The Yiddish Book Center's

Wexler Oral History Project

A growing collection of in-depth interviews with people of all ages and backgrounds, whose stories about the legacy and changing nature of Yiddish language and culture offer a rich and complex chronicle of Jewish identity.

“A Herring Is Also A Fish”: On Yiddish, Insecurity, and Being A Yiddishist in the 21st Century

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Miriam Udel, assistant professor of German Studies and Jewish Studies at Emory University, invokes a Yiddish expression to offer advice on what it means to be a Yiddishist: on the one hand, one will always have the insecurity of not being "good enough" compared to the greats, but on the other, to even be studying Yiddish in this day and age is a rare and special thing -- so dive in!

This is an excerpt from an oral history with Miriam Udel.

This excerpt is in Yiddish and English.

Miriam Udel was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts in 1976.

This interview is part of the Yiddish in the Academy: scholars, language instructors, and students series.

Other video highlights from this oral history

Bat Mitzvah Tutoring, a Spanish Bookstore, and Guarapo

2 min 4 sec

Translation Keeps You At Arm's Length

1 min 38 sec

Reflections on Ruth Wisse, "Doktormama" and My Introduction to Yiddish

6 min 45 sec

“I Have to Tell You, Your Yiddish is Very Strange”: Speaking Yiddish with Hassidim

3 min 20 sec

The "Mysterious Alchemy" of Embracing Yiddish

1 min 46 sec

Modernism and the Yiddish Picaresque Novel

3 min 53 sec

Singing Yiddish To Seniors: Community Engaged Learning at Emory

3 min 53 sec

"Find the parts that really do resonate with you, and then pursue them”: Advice to Yiddish Students

1 min 24 sec

More information about this oral history excerpt

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