מענדעלע

Joachim Neugroschel wants a reference for fonye, meaning 'the tsar' From: Sholem Aleikhem, Motl, Peysi dem khasns in Amerike [Moskve, 1948]: I. Mazltov, mir zenen shoyn in Amerike, first alinea: "... Di rayke lozt men arayn glaykh, vi zey kumen on mitn shif. Dos past, zogt er, nor far foni-ganev, nit far aza fraye medine, vi Amerike." footnote: gemeynt: di keyser mit zayne zshandarmen un politsey.

a goy, Claus Buryn

Certainly Weinrich gives "fonye" as "(hum.) Russian; the Russians." However, I find references to "fonye" in several songs having to do with military service, and there "fonye" as a nickname for the czar appears to make more sense (the Mloteks concur; see the note corresponding to "fonye ganev" in "mir trogn a gezang"). "Fonye dinen is zeyer biter" or "fonye ganev," for example, could signify "the Russian(s)" as a class or an abstraction, but it seems more likely to me that the absolute monarch whose ukases fell so heavily on so many people would come in for a substantial share of the blame.

It is tricky to draw conclusions based only on poetic usage, but I know of at least four songs about conscripts ("fonye dinen is zeyer biter," "fonye ganev," "fraytik in der fri" and "yoshke fort avek") in which references to "fonye" appear, and all are more intelligible when understood as a nickname for the czar.

It is possible, of course, for "fonye" to have multiple meanings, especially since it is a locution classified by Weinreich as "humorous." Perhaps the native speakers who have heard it used can enlighten us further.

Marti Krow-Lucal

Bronfn are indeed strong spirits. A "trink bronfn" was a sure cure for anything, and an appropriate accompaniment to herring and challah on shabbas morning following services. Other words for this drink were schnapps and viski. As I recall it, bronfn had a more poetic ring, and was used on more ceremonial imbibing... I think it did refer to strong brandy more specifically than schnapps. I always thought it was poetic that Edgar Bronfman (of Seagrams fame) had a name that was his business. Sort of like finding a tailor named Schneider. I always wondered whether the Bronfman family distilled hard liquor for many generations, and thus adopted their business as their name.

Berel Leiser did such a beautiful description and definition of the shteebel that nothing need be added, except to point out that todayu many large synagogues seem to try to refer to themselves as "the little shul on the hill" or "the shul in town" when in fact they are quite impressive synagogues or temples. I would be curious for that "other day" when we could investigate the difference between shul and temple.

Sometimes I feel a blurring between Mendele and other posts that deal with the Jewish religion, rather than simply the language of Yiddish... that's not all together bad.

Stephen Berr

In a book review in the American Mathematical Monthly for December 1997, we find: "Much would be made clear to me about a subject [early astronomy] that my sainted Aunt Mildred would have called a _hegdesh_. ... What's a _hegdesh_? Well may you ask. Here's an analogy. You go into an antique shop where you know there are wondrous things to be had, but in order to find them, you have to pick your way through large piles of things stacked here and there. The aisles are narrow, and you know that there's some hint of an orderly plan, but it's hard to figure out what that plan is. Furthermore, occasional signposts are wrong and others quite mysterious. Also, in your searching, you have to pay careful attention to details. After a great deal of peeping in here, poking in there, dusting off this, thinking about that, you finally come to some gems. Aunt Mildred would have called the antique shop a _hegdesh_."

My mother also used this word, which I always assumed was Yiddish. I thought it meant a very messy place, one that was not fit to receive company. My mother would say, "This place looks like a hegdish!" (I believe she said "looks like" rather than "is.")

Is the word in fact Yiddish and, if so, what is its meaning?

Milt Eisner McLean VA

In my youth it was a common slang expression on the streets of Brooklyn to "put a kaibosh " on someone or his actions. I had not been aware that that slang came from the Hebrew. Siz dem emes?

