Surprising Orthodox Jews by Speaking Yiddish

Go to buyraycon.com/xiaomanyc for 15% off your order! Brought to you by Raycon. Today I am exploring the Hasidic Jewish neighborhood of Borough Park as everyone prepares for the Jewish festival of Sukkot. Let’s see what Orthodox Jews think about my Yiddish!
Thanks to Reb Noyekh for teaching me Yiddish! If you want to learn with him go to: www.yiddishwithnoyekh.com/
Thanks to my brother Nate ( / sunnysmith613 ) for showing me around!
Thanks to @HereBeBarr for providing me some b-roll for the intro of this video. Check out his vids!
0:00 Introduction
0:48 Sponsored by Raycon
2:15 Getting kosher meat
3:59 Buying kosher wine
6:53 Chatting Yiddish on the street
7:53 Buying a lemon for $100 (not clickbait, it's an etrog)
10:56 Visiting a coffee shop
11:38 Hardware store
12:05 Looking at yarmulkes
12:41 Walking down the streets
14:04 Flower shopping in Spanish
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[@xiaomanyc]

Thanks to Raycon buyraycon.com/xiaomanyc for sponsoring this video and I'll be donating 100% of the sponsorship proceeds to charity. Chag Sameach!!!

[@juliansandler4569]

I'll check them out. Also you should learn Swahili! Best wishes.

[@AyaBlue22]

.. to which charity, though?

[@mrscreamer379]

$100? They saw you coming. You were the biggest lemon in the store! 🤣

[@jeffreysetapak]

I don't know your Jewish/Hebrew name until today. Arieh Moshe???

[@nofirstgonzalez7888]

@@Jack_Nack No, it’s a special citrus for a special occasion. Like some people pay hundreds of dollars for a big, live tree at Christmas.

[@mistypuffs]

I love that he got a scolding straight away for not being religious enough from an elder. It’s universal

[@eitanbelson5280]

the least he could do is apply the tefillin🤣

[@SammyJoon]

Torah observant Jews want the best for all other Jews. It is less a scolding and more “Torah can benefit you the way it’s benefitted me”. I understand that it could often sound like talking down but truly it is not

[@timtim6373]

@@SammyJoon that’s how most religious people are

[@SammyJoon]

@@timtim6373 not exactly. Jews actively advise against converting people. When speaking to non-Jews they will only go as far as explaining the basic laws of a moral society i.e. telling them not to curse god, not to worship idols, not to murder/steal, avoid sex crimes like rape incest adultery, no animal cruelty and to establish courts in their society. Jews are mainly interested in teaching less knowledgable Jewish people about their heritage and how to keep the laws of the Torah. The reason for this is simple: if the Torah is truly divine, Jews could really be in deep trouble for not following the laws. That being said, Jews do not force any strangers to do anything and certainly do not decapitate people for disagreeing with them.

[@hpn237]

@@thewalrider1159 chill Adolph

[@BinUnkreativAF]

As a german i understand pretty much everything. Its almost like an german dialect.

[@yolotech0183]

It’s just a middle-high German written in a Hebrew script to preserve the old German from what I understand

[@anonymoust2877]

That’s really cool, technically means Jews and Germans are linked culturally and ethnically

[@snoopit7117]

Ja stimmt, hab mich auch gewundert

[@francisdrake3730]

That's so cool! I'm german and I thought the same thing.

[@Sapnfap]

@@anonymoust2877 Culturally, yes, ethnically Ashkenazi Jews mixed primarily Semitic men with Southern Italian women (Sardinians)

[@virgilalyameenmuhammad5000]

I’m a black American and have taught my self a good amount of Yiddish. I can be honest and say I first learned it from the nanny (sitcom) and it intrigued me 💯😁🤷🏿‍♂️

[@Nellsbells79]

Lol awesome ❤

[@y2kbr4t]

me too but i’m italian/mexican! learned some from the nanny too!

