Photo of Anthony Mordechai Tzvi Russell, making Yiddish poetry and music. From anthonyrusselbass.com.
CENES is thrilled to introduce Yiddish language courses beginning fall 2024 for UBC students. This will be the seventh language program taught within the CENES department.
UBC Vancouver’s Department of Central, Eastern and Northern European Studies will begin teaching the Yiddish language under the course codes YDSH 101 and YDSH 102. Beyond beginner grammar rules and vocabulary, both 3-credit courses will connect students to Yiddish music, film, and literature in a flexible, multi-access format.
“When somebody speaks to me in Yiddish, I really feel it as an act of great care and great love.” Says Faith Jones of The Vancouver School of Yiddish Translators.
The course is meant for curious learners who want to know more about Yiddish-speaking culture and who want to dedicate time to learning the language itself. Yiddish is a thriving, lively, beautiful language worth loving and caring for in all its details and variations. It is the key secular language for millions of Jewish people throughout history, and through vast regions of Europe, the Américas, and beyond. It is key to connecting with ancestors and traditions, as well as for music, literature, and everyday culture around the world.
Dr. David Gramling, Professor and Department Head of CENES, says: “It’s the epitome of a grassroots, diverse, lively, human language that is lived and loved by real people, and doesn’t have a state budget behind it.”
Course registration is officially open for all years to enroll. Come join the new community of UBC students learning, loving, and finding joy and meaning together in Yiddish, a thousand-year old European Jewish language with a bright future!
