מענדעלע

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the etymology of pamelekh is unclear. What I do remember was a usage in the movie _Mirele Efros_ where they're getting all the furniture ready for the trip to Grodne, and Makhle yells out "Pamelekh!" meaning "Careful" (with that)

Rick Gildemeister

_pamelekh_ is most likely related to Russian/Ukrainian _pomalu_, which means "in small increments", "slowly".

Iosif Vaisman

In my family (which was Yiddish speaking), when someone stood at the door greeting guests or ushering them out (events that were always accompanied by a kiss), she/he was always referred to as the Mezuzah - for obvious reasons. I found myself using this phrase to describe myself to a kid cousin just last week when people came to my house and I was the hostess at the door.

Perhaps the use of the word applied to a "woman of easy virtue" derives from the ease with which she permits herself to to be kissed - and maybe more.

Dolores Kreisman

In Eastern European Yiddish, how widely I have no idea, _mezuzele_ has a meaning somewhat more pejorative than that which A. Manaster Ramer. found to the west. In Stutchkoff's Thesarus, p. 692, col. 1, it is found in the same endless subgroup as treyfenitse, arumloyf, hultayke, paskudstve and di rikhtike skhoyre.

As regards mezuze-kissing, there are more ways than the two described by A. Manaster Ramer. As far as I know, there is no right way.

Meyer-Leyb Wolf

Mezuze iz in hentshke-loshn (Argot, Rotwelsch) far vor a khonte, ober in mameloshn: "A mame iz vi a mezuze" - dos heyst zi shteyt bay der tir un hit ob dos hoyz, un itlikhes kind vos geyt arayn, zol ir derfar a kush geben. Ot dos hob ikh bay Ignaz Bernstein geleyent.

Ruben Frankenstein

Tayere mendelyaner ich veis nicht fun Svitser-tuch, ober as ich bin geven in ostereich mehr vi draisik yor tsurik, in a kleine ski-shtetl, Seefeld, in di berger, ich hob gekent farshtein un reden mit di menschen dorten, as ich hob geret Idish un zei zehrer dialekt. sis nor as ich hob geret fun a 'ponem', und zei hoben nicht farshtanen,hob ich farshtanen as 'ponem' kumt fun Ebreiish, und sis nicht a doitsche vort. Ich hob eich geret Idish eich mit di menschen in Alte Adige in Italien, vu di meschen rreden Sud-Tirolische Echt-Deutch.

I don't know how relevant this is, but over 30 years ago, when I was skiing in the Tyrolean Alps, I got by very well with Yiddish, speaking to the locals in Seefeld in the Austrian Tyrol, and later, in a small ski-ing village called Selva- Wolkenstein in a place the Italians call Alte Adige. The locals call their speech Sud-Tirolische Echt-Deutch. It was only when I tried to speak about someone's face, and said 'ponim', and got blank looks- and eventually-'gesicht' (I think), that I realised 'ponim' was a Hebrew loan word. I had to change the vowel sounds sometimes, to be understood. I think the Tyrolean dialects were quite close to Yiddish.

Zait gezunt Norma Brewer

Shoyn eyn kaylekhdik yor vi ikh fir on mit a parshes-hashvue-reshime af yidish, un mir hobn shoyn etlekhe minyonem abonentn fun ale ekn velt. Zayt zhe mit undz! Shikt an elektronish brivl afn adres <bergez01@popmail.med.nyu.edu>.

Sholem Berger

[Moderator's note: Mendele respectfully asks all potential contributors of materials on etymology of _daven_ to consult with archived issues 07.071-07.125 first (http://www2.trincoll.edu/~mendele/toc07.htm). Facts, hypotheses, and opinions represented in the abovementioned issues will not be republished. -i.v.]

