Google adds Yiddish translation - is it good for the Jews?

Some time ago Google Translate added Yiddish to their list of supported languages. Try it out with the Yiddish version of Forward. This potentially opens up troves of Yiddish history and literature to people with a limited grasp of the language. But is it good for the Jews? Or for anyone to have this happen to their language? Does machine translation help preserve a language or does it amerliorate the demise of a language?

Language preservation online

There are two interesting takes on this issue. The first, entitled The Challenges of Language Preservation, gives a good background to the problem and explains how globalisation is merely a step along a long path towards homogenisation of language but the author hopes the internet will be a useful tool for preserving minority language.

The second is a presentation from the TEDx conference, embedded below.

Language Use And Preservation Online

View more presentations from Tadej Gregorcic.

Yiddish Policeman's Union author reading

And here's Michael Chabon talking about his book The Yiddish Policeman's Union dropping in and out of Yiddish.

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Millie's Yiddish class podcast

Millie's Yiddish class podcast is an infrequent irreverent Yiddish lesson. You can learn new words, the occasional joke and lots of laughter. Need more words? The Jewish Chronicle has a a long-running feature on Jewish/Yiddish words and Wikipedia has a huge list of Yiddish words.

Yiddish the struggle for survival - podcast

Dennis Marks presents a fascinating look at the Yiddish language, its fortunes and a micro-revival in New York. Originally aired on the BBC, you can download it directly:

• Yiddish: the struggle for survival - part one
• Yiddish: the struggle for survival - part two

Millions of Yiddish speakers may have perished in the 20th century and millions of others have been discouraged from learning the language, but depsite this, Yiddish is still alive.