A celebration of Yiddishkeit

There is a Yiddish word, bashert, that means fate or destiny, but it’s more than that, says Miriam Koral, director of the California Institute for Yiddish Culture and Language. Its connotation is both hopeful and resigned, she says, and it has a deep spiritual meaning, “an affirmation of God’s role in our lives.” It is an example of what’s lost in translation. Koral compares it to kissing through a screen door: “You lose the flavor,” she says.

So it is in pursuit of flavor that the institute sponsors the Art of Yiddish: Entering the Heart of a Culture Through Its Beat, described as an immersion in the living language, literature, music and dance. Events are planned Sunday through Dec. 20 at UCLA’s Royce Hall and at the University of Judaism.

Yiddish is on the United Nations’ list of endangered languages, says Koral. Before World War II, it was the primary language for as many as 14 million people. The number now is between 2 million and 3 million, she says.

“When you lose the language, there’s a sense of being cut off from one’s roots,” she says. Participants can choose from a range of activities, including a one-day program described as a “jump start,” which will include sessions on language, storytelling and music.

The cultural program includes lectures, workshops and a celebration known as a farbrengen. Among the instructors is Robert Cohen, a music historian, lecturer and radio host, whose programs include “The Mainstreaming of Yiddish Music” and “Yiddish Song as a Window to Jewish Life.” There also will be a free screening of “Mame-Loshn, Kinder Loshn,” a documentary about Yiddish today. The closing concert will feature the Strauss/Warschauer Duo with special guest Theodore Bikel.

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Art of Yiddish: Entering the Heart of a Culture Through Its Beat

When: Sunday through Dec. 20

Where: UCLA’s Royce Hall and the University of Judaism

Info: (310) 745-1190 or www.yiddishinstitute.org.