I would like to postulate a semitic origen for daven. Hebrew roots are generally triliteral, although many consist of only two root letters. The root for 'speak', or talk, is d.b.r. Understand that in many circumstances, the middle letter is often pronounced as a v. Thus, in the pa'al, piel and hitpael themes in biblical hebrew, the root d.b/v.r means speak. d.b.r. reflects the later, more-developed triliteral form. the older form, simply consisting of two letters, would be d.b, and is reflected in the words dibba (slander, evil speech) and d.b.b. (dovev = speak; or whisper).When one considers that all reflects fo the root pertain to speach, talking or whispering, and that the one that most resembles the act of davening (whispering/talking) is davav (where the second v is a reduplication of the second root letter), it is not a giant leap to dav + verbal suffix -nen

Quod erat demonstrandum

Les Train

Efsher interesirt dikh di pasirung fun mayn lebn in di fareynikte Shtatn far dayn arbet in Forverts. Ikh veys nit tsi dos iz a komishe oder rirndike pasirung, ober a merkvirdike pasirung is dos. Ikh vintsh dir a sakh derfolg in dayn arbet.

Eynmol, mit arum tsvantsik-draysik yor tsurik, bin ikh gezesn bay Dr. Emanuel Pat in varttsimer, fartift iber a bukh. Plutsim hob ikh derhert a froys kol. Zi iz gezesn antkegn mir un oykh gevart tsu zen dem docter. Tsvishn andere zakhn, hot zi mir gezogt az zi iz do oyf a bazukh fun Buenos Ayres, Argentine.

"Zayt mir moykl", hob ikh zikh tsu ir gevondn, "ikh veys, az Buenos Ayres iz a groyse shtot un az in Argentine izfaran a groyse yidishe bafelkerung, ober efsher kent ir dokh, al-pi-tsufal, a froy mitn nomen Khaye Buki"?

"Yo", hot zi geentfert. Der "o" in "yo" iz geven gvaldik oysgetsoygn. "Ikh ken aza froy".

"Der man irer heyst Moyshe", hob ikh vayter getsoygn.

"Shloyme", hot zi mir ibergerisn.

"Efsher makh ikh a toes. A por khadoshim far der milkhome iz tsu zey avekgeforn zeyer plimenitse fun Lodz, Andzhe Buki".

"Mir rufn zi Khantshe", hot zi oysgebesert.

Ikh hob nit gekent gleybn mayne oyern un ongeshtelt a por oygn oyf ir. Zi redt vegn zey nit nor vi imetser vos ken zey, nor vi imetser vos iz mit zey gantser shmelke.

"Fun vanen kent ir Khayen, Shloymen un Khantshe Buki?", hot zi nit lang gelozt vartn.

"Khantshen hob ikh gekent. Zi hot zikh gelernt sheytl-makheray un frizyeray bay mayn mamen. Ober vegn Khayen un ir man hob ikh nor gehert redn in der heym. Khaye iz geven mayn mames libe khaverte fun der yugnt."

"Un ver iz gevezn ayer mame?", hot zi mikh genumen oyfn tsimbl. Di froy hot geredt in a Besaraber yiddish.

"Ikh bin zikher' az ir veyst nit ver mayn mame iz geven, ober ikh volt gevolt prubirn zikh farbindn mit khayen un Andzhen.

"Ikh vel aykh gebn zeyer adres, ober frier zogt mir ver es iz geven ayer mame."

"Mayn mame hot geheysn Rukhtshe Infeld, fun der heym Koyfman ."

"Un ayer mame hot gehat a mum? Zi hot gehinkt oyf a fus!"

"Yo!" Dos mol iz mayn "yo" geven an oysgetsoygener. " Fun vanen vayst ir dos?"

"Vayl ikh hob in Argentine khasene gehat mit Shloymes bruder, vos iz amol geven farlibt in ayer mamen un gevolt khasene hobn mit ir".

Fun dem plitzimdikn shmues baym Dr. in varttsimer hot zikh oysgelozt a langer briv-oystoysh tsvishn Khayen, Andzhen un mir -- far lange, lange yorn, un mir hobn gefilt vi alte gute fraynd. Zi hot mir dertseylt zakhn vegn mayn bobe-zeydn, vos ikh hob frier nit gevust. Ikh hob afile fun Khayen bakumen a fotografye fun ir mit mayn mamen, genumen eyder zi hot farlozt Poyln, un mishpokhe bilder fun Argentine.

Anu, vos es ken alts pasirn in lebn?

Feygl Infeld Glezer