The Languages of Israel
A Documentary by Jack Connor
This film will explore the many linguistic communities of modern-day Israel
It will be one that shows the history, origin, and vibrant speaker communities of Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino and Aramaic.
Who are we?
Jack Connor and Lingua Aeterna make documentaries about our most interesting and endangered languages. We’ve made films about the Sámi in Norway, the Ngäbe in Panama, and explored Minoan Greek, Louisiana Creole, and more.
THE FILM
Exploring four of the most important languages of Israel
Hebrew
The story of Hebrew is possibly the greatest linguistic feat in human history. One of our oldest languages, spoken over 3,00 years ago, was extinct for millennia before it was brought back using surviving texts to become the national language of modern Israel, spoken by an estimated 10 million people.
Ladino
The Ladino language began when the Sephardic Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492 by Queen Isabella. The language developed as a mixture of Spanish, Hebrew, and later went on to incorporate elements from Greek and Turkish. Currently, there are 20,000 - 30,000 speakers in Israel, although the language is considered endangered as these speakers age and their numbers diminish.
Yiddish
Yiddish first developed in the 9th century Rhineland, as a creole of German, Hebrew, and Aramaic spoken by local Ashkenazi Jews. In the centuries since, it became the common language for the Eastern European Jewish Shtetls, and was the language used for an incredible amount of plays, novels, stories, and journalism. Today, while facing endangerment, it is a language used around the world and in Israel, especially amongst the ultra-orthodox Jewish communities.
Aramaic
Aramaic was the lingua franca of Babylon over 3,000 years ago, and is without a doubt one of the most important languages in history. It has been an important language for the Jewish people since the 4th century BC, and is one of the languages of the Talmud. Today in Israel, there are estimated to be less than 2,500 fluent speakers of Neo-Aramaic, and the language is classified as “Highly in Danger”.