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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionsYiddish Civilisationby Paul Kriwaczek
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:From the author of In Search of Zarathustra an illuminating chronicle of Yiddish civilization from its roots in the Diaspora to the present. Paul Kriwaczek begins his search when Jewish culture first spreads to Europe during the Roman Empire after the end of ancient Jerusalem and the destruction of its Temple at the hands of the Romans in the year 70. We see the burgeoning exile population disperse, moving outward and northward throughout the following centuries, making their mark in more far flung cities under Roman rule. We see these communities settle and coalesce until in 1264 the Statute of Kalisz lays down a general charter of Jewish Liberties, establishing the legal foundation of a separate, self-governing Yiddish world. It is now the treks that begin from the Rhineland and Bavaria to Western Russia and the Ukraine. By its late-medieval heyday, this economically successful, intellectually adventurous, and largely self-ruling Yiddish society stretches from the Baltic to the Black Sea. Providing a rich portrait of Yiddish civilization, Kriwaczek reflects upon the development of Yiddish language, occupations, social life, art, music, and literature, and introduces us to notable diplomats, artists, and thinkers: from the “Court Jews” of 17th- century Europe to Glikl of Hamelins, who wrote the first great Yiddish autobiography, to Moses Mendelssohn, the 18th-century philosopher and musician, to the great writers of the late 19th and 20th centuries, Sholem Aleichem and I.B. Singer among them. He chronicles the slow decline of Yiddish culture in Europe and Russia, beginning in the 17th century with the Chmielnicki Massacres in the Ukraine and culminating in the Holocaust, but looks further to fresh offshoots in the New World. Combining intimate family anecdote, travelogue, historical research, and interviews with scholars, Kriwaczek retraces the history of this nearly extinguished civilization to give us a celebration of what remains of Yiddish culture in our own time. Review:"Kriwaczek's charming but frustratingly rambling history places Yiddish in a very broad historical context. Admitting that he is neither 'a learned Jew nor a professional historian,' Kriwaczek (In Search of Zarathustra) cuts a broad swath through history as he moves, in the opening chapters, from the forum in Rome to the emergence of a distinct 'Yiddish civilization' in medieval eastern Europe. Kriwaczek's insistence on defining Yiddish as a culture, or civilization, rather than a language is smart and useful — it allows him to capture the intricacies of a very complicated history and to avoid a simple 'black-and-white clash between gentiles and Jews' — but it also means that his tapestry is sometimes too large. When he does narrow his focus — on, say, the autobiography of Glikl of Hamlin, born 1646, whose memoir is the first major Yiddish work by a woman — he is evocative and precise. While there is an endless amount of fascinating detail (Slavic fashions in shoes became trendy in 14th-century Europe), and all is presented in an enjoyable narrative, the book becomes more of a rumination on a number of related issues than a concise examination of a culture and a language. 16 pages of illus. not seen by PW; maps." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Synopsis:From the author of "In Search of Zarasthustra" comes an illuminating chronicle of Yiddish civilization from the 13th century to the present. of photos. 3 maps. About the AuthorPaul Kriwaczek was born in Vienna in 1937 and, with his parents, narrowly escaped the Nazis in 1939, fleeing first to Switzerland and then to England. He grew up in London and graduated from London Hospital Medical College. After several years spent working and traveling in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa, he joined the BBC, where he spent the next quarter of a century as a program producer and filmmaker. Since leaving television in the 1990s, he has devoted himself to writing full-time, catching up on the unfinished business of a life spent exploring places, times, and ideas. He is married and lives in London. Paul Kriwaczeks In Search of Zarathustra is available in Vintage paperback. Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Maps Introduction 1. Bist a Yid? Roots Schmoots! Nostalgie de la Boue 2. The Jews of Rome A Basket and a Truss of Hay 3. From the Mediterranean to the Baltic As Strange as a Circumcised Unicorn Sennan and Zippan 4. The Remaking of Western Europe Charles's Elephant New Borders, New Allegiances Drang Nach Osten 5. At the Crossroads In Every Castle a King A Blessing Upon Mieszko, King of Poland 6. The New Yiddish World The Language The Literature The Religion The Scholarly Tradition 7. Political Consolidation Landowners, Merchants, Artisans, Servants a the Jewish Inn 8. The Reformation Hussites Luther Now a Miracle Happened 9. The Yiddish Renaissance Cracow Prague Dovid Gans 10. Wide Horizons Wealth and Honour The Great Divide 11. The Deluge The Cossacks Poverty and Disgrace 12. Decline . . . Who Permits the Forbidden The Holy Creed of Edom The Famous Baal Shem Tov, May His Light Long Shine Oppose Them Strongly 13. . . . and Fall The “Jewish Problem” Words That Fall on Us Like Lashes Shakespearean Tragedy 14. A Winter Flowering Notes Bibliography Index What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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