Friday, October 02, 2015

רעגן אין ייִדיש Rain in Yiddish

Yiddish Rain  Mural from Sholem Aleichem School on Bainbridge Avenue

Another year, another wet rainy Sikes סוכּות (Succoth).  Here is a perfect song for a day like today, performed by Beyle Schaechter Gottesman.


רעגן
Rain der regn

עס גײט אַ רעגן
It is raining.  Es geyt a regn 

עס פֿאַלט אַ רעגן
Rain is falling.  Es falt a regn

גאָסרעגן, שלאַקרעגן, פּליוכרעגן
gosregn, shlakregn, plyukhregn
pouring rain, beating rain, gushing rain

דער טױ
Dew.  der toy

דער טױטראָפּן
Dewdrop  der toytropn

דער רעגנטראָפּן
raindrop  regntropn 

דער רעגן־בױגן

Rainbow  regn-boygn

נאַס

wet  nas

די בלאָטע

mud  blote

אױף רעגן און אױפֿן טױט איז ניט װאָס גאָט צו בעטן
Af regn un afn toyt hot men nit vos got tsu betn.
There is nothing to be done about death and rain.

נאַראָנים און פּאָקשעװעס װאַקסן אָן רעגן
Naronim un poksheves vaksn on regn.
Nettles and The Stupid can grow without rain (lit. Fools and nettles grow without rain).

אַגרױסער װאָלקן, אַ קלײנער רעגן
A groyser volkn, a kleyner regn
Lots of smoke and no fire (lit. a big cloud, a little rain).

שמײכלען װי די זון נאָך אַ רעגן
Shmeykhlen vi di zun nokh a regn.
To smile from ear to ear (lit: to smile like the sun after the rain).


Drawing from Sholem Aleichem School on Bainbridge Avenue

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

The link to the 'Yiddish Song of the Week' does not appear to be for this song. A search on that website didn't bring up the song either...would love to know the tune.

11:12 PM  
Blogger the chocolate doctor מרת שאקאלאד said...

Thanks--I will check this.

11:08 AM  
Anonymous Ven Mum said...

The song reminds me of Morris Winchevsky's poem "The Three Sisters" ("In England there's Leicester -- the city; In London there's Leicester -- the square..."). The first sister sells flowers, the second ribbons, and the third comes after dark "to bargain her body away." I am indebted to Frances Pomerantz, the widow of the Yiddish journalist Alexander Pomerantz, for acquainting me with this haunting lyric.

3:02 PM  

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