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Offers the provocative argument that Jews had long celebrated Christmas in the "Old World"
This book seeks to answer a perplexing question: Why were Christmas traditions once transmitted in Yiddish, a language exclusive to non-Christians?
Back in Europe, Yiddish-speaking Jews traditionally let loose on Christmas Eve with feasting, drinking, dancing, and gambling. Scholars have previously assumed this Christmas Eve vacation from Torah study to have been some sort of antagonistic counterculture to Christians celebrating Christmas. But Christmas in Yiddish Tradition reveals that the Christmas traditions transmitted in Yiddish were very similar to those transmitted in other European languages. Drawing on a wealth of documents, Jordan Chad argues that rather than European Jews being antagonistic towards Christmas, their Christmas Eve celebrations were exactly what they looked like: Jews celebrating Christmas.
The volume offers the surprising argument that while Jews never celebrated the birth of Jesus, Christmas did not actually become the strictly Christian holiday that it is today until the period when Jews migrated to the New World. Prior to that time, Jewish midwinter traditions developed as variants of midwinter traditions that were widespread across neighboring European communities. Christmas in Yiddish Tradition recounts how Jews and Christians over the past millennium each awaited supernatural visits from diverse versions of Santa Claus. They only came to fully Christianize their concept of midwinter in modern times, at which point the place of "Christmas" in the Jewish collective memory evolved from the year's jolliest vacation to its most dangerous disturbance.
The volume uncovers the story of how Christmas once flourished in a language exclusive to non-Christians—and how modern Jews and Christians ultimately came to forget about the time when they celebrated Christmas in tandem.
"Who knew Jews thought so much about Christmas? Certainly not those who’ve overlooked the richness of Yiddish literature and folklore! Jordan Chad offers a beautifully written and deeply engaging exploration of how Ashkenazi Jews grappled with Christmas—through fear, admiration, resentment, love, and fascination. Drawing on Yiddish stories, folktales, legends, and cultural beliefs, this book opens a compelling window into a little-known dimension of Jewish life. A surprising, insightful, and highly recommended read."
— Anna Shternshis, author of When Sonia Met Boris: an Oral History of Jews under Stalin
"Jordan Chad offers us a deep dive into Yiddish folklore and Jews' Christmas practices beyond the “official” religions of rabbis and priests. His book is a learned, entertaining, and provocative reminder of how much Jews and their Christian neighbours have shared and how much has divided them through the centuries."
— Kalman Weiser, York University
"“Yiddish Christmas” sounds like a Borscht Belt gag, the humor of which relies on the notion that “Yiddish” and “Christmas” are two utterly incompatible concepts. Jordan Chad, however, dispels this idea and delves into previously untapped sources which reveal fascinating details about how Yiddish-speaking Jews dealt with this major Christian holiday. Entertaining and edifying, “Christmas in Yiddish Tradition” provides an entirely new conception of Jewish Yuletide traditions in Eastern Europe."
— Eddy Portnoy, author of Bad Rabbi and Other Strange but True Stories from the Yiddish Press
"Christmas in Yiddish Tradition: The Untold Story is a deeply researched survey of more than a half-century of Christmas in Yiddish culture. Perhaps counterintuitively, it is an excellent book to pick up this winter if you’re looking to get into the holiday spirit."
"Christmas in Yiddish Tradition is well-argued and based in substantial archival research; readers who doubt the assertions above should read the book for themselves."
"Those interested in folklore will be fascinated by the different and overlapping customs of Christians and Jews in Eastern Europe. The work also shines a light on how the two communities were not totally separate entities, regularly interacting in ways that are often overlooked in some scholarly writing."