We met with Dr. Michael Rosenbush at his home in Maryland. He was extermely open and warm, sharing both hospitality and a wealth of experiences in Poland, Sibera, and the United States. As you’ll see, he presents a view of certain situations from a child’s perspective that is extremely different what you may be accoustomed to hearing. Not only is Michael a native born Yiddish speaker, he’s also an unabashed Yiddishist of the highest caliber. Here, for example, is his biography as one of the core team members transforming the Niborski/Vaisbrot Yiddish-French Dictionary into Yiddish-English:
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Dr. Michael Rosenbush, Associate Professor, Chairman, Russian and German, University of New Hampshire now is a teacher of Yiddish in Paris and Brussels. A native Yiddish speaker, Rosenbush is one of the the founders of “svives,” active Yiddish-speaking communities in New York City, as well as an organizer of the on-going Yiddish-English/Russian-English translation project at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. He was on the board of Yiddish of Greater Washington and the International Association of Yiddish Clubs and is on the board of the International Association of Yiddish Clubs. |
For more information on that project, see http://www.verterbukh.org/project.html
A Short Biography
On Region, Politics, and Language
From Siberia to Poland
The clip begins with a description of Siberia that may be surprising. We then hear the politics and laws that lead to his family’s ability to leave Siberia and move eventually back to Poland. Finally, we experience the return to Poland through his eyes, what remained and what life was like there, still as a child.
Poetry Reading
As mentioned, Michael has dediated a large portion of his life to language and literature. He shares with us a few favorite poems and discusses their relevance with his experience as well as talks a little about the uniqueness of certain literary constructs and techniques.
