Language Keepers: Haketia

Lomir redn yidish, let's speak Yiddish! This beginner Yiddish course is designed for students with little or no prior Yiddish who want to learn to speak, read, and write the language. Using the In Eynem textbook alongside authentic Yiddish songs, games, and media, you'll build a practical foundation in Yiddish conversation, vocabulary, grammar, and culture. You'll learn the Yiddish alphabet (alef-beys) in both print and cursive, introduce yourself and others, make everyday small talk, and describe your daily routine, all while exploring Yiddish culture past and present. Who this is for: Beginners with little or no Yiddish (including Duolingo learners ready to go further) Hebrew and German speakers who want to build on what they know What you'll leave with Reading and writing the alef-beys in print and cursive Introducing yourself, making small talk, and describing your day in Yiddish A first acquaintance with Yiddish songs, games, and media 15 sessions, Tuesdays and Thursdays: October 20, 22, 27, and 29; November 3, 5, 17, 19, and 24; December 1, 3, 8, 10, 15, and 17, 5:30–7pm Pacific Time (No class November 10, 12, or 26.) Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

For more than two millennia, thriving Jewish communities made their homes across Iraq, speaking distinctive Jewish varieties of Arabic. Judeo-Baghdadi Arabic, also known as Yahudic, developed among the Jews of Baghdad and the towns to its south, preserving ancient linguistic features alongside Hebrew and Aramaic elements that set it apart from the Arabic spoken by their Muslim and Christian neighbors. After the mass emigration of Iraqi Jews in the mid-twentieth century, the language began its rapid decline. Today it is critically endangered. This six-session course is built around everyday Baghdadi Jewish life. Each session takes up a theme, so the words you learn come with their cultural setting. You’ll learn the distinctive sounds of the language, greetings and conversational formulas, and how to talk about family and work, food and drink, and the holidays. The last session covers proverbs, colorful expressions, and yes, the swear words. Who this is for: Anyone curious about the Jewish languages of the Middle East Students of Iraqi Jewish history and culture Anyone with Iraqi Jewish roots who wants to connect with the language of their family Learners who have taken New Lehrhaus’s other Jewish language courses. What you'll leave with: The sounds and basic vocabulary of Judeo-Baghdadi Arabic, with greetings and phrases you can use An understanding of the Hebrew and Aramaic elements that set it apart from the Arabic of Baghdad’s Muslim and Christian neighbors No prior knowledge of Arabic or Hebrew is required. Schedule: Six Sundays: October 18 and 25; November 1, 8, 15, and 22, 11:30am–1pm Pacific Time Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

Ladino music records the history of the Sephardic world: melodies that joined medieval Jewish liturgy with the Christian and Muslim music of Iberia, then traveled after 1492 to North Africa, Europe, and above all the Ottoman Empire, taking on new influences along the way. The course gives one session each to the genres at the center of Sephardic life: romansas (narrative ballads), kantikas (lyrical songs), and the historical poems and liturgical hymns known as coplas and piyyutim . Throughout, we’ll look at how oral transmission, community identity, and gender shaped each tradition, from medieval Iberia to today’s revival. Session 1: The Narrative Tradition (Romansas) Ballads that began with Iberian street minstrels had spread through Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Spain by the fifteenth century. We’ll listen to romansas sung mostly by women and see how Sephardic communities reshaped their themes of loyalty, honor, and exile to reflect Jewish life. Session 2: Life Cycle and Song (Kantikas) Kantikas , the tradition’s lyrical popular songs, took shape under Mediterranean and Balkan influence from the late nineteenth century on. Sung mostly by women, they cover love, family, weddings, lullabies, and laments, along with songs for the life cycle and the holidays. Session 3: Faith and Identity ( Coplas and Piyyutim ) These two genres were performed by men. Coplas , composed by rabbis and scholars across the Ottoman Empire, taught Jewish history and ethics and chronicled real events such as plagues and political upheavals. Sephardic piyyutim , rooted in the Golden Age of medieval Spain, are sung in Hebrew and form the core of synagogue worship. Who this is for Anyone interested in Sephardic history, Jewish music, or the Ladino language and its revival Students of Jewish liturgy and poetry curious about Sephardic traditions of coplas and piyyutim Readers and singers drawn to the oral and folk traditions of the Mediterranean and Ottoman worlds What you'll leave with A grounding in the history of Ladino music from medieval Iberia through the Ottoman Empire to its modern revival Familiarity with the three core genres of Sephardic song An understanding of how gender, oral transmission, and community identity shaped this tradition over centuries Three Wednesdays: November 25, December 2 and 9, 1–2:30pm Pacific Time Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