[@caroline5573]

that’s amazing ! keep learning

[@Drumming_Monkey]

The Nanny still rocks. Love that show.

[@Jujuyork79]

Im Scandinavian and the Yiddish I know I learned from Fran too!!😂

[@AlfredSoul]

Being German, I love hearing Yiddish spoken in the wild. Your ears perk up, because it's still so close to the German being spoken today, but uses antiquated vocabulary and it's own, often different expressions. Every Yiddish sentence sounds like German poetry in the moment xD

[@dang7824]

I specially like Yiddish songs because many singers speak the words out of rhythm and intonation. For example they would pronounce Kartofelsalat in a song: "kaa🎶aar🎵tou🎵uu🎶flsssssa🎶ääeeel🎶ahh-t🎵and it would sound like a shaman conjuring rain in the desert. When they speak it just sounds a bit odd but in a song it really becomes mystic.

[@AlfredSoul]

@@dennyb6768 What?

[@fowleheidi482]

try Swiss-German, I think more difficult than Yiddish.

[@ItsAshInMyCupImMadAsAMuh]

​@@fowleheidi482 I had to learn swiss german when i moved to Switzerland. Took me a couple of months to even understand them when they go full swiss mode.

[@thedeviouspanda]

There's a dialect of German spoken by some people in Texas that was basically just passed down from their immigrant forefathers, without changing like regular German did. So modern Germans will hear it and say the same, that it sounds like how their grandparents or great grandparents spoke.

[@dionthorn]

"I'm Jewish I've never seen this many jews in my life." Had me laughing so hard.

[@barbarusbloodshed6347]

It's crazy how crowded everything is. Gives me major anxiety. I hate crowds :(

[@soundofperserverance3363]

I've seen some but they were in that camp in europe

[@dannyvents2781]

@@soundofperserverance3363 Booooooo🤢👎

[@viedogamepro]

He isn't wrong lmao I thought the same thing

[@yakov95000]

Well he should visit Israel...

[@Jack-ny7kn]

I speak German and apparently just found out today that I also speak Yiddish😮 I knew Yiddish was a German dialect, but I didn't know how close it was. In my estimation it's closer than Pennsylvania Dutch even. I think it would be amazing to get native speakers of Yiddish, German, Texas German, and Pennsylvania Dutch together and see how well they can hold a conversation. I think it would be very surprising how little time it would take for them to be able to functionally communicate with one another.

[@autohmae]

I like how one of the comments pointed out: Yiddish sounds like a Dutch person trying to speak German.

[@Meirstein]

It makes sense that Yiddish sounds like Pennsylvania Dutch, because both of the originated in the Rhineland area.

[@SwtTeaLdy]

@Jack that would be great idea!

[@IndorilTheGreat]

I'm currently learning German, and I can definitely hear the similarities!

[@tanjiro3518]

it's not Jewish, I think it's German Jews who fled from the Nazi regime in Germany to America at that time

[@Craftlngo]

It's astonishing how much I understand as a native German speaker. Yiddish is very close to some of our dialects

[@PM-vv3uc]

Geshmak = gut schmecken oder lecker

[@dreanotto3487]

Ek is afrikaans en kan omtrent alles verstaan😅

[@mike77gmc]

@@dreanotto3487 Ik kan jou ook verstaan lijkt veel op Nederlands, Afrikaans is een mooie taal.

[@mike77gmc]

As a guy from the Netherlands it all sounds very understandable...

[@salac1337]

​@@mike77gmc ich kann euch auch alle verstehen

[@nicemmmm]

Aweee Ari & his brother are both so nice, just good souls honestly. Hope to see more content with the two of you❤️

[@petervandieren]

Never knew Yiddish is that close to German. As a Dutchman I understood a lot. So next video of Xiaoma can be in German and, because Dutch is close to German, a few weeks later we can expect a video Xiaoma speaking Dutch.

