Experience an accredited semester in a Yiddish-speaking environment at the Paris Yiddish Center

The Paris Yiddish Center is pleased to welcome students from all around the world to apply to its accredited Yiddish Immersion Program. We offer intermediate and advanced students of Yiddish a unique opportunity to study and work in a Yiddish speaking environment. While studying with leading academics in the field and working on relevant projects, participants will also be able to enjoy all that Paris has to ofer.

The Paris Yiddish Center

The Paris Yiddish Center promotes the dissemination of Yiddish culture in France and in Europe and the preservation of its heritage. It supports Yiddish as a language of culture and encourages the study of Yiddish amongst a broad public. In the Paris Yiddish Center students will find:

• the largest Yiddish library in Europe (the Medem Library), including vast video and music collections;
• language courses for all levels, literary seminars and a Summer University;
• art workshops (theater, singing, poetry, cinema, folk dance, klezmer music etc.);
• activities for children (language courses, chorus, drawing workshop, performances for children and holiday activities);
• reading and conversation groups in Yiddish;
• various activities in French and in Yiddish (exhibitions, performances, lm screenings and lectures);
• a bookstore and a café.

Yiddish Immersion Program

The program includes 236 class hours per semester. Each week, the student will take part in the following classes:

• 4 hours: Yiddish literature;
• 4 hours: Yiddish literature with emphasis on the Hebrew-Aramaic component of Yiddish;
• 2 hours: Yiddish grammar;
• 3 hours: Yiddish conversation (1 hour with a teacher + 2 hours of conversation group with native speakers);
• 1 hour: one-on-one session with a personal tutor;
• Once per month: 7 hours intensive Yiddish literary seminar.

Students may choose either to concentrate on a general study program in Yiddish language and literature or to undertake a specic research project. Each student will have a personal tutor to guide her/him and follow her/his progress. Students can acquire 30 ECTS credits upon completion of either track (standardized European academic credits, corresponding to one semester of study), granted by the École suisse internationale de Paris. It is also possible to follow either track without gaining academic credit.

A. General Study Program

The general study program, under the supervision of Prof. Yitskhok Niborski (INALCO/Paris Yiddish Center), will help students deepen their knowledge of Yiddish language and literature. Guided by Prof. Niborski, each student will draw up a reading list tailored to her/his level, previous reading experience and personal interests. The weekly one-on-one sessions with the tutor will concentrate on following the student’s progress, discussing the literary works and adapting the reading list, if necessary. Students choosing the general study program are encouraged to take part during the semester in the editorial activity of the bi-monthly magazine for Yiddish learners, Der yidisher tamtam, published by the Paris Yiddish Center. Students who want to to qualify for academic credit (30 ECTS) will be required to pass a written and an oral exam.

B. Research Project

Students preferring to focus on a research project can either come with their own projects or work on a research project based on the Medem Library’s archives of prominent Yiddish authors and artists. In both cases, the vast holdings of the Medem Library (Europe’s largest Yiddish library) will be available to students, as well as the guidance and expertise of the librarians. Research students will be supervised by Dr. Natalia Krynicka (Paris-Sorbonne University/Paris Yiddish Center). The weekly one-on-one sessions with the tutor will concentrate on following the student’s progress on their research project. For academic credit (30 ECTS), students will be required to complete an academic research paper (30-45 pages). Students are encouraged to write their paper in Yiddish, but they may also write in English, French, Polish, German, Spanish or Hebrew.

Practical information

Tuition

• One semester (15 weeks; 236 class hours): 1700 €
• Two semesters (30 weeks, 472 class hours): 3400 €

For inquiries regarding scholarships write to talmidim@yiddishweb.com

Semester periods

• Fall semester (September–January)
• Spring semester (February–June)

Application

All applications should be sent to talmidim@yiddishweb.com (there is no application form). Please state the option of your choice (A or B), your background in Yiddish (studies or other experience) and indicate the reasons you are interested in taking this course.

Contact

For further details please write to talmidim@yiddishweb.com.