Complete our full Hebrew 1 curriculum in just four weeks! Beginning December 14, this accelerated course uses Prayerbook Hebrew the Easy Way and combines eight recorded lessons with four live online study sessions with the instructor. Two recorded lessons are released each week, allowing you to work through the material on your own schedule, while the weekly live sessions give you a chance to ask questions, review what you’ve learned, and get additional guidance. Because the main instruction takes place in the recorded lessons, the live sessions are designed as brief weekly check-ins rather than full class meetings. By the end of the course, you’ll be ready to continue directly into Hebrew 2 in January. Who this is for: Learners ready to complete most of the Hebrew 1 coursework through recorded lessons, with a short live session each week Hebrew 1 students who would like a concentrated review before beginning Hebrew 2 in January What you'll leave with: Completion of the full Hebrew 1 curriculum in just four weeks The ability to read basic prayerbook and biblical Hebrew texts A solid grasp of the Hebrew alphabet, vowels, and foundational vocabulary Readiness to continue directly into Hebrew 2 in January Required text: Prayerbook Hebrew the Easy Way, available at Afikomen Judaica in Berkeley and other outlets. Recorded lessons: Two each week, released December 14, 21, and 28 and January 4. Live study sessions: Sundays, December 20 and 27 and January 3 and 10, 7–7:30pm Pacific Time, online. Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

Haberes buenos (good news): New Lehrhaus has a brand-new Ladino course! Ladino, the Judeo-Spanish language of the Sephardim, grew out of the languages of fifteenth-century Iberia. For the next five centuries it developed apart from Spanish, in close contact with Turkish, Arabic, Greek, and the other languages of the Mediterranean and the Balkans. This course will ground itself in Sephardic history and culture and will also get you speaking right away. We will primarily be learning the Istanbul dialect of Ladino, but you will learn to recognize other varieties. What You’ll Learn: the socio-historical context of Ladino (where does it come from? who speaks it today?) the sounds of Ladino and pronunciation how to read Ladino in its contemporary Latin-based script greetings and introductions regular and irregular verbs in the present tense basic sentence construction simple conversation about everyday topics how to build an at-home Ladino "language nest"! Bring Ladino into your daily life with our Ladino en Kaza (Ladino at Home) kits! Each boxed Ladino en Kaza (Ladino at Home) kit holds about 30 prompt cards that guide you through everyday activities in Ladino, from washing your hands to making breakfast. Kits are mailed to your home after you register. Who this is for: Anyone interested in learning Ladino, exploring Sephardic history and culture, and beginning to speak and read this unique Judeo-Spanish language. No pre-existing knowledge of Spanish, Hebrew, or Judaism is required. What you'll leave with: Basic Ladino reading, writing, and conversation skills, an understanding of the language’s history and varieties Tools for practicing Ladino at home with the Ladino en Kaza kit. Six Sundays: November 1, 8, 15, and 22; December 6 and 13, 10–11:30am Pacific Time Course will not meet Thanksgiving Week (November 29) Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

This intermediate, in-person Yiddish course uses physical movement, conversation, texts, and media to explore how Yiddish describes bodies in motion and talks about sports, exercise, and physical activity. The course is conducted entirely in Yiddish and assumes proficiency with the alef-beys. There will be some physical movement during class, but it's a course for every kind of body. Who this is for: Intermediate learners who already read, write, speak, and understand some Yiddish Students who want a face-to-face class Anyone who learns better by moving than by sitting still What you'll leave with: The vocabulary to take part in, or lead, a movement class in Yiddish Stronger reading and listening skills, built on Yiddish writing and media about exercise from different eras, movements, and places Nine Mondays: October 19, 26; November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; December 7, 14, 5:30–7pm Pacific Time Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.