Applied Languages

Long disparaged in Hebrew-speaking Israel as the native tongue of Diaspora Jews, the centuries-old lingo made a comeback Tuesday with the first ever Yiddish Culture Day.

Marking 150 years since the birth of Sholem Aleichem, the popular Russian-Jewish author of Yiddish literature, and 20 years since the establishment of the Yiddish theatre in Tel Aviv, lawmakers gathered to discuss ways to preserve and promote the German-based language written with the Hebrew alphabet.

It was the language of Jews of Eastern Europe. They were decimated in the Nazi Holocaust of World War II, just as the founders of the Jewish state were promoting Hebrew and ridiculing Yiddish, leaving the language without a wide base.

Yiddish traces its origins to the 10th century and flourished among Jewish Ashkenazi culture in the 20th century before the Holocaust. The language is currently spoken in patches of ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in Israel, the United States, the former Soviet Union and elsewhere.

At Israel’s parliament on Tuesday, organizers handed out a Yiddish handbook to lawmakers so they could study poignant Yiddishisms, and guests were treated to a Yiddish concert.

“People have been eulogizing Yiddish for 500 years, but it is much too soon for that — Yiddish will live on forever,” said lawmaker Lia Shemtov, chairwoman of the parliamentary lobby for the preservation of Yiddish. “It is more than a language. It is the culture and the history of our people.”

Read more: Associated Press

Everyone knows older kids pick up certain language from their peers. Now researchers find the same is true for preschoolers.

In a study conducted among more than 1,800 children in 450 classrooms across the country, investigators from the University of Virginia and Ohio State University found kids learned to both speak and understand words faster when their classmates had better language skills. The effect was especially strong for kids who came into school with better language skills to begin with.

Being in a well managed classroom also had a positive effect.

“Classmates are an important resource for all children, especially for children who begin preschool with higher language skills,” study author Andrew J. Mashburn, a senior research scientist at the University of Virginia, was quoted as saying. “This is likely because these children are better able to capitalize on their peers’ skills for learning language.”

The findings linking better language skills to better behaved classrooms is important as well because it provides a concrete way teachers can influence language outcomes for their students.

“These results also indicate that teachers can promote children’s language development by effectively managing children’s behavior, which creates an environment in which children feel comfortable to converse with and learn language from one another,” notes Mashburn.

Read more: Ivanhoe Newswire

The Abraham Fund hopes to expand Arabic education in Israeli schools to 5th and 6th grade students. The program teaches young children Arab culture and language in an effort to eliminate cultural stereotypes and promote equality within Israeli society. The organization was founded in 1989 with the mission of providing financial assistance to coexistence projects throughout Israel.

Currently the Education Ministry requires compulsory Arabic classes for students in 7th, 8th and 9th grade. The Abraham Fund hopes to influence government policy to expand the program to 5th and 6th graders. If Israeli students begin studying Arabic at an early age they will be less likely to develop societal stereotypes. By starting Arabic language education at an earlier age, the Education Ministry will have to re-evaluate how to train teachers working with 7th, 8th, and 9th grade classes, who will have a higher proficiency of Arabic than ever before.

The program has been implemented in over 100 schools throughout Haifa, Jerusalem, and the north of Israel. Initially the program found that Jewish students were not interested in learning Arabic. For many kids, Arabic was seen as the language of the enemy and not rather than a necessary tool in today’s Israel. But this is gradually changing.

The program has designed a curriculum with an emphasis on speaking, and finding mutual cultural symbols that relate to all religious groups in Israel. Some 85% of all teachers in the program are Arab. Many Jewish students have not been exposed to Arab community leaders in such a close environment and the interaction with their teachers enables them to do so. Instead of reading about Muslim holidays and customs in text books, children get to relate to educators that can present a more accurate representation of their culture firsthand.

In the past many kids reported feeling scared every time they heard Arabic being spoken on the street or on a bus. But once they are able to recognize a few words, the language becomes less threatening and more accessible. The children no longer feel threatened when they see a woman wearing a burka because they have formed a bond with their teacher.

Read more: ynetnews

Gloria Lenhoff has a rare genetic condition known as Williams syndrome, which causes medical problems and developmental delays. But it also let’s her memorize any song, in any language, within minutes.

For Lenhoff, 54, it means an IQ of 55 and the gift of music – she can hear a song once and memorize it within minutes, which she has done with more than 2,000 songs, the Kentucky State-Journal reported. Her pitch is perfect and she can sing in 30 languages.

“Williams Syndrome people can’t help who they are, but they can do anything,” Lenhoff told the newspaper. “And I can do anything, because I want to keep my mind to it, and I don’t want to give anything up for the world.”

Williams syndrome affects about 1 in 7,500. Medical problems can range from heart problems, dental abnormalities, hernias and musculoskeletal problems, to name a few. Although Lenhoff has difficulty moving her arm, she can still play the electric keyboard, piano and accordion.

Read more: Fox News

Kolkata-based Max Mueller Bhavan and the German Language Centre in Patna, India, would impart training in the German language to teachers of private and government-run schools. This was announced by Max Mueller Bhavan’s director Reimar Volker in Kolkata on Monday.

Addressing a conference, Volker said that the German language is a widely spoken language in Europe and the most commonly used language on the internet. He said that in the age of global liberalisation when German multinational companies are expanding in India, it would help in getting jobs in these companies. Those adept in the German language are facing a bright future, as he pointed out.

Speaking on the occasion, language coordinator Amrita Dhara apprised the gathering of different aspects of teachers’ training in the German language. She also threw light on different processes for getting trained in the language.

In his address, Bihar Secondary Examination Board chairman A K P Yadav recalled that the German language was very popular in India about 30 years back. He said that the German government had agreed to set up a teachers’ training centre in Patna for imparting training in the German language.

He, however, suggested that Max Mueller should organize a fair in the state capital to have direct interaction with the people, particularly students.

The German Language Centre, Patna, director Archana Rani was also present. Representatives of 11 government and five private schools were also present on the occasion.

Read more: The Times of India