Oxford Centre for Hebrew & Jewish Studies

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Old Yiddish

Teacher: Dr Diana Matut

Class Level: Beginners & Advanced (knowledge of the Yiddish alphabet is required)

Class Schedule 2025-26: Beginners class Mondays, 19:30-20:30pm UK Time; Advanced class Wednesdays, 15:15-16:15 UK Time (you can check time-zone comparisons on sites such as this one)

Class Length: Beginners class 3-term class (Michaelmas Term 2025-Trinity Term 2026); Advanced class 1-term class (Hilary Term 2026) (Oxford dates of term are available on the University website)

Class Description: The Beginners class is meant for those who would like to learn how to read and translate Yiddish texts in manuscript and printed form from the 13th to the 18th century. Knowledge of the Yiddish alphabet is required. Please note: If you are unsure whether this course is right for you, then please contact Dr Diana Matut via the Administrator of the OSRJL (osrjl@ochjs.ac.uk).

Reference Materials:
-Jean Baumgarten, Introduction to Early Yiddish Literature, transl. Jerold C. Frakes (Oxford, 2004)
-Jerold C. Frakes, Early Yiddish Texts, 1100-1750 (Oxford, 2004)
-Jerold C. Frakes, The Emergence of Early Yiddish Literature (Bloomington, 2017)
-Jerold C. Frakes, A Guide to Old Literary Yiddish (Oxford, 2017)
-Susanne Klingenstein, Es kann nicht jeder ein Gelehrter sein. Eine Kulturgeschichte der jiddischen Literatur, 1105-1597 (Berlin, 2022)
-Erika Timm, Graphische und phonische Struktur des Westjiddischen (Tübingen, 1987)
-Erika Timm, Historische jiddische Semantik (Tübingen, 2005)