Items related to The Joys of Yiddish
Do you know when to cry Mazel tov -- and when to avoid it like the plague? Did you know that Oy! is not a word, but a vocabulary with 29 distinct variations, sighed, cried, howled, or moaned, employed to express anything from ecstasy to horror? Here are words heard 'round the English-speaking world: chutzpa, or gall, brazen nerve, effrontery, "...that quality enshrined in a man who, having killed his mother and his father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan." Then there's mish-mosh, or mess, hodgepodge, total confusion...and shamus, or private eye.
They're all here and more, in Leo Rosten's glorious classic The Joys of Yiddish, which weds scholarship to humor and redefines dictionary to reflect the heart and soul of a people through their language, illuminating each entry with marvelous stories and epigrams from folklore and the Talmud, from Bible to borscht belt and beyond. With Rosten's help, anyone can pronounce and master the nuances of words that convey everything from compassion to skepticism. Savor the irresistible pleasure of Yiddish in this banquet of a book!
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Review:
Leo Rosten left a great legacy of Jewish culture with his classic informal lexicon of Yiddish. Rosten defines (by synonym, anecdote, and joke) the words that have made it into common parlance (like chutzpah, schlep, and schmooze) as well as a choice collection of less integrated but equally rich vocabulary such as schmatte (a rag, i.e. what a schmatte you're wearing), chozzerai (literally "pig food," now denoting crap or junk food), and hundreds more. First published in 1968, Rosten's aptly named compendium still sings with humorous erudition.
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- PublisherW.H. Allen / Virgin Books
- Publication date1970
- ISBN 10 0491003935
- ISBN 13 9780491003933
- BindingHardcover
- Edition number1
- Number of pages547
- Rating
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Joys of Yiddish
Published by
W.H. Allen / Virgin Books
(1970)
ISBN 10: 0491003935
ISBN 13: 9780491003933
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Hardcover
Quantity: 1
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Used; Acceptable. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. The book is perfectly readable and fit for use, although it shows signs of previous ownership. The spine is likely creased and the cover scuffed or slightly torn. Textbooks will typically have an amount of underlining and/or highlighting, as well as notes. If this book is over 5 years old, then please expect the pages to be yellowing or to have age spots. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading. Ripped/damaged jacket. The dust jacket of this book is slightly damaged/ripped, however, this does not affect the internal condition. Seller Inventory # CHL9290677
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The joys of Yiddish : a relaxed lexicon of Yiddish, Hebrew and Yinglish words often encountered in English . from the days of the Bible to those of the beatnik
Published by
London : W. H. Allen
(1970)
ISBN 10: 0491003935
ISBN 13: 9780491003933
Used
Hardcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description 1st UK edition. Very good cloth copy in a very good if slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains quite well-preserved overall. Physical description: xxxix, 547 pages ; 24 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references. Subjects: Yiddish language; Glossaries, vocabularies, etc.; Jewish wit and humor; English language, Foreign words and phrases Yiddish. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 401527
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The joys of Yiddish : a relaxed lexicon of Yiddish, Hebrew and Yinglish words often encountered in English . from the days of the Bible to those of the beatnik
Published by
London : W. H. Allen
(1970)
ISBN 10: 0491003935
ISBN 13: 9780491003933
Used
Hardcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description 1st UK edition. Very good cloth copy in a very good if slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains quite well-preserved overall. Physical description: xxxix, 547 pages ; 24 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references. Subjects: Yiddish language; Glossaries, vocabularies, etc.; Jewish wit and humor; English language, Foreign words and phrases Yiddish. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 401527
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