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Blogs Categories: Jewish American History

Blogs Categories: Jewish American History

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

What is it About May?

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I confess. I always get a little giddy in May. Maybe it’s because the longer, warmer days of May mark the impending arrival of summer, my absolute favorite season. Yes, I am one of the rare lovers of brutally hot, humid DC summers. Or maybe May brings out the giddiness in me because I admire …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Highlighting the Holidays: Happy Hanukkah

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In 2014, December 16 marked the first day of Hanukkah, the Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its desecration by the forces of Antiochus IV. Also referred to as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah recalls the event. According to the Talmud, a central text of Rabbinic Judaism, at the re-dedication …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Jewish American Heritage: A Surviving Text

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May marks Jewish American Heritage Month, and this year’s theme, designated by the Jewish American Heritage Month Coalition, honors the 100th anniversary of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC). From its founding in 1914 to aid starving Jews in Palestine and Europe during World War I to life-saving rescues during war years to settling …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

"A Dudele": A Little Song for Jewish Heritage Month

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Jewish vocal music culture in the United States reflects the variety of the many different parts of the diaspora from which the Jewish immigrants originally came, as well as different song traditions among Jewish denominations. This essay will examine some of the Jewish folksongs curated by the Recorded Sound section, the Music Division, and the …

Woman with dark hair, fancy dress and pearls with eyes closed and mouth slightly open, singing

Sheet Music of the Week: Did Someone Call me Schnorrer Edition

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The following blog post was adapted from an essay by Senior Music Specialist Ray White and Digital Conversion Specialist James Wolf. This week the Music Division launches a new online collection of Yiddish American Sheet Music. The Library’s holdings of Yiddish American popular songs include the Irene Heskes Collection of Yiddish American sheet music as well …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

A Window on Heritage and Home

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This photograph of a shop window taken in 1942 speaks eloquently to what it means to have pride in both your heritage as well as in the country you’ve chosen as your home. Artifacts of the Jewish faith fill the window, studied carefully by a young girl. (Her gaze appears caught by the book entitled …

The word

Happy Hanukkah from the Poetry and Literature Center

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This past Sunday marked the first night of Hanukkah, and Washington, D.C. celebrated in true style with the lighting of the world’s largest menorah on the Ellipse, just across from the White House. Here at the Poetry and Literature Center the decorations are a little more austere (a blue and white snowflake left over from …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

"Words Like Sapphires"

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A simple label inside thousands of rare books bears witness to the origins of one of the great collections of Hebrew material in the world: “Deinard Collection Presented by Jacob H. Schiff.” Beginning next week, the Library of Congress will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its Hebraic Collection – started with a gift from Schiff …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Jewish Heritage

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For the third consecutive year, special items from the Library of Congress’ Jewish American collections have been put on display at the White House. In honor of Jewish American Heritage Month, President Barack Obama hosted a reception at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. on Wednesday evening. “Generations of Jewish Americans have brought to bear some of our …