, Perez has contributed to Jüd. Volksbib., Vol. I. pp. 148-158; Vol. II. pp. 126-129, 136-138, 142-147, 167, 168, 195-204; Hausfreund, Vol. III. pp. 111-113, 179-181; Handelskalender, pp. 79-83, 105-113; Klēiner Wecker, pp. 25-29; Jüd. Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 105-111.
[107] In Hausfreund, Vol. V. pp. 136-145; Spektor's Familienkalender, Vol. V. pp. 45-51; Widerkol, pp. 5-18; Jüd. Bibliothēk, Vol. III. pp. 89-94; Literatur un' Leben, pp. 89-95; Jontew-blāttlech, No. 16.
[108] In Hausfreund, Vol. III. pp. 231-241, 265-277; Jüd. Bibliothēk, Vol. III. pp. 84-89; Literatur un' Leben, pp. 23-47, 163. Jontew-blāttlech, Nos. 1, 3, 20, 22, 24, 29; 2d Series, Nos. 1, 2, 5.
[109] In addition to his own publications see Hausfreund, Vol. III. pp. 294-304; Jüd. Bibliothēk, Vol. I. pp. 90-98; Jontew-blāttlech, Nos. 7, 8, 18.
[110] Since writing this, both the Neuer Geist and Die Zeit have ceased appearing.
[111] For the bibliography of the older plays see Steinschneider, in the Serapeum (1848, '49, '64, '66, '69); Ahasuerus, Nos. 11 a, 387; Purim-play, No. 417; Acta Esther (Ahas.), No. 17 (cf. Litteraturblatt des Orients, 1843, p. 59, and Jüd. Litteratur, in Ersch und Gruber, § XX. Anmerkung 36); Action von König David und Goliath dem Philister, No. 18; Mechiras Josef, No. 146. On the ancient theatre, see Abrahams, Jewish Life, pp. 260-272.
[112] pp. 36 ff.
[113] Part of the Ahasuerus-play, as given at present on the day of Purim, may be found in Abramowitsch's Prizyw, pp. 62-65.
[114] Cf. Dienesohn, Herschele, pp. 47 ff.
[115] Cf. Abramowitsch, Prizyw, p. 64: "Heunt is' Purim un' morgen is' aus, Gi't mir a Groschen un' stupt mich araus!"
[116] In Die Jüdene, q.v.
[117] Cf. Abramsky, Bomas Jischok, which gives an account of that period.
[118] See Die Jüdische Bühne. (The Jewish Stage.) Herausgegeben zum 20 jährigen Jubiläum vun dem jüdischen Theater. Publisher, J. Katzenellenbogen, New York, 1897; about 800 pages, irregularly marked. In this volume the most important contribution, though far from exhaustive, is by M. Seiffert, Die Geschichte vun jüdischen Theater, In drei Zeit-perioden, 47 pp. For the condition of the theatre at its beginning, in Roumania, see Abramsky, Bomas Jischok. For its later development cf. J. Lifschitz, Dās jüdische Theater un' die jüdische Schauspieler, Rezensie über dās jüdische Theater in Warschau, in Jüd. Volksblatt, Vol. VIII. (Beilage), pp. 773-784 (No. 26); Meisach, Dās jüdische Theater, in Hausfreund, Vol. I. pp. 160-165; Unser Theater, in Jüd. Volkskalender, Vol. III. pp. 81-86; Rombro, Der jüdischer Theater in America, in Stādt-anzeiger, No. I. pp. 5-9; No. II. pp. 8-13; J. Jaffa, Der jüdischer Theater wie er is', in Jüd.-Amer. Volkskalender, 1895-96, pp. 60-63. See also the bibliography in Sistematičeskij ukazatel', p. 211 (Nos. 3137-3149), and pp. 286, 287 (Nos. 4675 and 4676).
[119] This is a common saying for an impossible thing.
[120] Published by Copeland and Day; with permission of the publishers.