Yiddish

YIDDISH
OFFICIAL MEDAL 2005/5766

Yiddish has been, for a thousand years, the “Mama Loshen”- the spoken language – of most European Jews and those who immigrated from Europe. Yiddish was not only a written and spoken language; it was a living literary-cultural system and provided a framework for the education and enjoyment of large segments of the Jewish population which did know another language. Yiddish developed from Hebrew and German, with Romance and later Slavic elements. Through Yiddish, people learned of their own cultural sources, which were written in Hebrew, as well as the contemporary non-Jewish world around them. From the 19th century Yiddish became the language of a comprehensive and rich culture, which included literature, theater, songs, folklore, newspapers, and of course humor. Shalom Aleichem, Mendle Mokher Sforim, I.L. Peretz, and Isaac Bashevis Singer are just a few of those whose contributions are acknowledged worldwide. Reaching its peak in the period before World War II, the flourishing Yiddish culture was dealt an irrevocable blow by the destruction of European Jewry in the Holocaust and by Soviet repression in Eastern Europe. In 1996 the Israeli Parliament passed the National Authority for Yiddish Culture Bill, one of the aims of which is “to spread knowledge of Yiddish Culture…and promote, aid and encourage contemporary artistic and literary expression in Yiddish”. The wonderful design of the medal by Aharon Shevo expresses the essence of Yiddish culture: laughter and tears, optimism growing out of despair, uniting the past with the present. The medal issue was overseen by a Public Committee headed by Shmuel Atzmon Wircer. Members of the Committee: Dr. Avraham Nowerstern, Itzhak Luden, Anat Atzmon, Miriam Zohar, Shlomo Lahat, and Chaim Topol.

Obverse: On the face, the words Yiddish and “Mama Loshen” along with two Jews on top of the earth represent the universality of Yiddish culture.

Reverse: On the reverse, a Klezmer musician floats above a Jewish village uniting the Diaspora and Israel, above him the words “A Jew with a Violin” in Yiddish.

Designer: Aharon Shevo.

Engraving: Slovakia.

Mint:
Silver and Bronze Medals: Slovakia.
Gold Medal: IGCMC Mint.