Yiddish vs Hebrew
Asking someone the difference between Yiddish and Hebrew is out of the question when not many people know that there are two languages spoken by Jews around the world, and that these two languages are so dissimilar that they seem to have no connection with each other. Though there are similarities, in the sense that they have the same alphabets and share many words, there are many differences to make them exist as different languages for such a long time period. Yes, I am talking about Hebrew, which is regarded as the official language of the Jews residing in Israel, and Yiddish, which is another prominent language spoken by Jews in different parts of the world. Let us have a closer look at these two languages.
What is Hebrew?
Hebrew is a language that finds mention in the Bible, but it was too difficult for commoners to understand, and to make use of as a language in daily use. Another reason for not using it in daily life is the fact, that it was considered too holy for this purpose.
When the modern state of Israel was created, Hebrew (biblical) was chosen as the language of the state over the more common Yiddish. It was the belief of the creators of Israel that Yiddish was a language of the slum dwellers and that a modern proud nation of Israel deserved a biblical, pure language than one that reminded them of shame and prejudice. Moreover, Hebrew has a well-defined grammar. Also, there are primarily two ways of making a plural in Hebrew.
What is Yiddish?
Since Hebrew was too complex and considered holy, for communication, Jews living in countries such as Poland and Germany evolved a new language called Yiddish for everyday speech. Logically, it is a fusion of sorts as it has an impact of not just biblical Hebrew but also German, Aramaic, and several other languages. Slowly and gradually, Yiddish became a language of all the Jews around the world and was spoken prominently until Holocaust took place in Nazi Germany. Today it is spoken by small groups of Jews in many parts of the world.
Coming from the same origin, which is biblical Hebrew, both Hebrew and Yiddish bear many similarities such as same alphabets and some common words. However, Yiddish often makes do without vowels that are commonly used in Hebrew language. In fact, in Yiddish some of the consonants (guttural) of ayin and aleph work as vowels in Yiddish.
There is a lot of confusion in Yiddish as one finds many exceptions to rules there. This has to do with the influence of so many languages on Yiddish. This fusion language has had to imbibe rules of grammar from many languages to make way for exceptions. There are several in Yiddish depending upon the source of the word.
What is the difference between Yiddish and Hebrew?
• Hebrew is a language that finds mention in the Bible, but it was too difficult for commoners to understand, and to make use of as a language in daily use.
• Also, Hebrew was considered too holy for daily communication.
• As a result, Yiddish came into being.
• Logically, Yiddish is a fusion of sorts as it has an impact of not just biblical Hebrew but also German, Aramaic, and several other languages.
• Yiddish often makes do without vowels that are commonly used in Hebrew language.
• Another difference between these two Jewish languages is that, while Hebrew has a well-defined grammar, there is a lot of confusion in Yiddish as one finds many exceptions to rules there.
• Making plural is also different in Hebrew and Yiddish.