Skip to main content

The lexicography of Yiddish

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
International Handbook of Modern Lexis and Lexicography
  • 138 Accesses

Abstract

This survey of existing Yiddish dictionaries – the unfinished great dictionary of the Yiddish language and several bilingual dictionaries – shows the problems and tasks of modern Yiddish lexicography. Principles and technical know-how of modern computer-age lexicography have not been implemented in Yiddish dictionaries except in onomastic dictionaries. The creation of a 10-million-word corpus of modern Yiddish is in progress and may contribute to opening up new horizons for the introduction of new methods and unleash the potential of computer-age lexicography to the making of new dictionaries of Yiddish.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Moskovich, W. (2010). Directions in modern Yiddish lexicography. In W. Moskovich (Ed.), Jews and Slavs (Vol. 22, pp. 292–300). Jerusalem-Kyiv: Dukh i Litera.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weinreich, M. (1980). History of the Yiddish language. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

Dictionaries

  • [YBD]. Astravukh, A. (2008). Idysh-belaruski slounik (Yiddish-Belarusian Dictionary). Minsk: Medisont.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DJSRE1]. Beider, A. (1993). A dictionary of Jewish surnames of the Russian Empire. Teaneck: Avotaynu.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DJSKP]. Beider, A. (1996). A dictionary of Jewish surnames from the kingdom of Poland. Teaneck: Avotaynu.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DJGN]. Beider, A. (2004a). A dictionary of Jewish given names: Their origins, structure, pronunciation, and migrations. Bergenfeld: Avotaynu.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DJSG]. Beider, A. (2004b). A dictionary of Jewish surnames from Galicia. Bergenfeld: Avotaynu.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DJSRE2]. Beider, A. (2008). A dictionary of Jewish surnames of the Russian Empire. (Revised). Bergenfeld: Avotaynu.

    Google Scholar 

  • [CYED]. Beinfeld, S. & Bochner, H. (eds.) (2013). Comprehensive Yiddish-English dictionary. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • [YEEYD]. Harkavy, A. (1898). Yiddish-English-Hebrew Dictionary. (Fourth edition with a new introduction of Dovid Katz). New York: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and Schoken Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • [LRYD]. Lifshits, Y.M. (1869). Rusish-yidisher verterbukh (Russian-Yiddish Dictionary). Zhitomir: A. S. Shadov

    Google Scholar 

  • [LYRD]. Lifshits, Y.M. (1876). Yidish-rusisher verterbukh (Yiddish-Russian Dictionary). Zhitomir: M. Baksht.

    Google Scholar 

  • [DWHOY]. Niborski, Y., Neuberg, S. (1999). Verterbukh fun loshn-koydesh-shtamike verter in yidish (Dictionary of Words of Hebrew and Aramaic Origin in Yiddish). Paris: Medem-bibliotek.

    Google Scholar 

  • [YFD]. Niborski, Y., Vaisbrot, B. (2002). Yidish-frantseyzish verterbukh (Yiddish-French Dictionary). Paris: Medem-bibliotek.

    Google Scholar 

  • [NHYYHD]. Raykher, H. (2001). Nayer verterbukh: hebreyish-yidish, yidish-hebreyish (New Hebrew-Yiddish and Yiddish-Hebrew Dictionary). Jerusalem: Zak.

    Google Scholar 

  • [RYD]. Shapiro, M. et alia (eds.) (1984). Russko-evreyskii (idish) slovar(Russian-Yiddish Dictionary). Moscow: Russkii iazyk.

    Google Scholar 

  • [CYRD]. Soldatov, A. (2011). Bolshoi idish-russkii slovar(Comprehensive Yiddish-Russian Dictionary). Moscow: Knizhnyi Les.

    Google Scholar 

  • [TYL]. Stutchkoff, N. (1950). Der oytser fun der yidisher shprakh (Thesaurus of the Yiddish Language). New York: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • [YRD]. Tishchenko, D. (2013). Idish-russkii slovar(Yiddish-Russian Dictionary). Kiev: Art Ekonomi.

    Google Scholar 

  • [CYHD]. Tsanin, M. (1982). Fuler yidish-hebreyisher verterbukh (Complete Yiddish-Hebrew Dictionary). Tel Aviv: H. Leyvik Farlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • [MEYYED]. Weinreich, U. (1968). Modern English-Yiddish, Yiddish-English Dictionary. New York: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and Schocken Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • [GDYL]. Yofe, Y., Mark Y. (eds.) (1961-1984). The great dictionary of the Yiddish language. Vols. 1-3. New York: Yiddish Dictionary Committee, Inc. Vol. 4. Jerusalem: Magnus Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Wolf Moskovich .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany

About this entry

Cite this entry

Moskovich, W. (2017). The lexicography of Yiddish. In: Hanks, P., de Schryver, GM. (eds) International Handbook of Modern Lexis and Lexicography. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-45369-4_71-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-45369-4_71-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-45369-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-45369-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Social SciencesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics