Judaism: Understanding and Connecting with the Jewish Faith
The communities and resources of the Internet are perfect for learning about Judaism, and bringing members of the Jewish faith closer together. This guide will teach you about the oldest of the Abrahamic religions, including sacred Jewish texts, Jewish law, and Jewish holidays. There are also resources for helping Jews practice their religion, and tools for learning about Hebrew, Yiddish and other Jewish languages. It is often difficult to find kosher food and wine, but this guide will make that task easier. With the Internet, Jewish news, Judaica products, Jewish blogs and dating sites are also at your fingertips.
Expand All Guide SectionsThe Jewish Faith
The oldest of the Abrahamic religions, Judaism is, surprisingly, not well understood. The common ... read more »
Practicing Judaism
Practicing Judaism can be tricky, even for the strictest observers. With a lunar calendar, days ... read more »
Learning About Hebrew, Yiddish, and Other Jewish Languages
Hebrew is the holy language of Judaism, the language of the Torah and of prayer. But for hundreds, even thousands of years Jews around the world have been speaking many other Jewish languages, like Yiddish, using them to sustain traditions, culture, and history. Although many are on the decline, they still live, and the Internet has the resources to connect you to these timeless Jewish tongues.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Most Jewish languages, including Yiddish, are written with some sort of alphabet based on Hebrew. To view sites written in these languages make sure you have the correct settings on your Web browser and all the correct character sets installed.
- A language, though perhaps preserved, is not truly alive if not spoken. If you're really interested in any of the languages featured below, think about using these sites to connect with speaking classes in your area.
- A classic now updated and revitalized, Leo Rosten's The New Joys of Yiddish is a comprehensive lexicon of all the Yiddish that has made its way into our everyday English, and then some. It's a stepping stone to the Yiddish language for anyone with the chutzpah to try. Buy it here.
- The Hebrew word for the Hebrew language is Ivrit. Hebrew, like Greek, has various ancient forms as well as a modern, spoken incarnation. For publications in modern Ivrit, check out the "Finding Jewish News" section of this guide.
Dulcinea's Picks
For information on all Jewish languages ...
The Jewish Language Research Website 's clickable world map brings you information on Hebrew, Yiddish, and all the other Jewish languages of the world, such as Ladino and Jewish Arabic. You can find descriptions of their histories, written and audio samples, and links galore. This very informative site's simple design also makes it very fast to load, and easy to use.
For information about and tools for Hebrew ...
Hebrew for Christians , though it might seem an odd source of knowledge of the Jewish language, is one of the best stores of Hebrew educational tools and explanations on the Web. This site, produced by a messianic Jewish lay scholar, provides an education in the background, history, and inner workings of the Hebrew language. A messianic Jew is one who believes in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, but bases much of their religious study in the texts and traditions of Judaism, and as such is in fact Christian.
HebrewOnline.com is the official online Hebrew educational franchise of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. On its vibrant site you can sign up for classes taught over the Web for all levels of Hebrew, as well as make use of the educational resources they offer, including a phrase guide. For its sister site on Classical, or Biblical Hebrew, go to http://www.classicalhebrew.com.
History of the Hebrew Language is not for the feint of heart. This simple site gives a comprehensive and highly technical history of the Hebrew language from an anthropological and linguistic perspective.
For information about Yiddish ...
Judaism 101 's Yiddish page gives a great overview to this Jewish language, including its history, culture, characteristics, alphabet, and more. Before you explore the Yiddish world, read this page.
The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research has a number of online archives, research programs, and education resources and information, including Yiddish courses at NYU and elsewhere. Founded in 1925 by Albert Einstein, among others, the institute's site has a large number of Yiddish links, as well as all kinds of Yiddish language and culture resources.
The University of Pennsylvania hosts this chart showing both the print and written versions of each Yiddish letter, as well as their names and pronunciations.
To translate between English and Yiddish ...
ECTACO Electronic Translators' Web site has perhaps the only free English-Yiddish translator online. Type in either language (only one word at a time) to translate to the other.
For Yiddish language news and publications ...
The Yiddish Forward is the oldest and most respected Yiddish language publication in the United States. Published continuously for over 100 years, and having spawned an English-language version (featured in the "Where can I go for Jewish news?" section) this paper reports on Jewish and Yiddish issues, as well as world affairs.
For Yiddish cultural resources ...
The Dora Teitelboim Center for Yiddish Culture connects you to a number of Yiddish culture and language resources, including online language classes (for a fee), radio programs, books, and Miami-area Yiddish cultural events. The center has also made a movie about the demise of Yiddish theater and culture in the Miami area, a trailer for which is available online.
NPR's Yiddish Radio Project has done a huge service to the Yiddish language with this archive of Yiddish radio programs, documentaries, and exhibits about Yiddish radio, and a general hub for this culturally rich era in Jewish history, all aimed to rescue Yiddish radio recordings. Even more amazing is the site's "Yid-O-Matic" feature for their RealPlayer audio files that provides an instant English translation for all Yiddish audio content.
The Forward Hour , broadcast by The Yiddish Forward, is available for online listening and is fully archived as well. Go here for international and cultural news, all in Yiddish.
The Yiddish Voice 's site has archived a number of episodes from this Boston-area Yiddish radio program. Check out its Yiddish links page for an enormous list of Yiddish sites, blogs, and resources.
Who knew?
VidLit brings you an animated version of the hit book "Yiddish with Dick and Jane." Ostensibly a satire of the original popular children's book, this offbeat feature is actually a great way for a novice to get introduced to some of the most common Yiddish words, many of which are used among English speakers today. To top it off, check out the even nuttier-and quite liberal-sequel, "Yiddish with George and Laura" (yes, that George and Laura).
Finding and Learning About Kosher Food and Wine
The word kosher has crept into the English language retaining most of its original meaning of ... read more »
Being Part of the Jewish Community
The Jewish community is a strong one, but with such a small number of Jews spread over the world, ... read more »
Locating a Synagogue
Finding the right synagogue, or any synagogue at all, can be a challenge. It can seem like an ... read more »
Jewish Dating and Networking Sites
This is the section your mother's been wanting you to read. With the proliferation of Jewish dating ... read more »
Jewish Blogs
Jewish culture is not exactly known for its quiet reserve. Whether kvetching, kvelling, or ... read more »
Finding Jewish News
There is a great tradition of Jewish news, and many Jewish publications have served as a vanguard ... read more »
Judaica Products
Judaism is not lacking in Jewish products. Now location is no impediment to filling your home with ... read more »
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