Ashkenazi Settlement in Rhineland and its Movement Eastwards Yiddish as the vernacular language of Ashkenazi Jews Hamito - Semitic Languages Berber • Spoken in parts of Morocco, Algeria, etc. Semitic • Arabic • Hebrew • Arameic – the language of Talmud; a language spoken in entire Middle East 2000 years ago Languages in Europe Indoeuropean • Roman • German • Slavic • Baltic • Celtic Ural • Ugrofinnic Slavic Languages • Western Slavic Languages: Polish, Slovak, Czech, Sorbian (Lusatian Serbian) • Eastern Slavic L.: Russian, Belarussian, Ukrainian • Southern Slavic: Slovene, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian Languages in Europe Indoeuropean • Roman • German: English, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Icelandic, Faroese, Yiddish • Slavic • Baltic • Celtic Ural • Ugrofinnic Yiddish • Western Germanic language, shaped before 1150 • spoken by 4 million people • Independent litterature in yiddish mainly since the 19th C Origins of Yiddish • Laaz/ Loetz – N – based on French (Cerfati) – S – based on Italian • Knaan – Lishon Knaan – based on old Czech – Western Slavic language – Extinct due to the expansion of yiddish – last traced in the 16th c. – Used in the Czech lands, Poland and Lusatia – Slavic influences in yiddish through Knaanic Yiddish • Do you speak yiddish? • What yiddish words do you use? • What yiddish words do you know? Yiddish • Do you speak yiddish? • What yiddish words do you know? – Cholent (Tsholnt) – Northern Loez (Laaz) - from the Latin calentem (kept warm) • Spelled CLNT in the 13th c. by a Jew from Knaan Yiddish • Do you speak yiddish? • What yiddish words do you know? – Cholent (Tsholnt) – Northern Loez (Laaz) - from the Latin calentem (kept warm) – Jarmulka – from the Arameic yira malkhah – fear of the king Yiddish • Do you speak yiddish? • What yiddish words do you know? – Cholent – from the Latin calentem (kept warm) – developed from the Mediterranean cassoulet – Jarmulka – from the Arameic yira malkhah – fear of the king – Pamelech – slowly – from Knaanic (Slavic) pomalu • Diminutive suffixes – from Slavic langugages : – Shtetl – Städt („town“ in German) – Shtetl - Shtetle Geography • Zarfat/ Carfat – N France • Loter/ Ashkenaz - Germany • Knaan – Slavic Lands • Rus - Eastern Slavic Lands – Hypothetical Khazar Empire – 8th- 12th c. – between Black and Caspian Sea Ashkenazi Jews • Rhineland – 9th and 10th C. • Oldest communities – – – – Trier Aachen Cologne שום • Speyer • Worms • Mainz Ashkenazi Jews • Mainz (Rhineland) – the oldest Jewish settlement, since 903 – On a crossroad of important trade routes – Jews expulsed in 1084 but were alowed to come back – the oldest synagogue documented in 1093 • Speyer (Rhineland) – Preserved parts of a medieval synagogue from 1104 – the oldest on the north of the Alps – Preserved romanesque mikvah from 1128 – Medieval cemetery with 45 tumbs from 12th -15th C Ashkenazi Jews • Worms (Rhineland) – A synagogue documented in 1034, renewed in 1174 • Model for the synagogues in Regensburg and in Prague – The oldest surviving Jewish cemetery in Europe – 60 tumbs from 11th and 12th centuries – Mikvah – 1185 – Rashi from Troyes studied here in 1060-1065 • 11th (since 1095) and 12th c. – crusades to free God´s tumb from muslims – on the way massacred Jews bloody pogroms (Worms, Mainz, Speyer) • 13th c. – Jews became dependent on the royal power and were gradually isolated from their neighbourhood – „servi camerae regiae“ 1215 – IV. Lateran Council – – – – – Jews have to wear a distinctive garb Consistent separation of Jews and Christians Jews are not allowed to own or rent any land Limited in crafts Merchants, money lenders - medieval antisemitism often inspired by economy reasons Ashkenazi Jews • Since the 13th c. Jews expulsed from England (1290), since the 14th c. From France (1306) and from Germany (1348 – bulbonic plague – practically only the community in Worms renewed) moved Eastward • Ashkenazi culture is less varied than the Sefardi one – on constant escape they focused rather on Torah = Law than on poetry or philosophy