Yiddish, Eastern

A language of Israel

Judeo-German, Yiddish

Autonym

ייִדיש‎ (Yiddish)

User Population

166,000 in Israel (2016 Y. Druckman). Total users in all countries: 371,657.

Location

Jerusalem district.

Language Status

4 (Educational).

Classification

Indo-European, Germanic, West, High German, Yiddish

Dialects

Southeastern Yiddish, Mideastern Yiddish, Northeastern Yiddish (Litvish). A member of macrolanguage Yiddish [yid].

Typology

SVO; prepositions; noun head final; gender (masculine, feminine, neuter); definite and indefinite articles; verb affixes mark person, number; 20 consonant, 6 vowels and 3 diphthongs; non-tonal; stress on first syllable.

Language Development

Periodicals. Radio. Grammar. Bible: 1821–1936.

Language Resources

OLAC resources in and about Yiddish, Eastern

Writing

Hebrew script [Hebr].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous. Southeastern dialect in Ukraine and Romania, Mideastern dialect in Poland and Hungary, Northeastern dialect in Lithuania and Belarus. Jewish.

Also spoken in:

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Argentina

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

The number of people speaking Yiddish is decreasing substantially (2014 L. Moreno).

Location

Major cities.

Language Status

8b (Nearly extinct).

Language Use

Elderly only. Shifted to Spanish [spa].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Belarus

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

7,000 in Belarus (2017).

Location

Widespread.

Dialects

Northeastern Yiddish (Litvish).

Language Status

6a* (Vigorous).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Belgium

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

Antwerp.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Language Use

A stable language community.

Other Comments

Non-indigenous. Jewish.

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Bulgaria

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

No known L1 speakers in Bulgaria. Ethnic population: 2,200 (2016 World Jewish Congress).

Location

Scattered.

Language Status

9 (Dormant).

Language Use

Shifted to Bulgarian [bul].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Canada

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

13,600 in Canada (2016 census).

Location

Scattered: Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Costa Rica

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

San José.

Language Status

7 (Shifting).

Language Use

Shifting to Spanish [spa].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Germany

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

5,000 in Germany. Ethnic population: 49,200 (2000).

Location

Widespread.

Alternate Names

Judeo-German, Yiddish, Yidish

Language Status

7 (Shifting).

Language Use

Adults only. Shifting to Standard German [deu].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous. Jewish.

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Hungary

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

Major cities.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Latvia

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

2,000 in Latvia (2017).

Location

Scattered.

Alternate Names

Judeo-German

Dialects

Northeastern Yiddish.

Language Status

8a (Moribund).

Language Use

Shifted to Standard Latvian [lvs]. Some also use Russian [rus].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous. The Jewish population has declined significantly since Communism fell in the 1990s, and many Jews moved to Israel and other nations. Jewish.

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Lithuania

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

A few hundred speakers. Ethnic population: 2,270 (2015 census).

Location

Kauno, Klaipedos, Siauliu, and Vilniaus counties.

Dialects

Northeastern Yiddish (Lithuanian Yiddish, Litvish).

Language Status

8a (Moribund).

Language Use

Shifted to Lithuanian [lit].

Language Development

In 2007, Lithuanian Jews were making efforts to bring back Yiddish in nursery school and hoping to add it to secondary schools as well (2007 BBC).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Moldova

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

600 in Moldova (2018).

Location

Scattered.

Dialects

Southeastern Yiddish (Bessarabian Yiddish).

Language Status

8a (Moribund). Recognized language (2001, National Minority Law, Article 6(1)).

Language Use

Older adults only. One-quarter to one-half of the community is elderly. Shifted to Romanian [ron].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Panama

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

Major cities.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Poland

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

37 in Poland (2002 census).

Location

Major cities.

Dialects

Northeastern Yiddish (Litvish), Mideastern Yiddish (Polish Yiddish).

Language Status

8b (Nearly extinct). Recognized language (2005, Minorities Act of 2 January, Article 2(2)).

Language Use

Today’s remnant of less than 50 native speakers is a staggering loss from over 3 million speakers in Poland before outbreak of World War II. Elderly only. Shifted to Polish [pol].

Language Development

Yiddish classes are offered at the Galicia Jewish Museum in Krakow, as well as Yiddish concerts and films.

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Romania

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

640 in Romania (2011 census).

Location

Bucharest county.

Dialects

Southeastern Yiddish (Bessarabian Yiddish).

Language Status

7 (Shifting). Recognized language (2005, National Minority Status Law, Article 3(2)).

Language Use

Shifting to Romanian [ron].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Russian Federation

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

1,680 in Russian Federation (2010 census).

Location

Scattered.

Language Status

7 (Shifting).

Language Use

Shifting to Russian [rus]. Also use Georgian [kat]. Also use Tajik [tgk]. Also use Tatar [tat].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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South Africa

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

Major cities.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Sweden

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

3,000 in Sweden (2017 WJC).

Location

Scattered.

Language Status

7 (Shifting). Recognized language (2009, Language Act No. 600, Article 7).

Language Use

Shifting to Swedish [swe].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Turkmenistan

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

3,100 in Turkmenistan (2002 J. Leclerc).

Language Status

Unestablished.

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Ukraine

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

11,500 in Ukraine (2017).

Location

Scattered.

Dialects

Southeastern Yiddish (Podolian, Volhynian). Many loans from Hebrew [heb] and local languages. Eastern and Western [yih] Yiddish have difficult inherent intelligibility due to differing histories and influences from other languages. (1977 M. Herzog).

Language Status

7 (Shifting). Recognized language (2004, Law, Status of Indigenous Peoples of Ukraine, Article 1(5)), protected language.

Language Use

Adults only. Shifting to Russian [rus]. Shifting to Ukrainian [ukr].

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United States

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

User Population

156,000 in United States (2015 census).

Location

Scattered with concentrations in major urban centers.

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Language Use

Most also use English [eng]. Also use Hebrew [heb].

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Uruguay

Language NameYiddish, Eastern

Location

Scattered.

Dialects

Northeastern Yiddish (Litvish).

Language Status

5* (Dispersed).

Other Comments

Non-indigenous.

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Yiddish, Eastern

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A language of Israel

Also spoken in:

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