Arre Komar

Khaver Prager's notes in THE MENDELE REVIEW about khazonim, and especially the press review of a 1920 performance in London by khazn Leib Glants, reminded me of my pre-teen years in the late 1940s in Toronto. Many of the great khazonim of that era hobn dortn gedavnt while they were on tour across the USA and Canada. My father was a barber, and though he struggled to make ends meet, he found the means to join the throngs of meyvonim, mostly poor, East-European immigrants like himself, in the packed shuls of downtown Toronto where the concerts took place. On a few occasions, though I was only a kleyne boytshikl, he took me with him. I recall only khazn Leibele Waldman now, but my love for khazones and for yiddish theatre was sparked by this early exposure. When my friends were buying Big Band and Hit Parade records, I was coming home with 78's (which I still have) of Pintchik, Hershman and Maurice Schwartz. I vividly remember my dad taking me backstage to meet Mr. Schwartz and get his autograph.The great man was very gracious with the awestruck little boy, who didn't really realize who Maurice Schwartz was, but who was very impressed with (and frightened by) his stage makeup. I can remember my dad's story of his long conversation with khazn Samuel Vigoda while he was sitting in his barber chair. Ah, the memories of youth! Was I a wierd kid, or just a very fortunate one, to have a father like that?

Itsik Goldenberg

Mendy Fliegler -- and others -- have kvetched, more or less explicitly, about how bored or annoyed they are with the _davenen_ discussion. Might I remind them that (a)their keyboard presumably has a delete key and they might want to use it when they don't like what they see; (b)some of us who have not contributed to the _davenen_ discussion *are* interested in it; and (c)some of us are profoundly uninterested in *many* other topics that frequently occupy Mendele, and we discreetly use our delete key.

And MF goes on to say: "efsher zoln di gute khevre vus viln vayter zikh shpiln mit di verter... efsher zoln zay zikh avekzetsn dortn oyfn 'Mendele' 'nets (Web), un git iberkayen, un efsher shtoysn zikh gezundterheyt, vus zey viln. Dan veln mir kenen araynbrengen _du_ naye, shaferishe temes epes..."

AFAIK, there is no quota on what can be posted to Mendele and I fail to see how the _davenen_ discussion (or anything else) is preventing anyone from bringing in 'new creative topics'. If there's a lack of them, there must be some other reason...

But I shall throw out a suggestion for the shames, which he's free to ignore of course. On the LINGUIST list, which has perhaps an even more heteregeneous readership than Mendele (if that's possible), the people that manage the list group posts according to topic, with the overall topic marked in the main Subject line. This makes it much easier for readers to see what they might want to look at vs what they can delete sight unseen, the only way a list as active as that one is could possibly survive. I personally don't find Mendele's current format arduous but maybe some people would prefer a more homogeneous grouping of topics.

Ellen Prince

I quote Louis Fridhandler: "This piece does not reflect the humor, the warm and chilling ironies, or the rhythmic, touching, sometimes musical lilts that are the wonders of the best Yiddish writing, for both serious and entertainment purposes."

With all due respect, let us bear in mind how fortunate it is indeed that not every Yiddish writer writes/wrote like, say, Sholem-Aleykhem. Contrary to popular approach (cf. any article written on Yiddish in the press), not every utterance in Yiddish is by definition imbued with humor, warm and chilling irony, a unique rhythmicity, and touching musical lilts. That Sholem-Aleykhem (and others) may have written that way is a statement on his part. That Nomberg didn't write this way is a statement on _his_ part. In fact, adopting a style that would reflect _any_ of the stereotyped characteristics of speakers or writers of Yiddish would have been fatal to this particular story by Nomberg.

I agree, however, that the Pakn-Treger's reprinting the story in outdated spelling is a brokhe-levatole. They only made it _physically_ accessible, and may as well have given a photo-reproduction of the original instead of retyping it.

Dovid Braun Cambridge, MA

No, it is not a mobilization in North Carolina. But, since the temperature of some discussions in Mendele reached the dangerous level, the shames decided to take a leave of absence for three weeks in a hope that the passions will calm down. So, on December 22nd the shames will lock his windowless office (literally, no endorsement of Mac computers implied, got zol upitn) and will go to the broad daylight of the faraway shores of Albion and the banks of Ayalon. Mendele will switch to a semi-hibernating modus operandi: all messages are welcome, but the digests may be delayed, in the worst case until January 15. All announcements for the January events and new ideas on the etymology of "davenen" should be sent to Mendele before December 21 to ensure their timely publication.

Iosif Vaisman Chapel Hill