Historic 'Yiddish Conference' Brings Together Writers and Editors from Yiddish Press

By: BZ Green

The first-of-its-kind summit took place in the Monsey community on Wednesday evening, wherein writers, editors, and proofreaders from the Yiddish writing world--a burgeoning and thriving industry that entertains and inspires tens of thousands of readers on a weekly or monthly basis--gathered under one roof to discuss matters relevant to the field. 

The gathering was the brainchild of Reb Chaim Weinberger from Monsey, a celebrated Yiddish Editor for more than 20 years and a great expert on the Yiddish language. 

The Yiddish language is the tongue of the galus Yid. It’s been spoken in Eastern Europe, and the immigrants have brought it to America. It has served to insulate and separate us from outside influences, and it was the vehicle by which Yidden conversed with one another in their completely unique way. 

It always absorbed some influences from outside languages, and therein lies the challenge. How do Yiddish writers in America of the 21st century deal with events and places that are being introduced today? Can there be created a universal set of rules for writing about events and places unique to our time? So far, there has yet to be a set standard on many Yiddish words.

These, and many more issues along these lines, were discussed at this historic conference.  

Reb Abba Weinstock, a writer for Dee Voch and Shrift magazines, attended the meeting and remarked, "Simply getting together under one roof, getting ourselves on one page with all of us willing to accomplish for our readers is an amazing first step in what will hopefully be a great journey of opening new vistas for our industry, and in the end, our readers."