On the Uses of Yiddish Language Geography

There are a number of Yiddish linguistic atlases in existence, the most comprehensive of which is the Language and Culture Atlas of Ashkenazic Jewry (LCAAJ) now being published in its entirety. Often thought to be useful to linguists alone, these language-atlas materials on the contrary are a rich source of invaluable information useful to historians, sociologists, folklorists, and other scholars of Jewish history and culture. Examples discussed come from LCAAJ data on the eating habits and food taboos among the Jews of pre-World War II Eastern Europe—the preparation of gefilte fish and farfl —and Yiddish dialect variation in Eastern Europe. Yiddish dialect geography is a valuable resource for all scholars of Jewish history and culture and not linguists alone.