Ethnologue 14 report for language code:YDD

YIDDISH, EASTERN: a language of Israel

The following is the entry for this language as it appeared in the 14th edition (2000).
It was superseded by the corresponding entry in the 15th edition (2005). See also the corresponding entry in the current edition of Ethnologue.

SIL code: YDD

ISO 639-1: yi

ISO 639-2: yid

Population

215,000 in Israel, 5% of the population (1986). Population total all countries 3,000,000 (J.A. Fishman 1991:194).

Region

Southeastern dialect in Ukraine and Romania, Mideastern in Poland and Hungary, Northeastern dialect in Lithuania and Belarus. Also spoken in Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Panama, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia (Europe), South Africa, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA.

Alternate names

JUDEO-GERMAN, YIDDISH

Dialects

SOUTHEASTERN YIDDISH, MIDEASTERN YIDDISH, NORTHEASTERN YIDDISH.

Classification

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

Comments

Has many loans from Hebrew and local languages where spoken. Eastern Yiddish originated east of the Oder River through Poland, extending into Belarus, Russia (to Smolensk), Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Rumania, Ukraine, and pre-state British-Mandate Palestine (Jerusalem and Safed). Western Yiddish originated in Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Alsace (France), Czecholovakia, western Hungary, and is nearing extinction. It branched off medieval High German (mainly Rhenish dialects) and received Modern German influences during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Eastern and Western Yiddish have difficult inherent intelligibility, because of differing histories and influences from other languages. There are some Western Yiddish speakers in Israel too (M. Herzog 1977). The vast majority speak Eastern Yiddish. SVO. Usually written in Hebrew character. Radio programs. Jewish. Bible 1821-1936.

Also spoken in:

Latvia

Language name	YIDDISH, EASTERN
Population	40,000 (1991).
Alternate names	JUDEO-GERMAN
Comments	Of the 1,811,000 Jewish people listed in the 1979 USSR census, the majority spoke Russian as their first language and virtually all others spoke Russian as their second language. About 50,000 Jews spoke Georgian, Tat, or Tajiki as their first language. There may be no Yiddish speakers in Latvia now (1995). Had literary status, but very little literature. Jewish. Bible 1821-1936. See main entry under Israel.