“Oy with the Poodles Already!”

Yiddishisms and Non-Jewish Characters on American Sitcoms

Bibliographic Data

ID17823883
AuthorsRebecca Margolis (0000-0003-1354-830X, Pratt Foundation, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume11
Issue2
Pages193-228
Publication date2023-10-25
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Jewish Languages (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2213-4387 • E-ISSN: 2213-4638
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/22134638-bja10037
OpenAlexW4387959524
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited13

The ever-increasing usage of Yiddish on American sitcoms and other comedic genres encompasses Jewish as well as non-Jewish characters. In this study I offer a metalinguistic analysis of how main or recurring fictional characters who are identified as non-Jewish employ Yiddish loanwords, intonation, and syntax (Yiddishisms) in American comedy television. I argue that Yiddishisms spoken by non-Jewish characters introduce three new tropes: the Yiddish Mask, the Yiddish Tourist, and the Yiddish Connector. In all three tropes, humor derives from the incongruence between the non-Jewish speaker and archetypes or stereotypes associated with speakers of Yiddish; however, the use of Yiddish within the Jewish linguistic repertoire also suggests a range of other semiotic meanings

Art · Comedy · Haskalah · Jewish American literature · Jewish studies · Judaism · Linguistics · Literature · Yiddish · Discourse Analysis in Language Studies · History · Multilingual Education and Policy · Philosophy · Translation Studies and Practices

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Open DOIOpen Access