When Iâm not wearing my Behrman House Editor hat, I like to masquerade as a Yiddish literature graduate student. Much of the work I do at Behrman House lets me indulge in my academic interest. The History of the Jewish People, Volume 2 is filled with fascinating stories and facts about the history of Yiddish. Want to learn about the great Yiddish author Sholem-Aleichem? Heâs the star of page six. Want to learn how to spell âIowaâ in Yiddish? Just turn to the Yiddish map of the USA on page seventeen.
In preparation for Purim, Iâd like to share an interesting bit of Yiddish trivia with you. Every year at Purim, we celebrate the holiday by performing a Purim shpielâa silly, funny, and sometimes satiric Purim play. Shpiel is a Yiddish word of Germanic origin meaning âplayâ or âskit.â
Yiddish scholars and historians have spent a great many years (and pages) researching the origin of this holiday spectacle. Some scholars trace the first Purim shpieln (plural) to the 13th and 14th centuries in what is now Germany. In that period, Jewish people would celebrate Purim by reciting silly, rhyming monologues about the holiday or other biblical texts. Later in the 15th century, Purim shpieln were performed in private residences by local yeshivah boysâa sort of live, Jewish home entertainment system.
By the mid-17th century, the Purim shpiel was back in a public setting, such as the shtetl study house. At this point in time, the Purim shpiel had developed a tradition of interspersing the Purim story with contemporary social commentary. Local jokes and local flavor were added to productionsâa tradition we see in todayâs Purim shpieln that mock local politicians or parody current pop songs.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, many Yiddish authors and dramatists crafted their own Purim plays. Many of these productions, performed by professional actors, were lauded as both hysterical and unflinchingly irreverent. Scholars of 20th century Yiddish theater often identify the predecessor of modern Yiddish drama as the traditional Purim shpiel.
This year, during your Purim shpiel, when you hear a performer pronounce the inevitable âOy vey!,â I hope you remember the Yiddish past of the Purim shpiel. Have a Happy Purim, or, as they say in Yiddish, have a âfreylikhen Purim!â poker spiel für pctexas holdem poker setgratis internet pokergratis poker,poker game gratis,video poker gratisparadise poker bonus codepoker regeln straÃetexas holdem online,texas holdem online flash,texas holdem online gamebwin poker bonuspoker gratis vollversionpoker regeln no limitpoker texanogiochi 7 card stud inlinea,play 7 card stud,7 card studplay poker onlinegiocare poker gratisgiochi seven card stud gratispoker slot gratispoker online flashdownload gioco pokerdd tournament poker 2.0strip poker gamepoker tournament,poker tournament software,dd tournament pokergiochi texas holdem online,texas holdem online,texas holdem poker onlinegioco poker freewarecasino texas holdembetandwin pokergioca poker onlinestrip poker online,strip poker game online,strip poker online gratispoker tour gamegiochi on linedownload giochiplay omaha poker onlinescarica gioco poker gratisgiochare omaha poker in lineatexas holdem flashdownload gioco poker gratisgiochi pc pokertornei poker gratisnoble pokerparty poker,party poker bonus,party poker italiagiocare a poker on linetornei poker on linecarte giocostreet poker gratisstrategia pokerlive poker 3dfull tilt pokerplay wize pokerscaricare gioco pokerpoker regole di giocopoker gioco pc,gioco poker,istruzioni gioco poker