[@RSBuddie]

Same. Learned german in school and could always make out some of dutch, didn't know Yiddish was the same,

[@TheDivayenta]

Yiddish is Middle High German from medieval times with sprinklings of Slavic and Hebrew words.

[@richyq8786]

@@TheDivayenta they were forced to leave and settled in north america pretty early on

[@lafoonxiii5311]

I learned a bit of German a while ago, and when I tried to switch to Dutch (because I realized I have Dutch friends, why am I not learning Dutch instead?) my brain couldn't handle the similarity. It's said that Dutch (well, Frisian) is the closest language to English, and supposedly easiest to learn...but I had a far easier time learning German. I did, however, get very good at pronouncing Scheveningen because my Dutch friends would always make fun of me by making me say it!

[@tonybridgeman]

Same! Amazing! I didn't know Yiddish was so related to Dutch and German!

[@G1ngerpocalypse]

I am obsessed with the wild angles your camera gives. I cannot contain my laughter most times 😂

[@Cabal-ms3kb]

@4:49

[@G1ngerpocalypse]

@@Cabal-ms3kb @7:46

[@G1ngerpocalypse]

@@Cabal-ms3kb @5:36

[@Cabal-ms3kb]

@@G1ngerpocalypse One of these should've been the thumbnail tbh

[@JB-fh1bb]

@4:37

[@GraceNcube]

I LOVE how Ari mentions potential interest in more practices in his life, then the man offers him to wear the kippah and make the blessing before the food. That was very beautiful and seemed like he directly understood his interests. And with all the joy. Lovely!!

[@sylvanticx]

Yes! That’s the heart of the Jewish community. There’s no exclusion, just welcoming.

[@sharonhimmelman9685]

As a fellow Jew I’ve been watching your videos and waiting for the day you did Yiddish or Hebrew. I’m so happy. I would love some day to come to NYC and experience the Jewish community, where I live in Canada the community is so small and exclusive (read: if you don’t have money you’re nobody) and I would love to experience a more welcoming community

[@MyriamBernard13]

wow I'm from Canada too. Not Jewish but try to partake in celebrations if I can. I've always wondered why our community was so small or thought maybe they were very quiet? This life here in this Jewish neighbourhood in NYC is another country altogether! I'd love to experience that and these people.

[@guytansbariva2295]

Yeah, see you're not exactly helping the Jewish reputation when you say the community in Canada thinks you're nobody unless you have money.

[@sharonhimmelman9685]

@@guytansbariva2295 if you read closely I said where I live in Canada, so that’s a problem with just that small community, I didn’t say ALL Jewish communities in Canada are like that

[@guytansbariva2295]

@@sharonhimmelman9685 Gotcha, sorry I missed that part. But yeah what people have been saying mostly is talking about the very expensive lemon. $100 or so? But it's no different than going to any cultural market, and they've got the expensive stuff at the back, just like Ari liked to see. Arabic markets have $100 dates, and Korean markets have $100 squid. It's all relative.

[@mikemathias1562]

Hi sharon. Ur name is german and it emeans heavens man

[@thestraydog]

I lived with an Israeli family for a little while, and they were the most giving, supportive and charitable people I've ever met. I was down on my luck when I was 18, and they welcomed me with open arms. They said their first rules, as soon as i entered their home were "If you are hungry, you eat. If you are thirsty you drink. If you need anything that you cannot find, you ask." And it feels so amazing to this day, over a decade later, that such a wonderful family helped me get my first apartment, helped me keep my job, and kept me out of trouble. Amazing family

[@divemylollol6152]

אתה מדבר עברית?

[@DJZAM]

Makes me cry so beautiful 😢

[@CrunchyMom88]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@TheRepublicOfJohn]

"If you are hungry, you eat. If you are thirsty, you drink. If you need anything that you cannot find, you ask." That's beautiful. Good rules.

[@skylar0628]

Baruch HaShem. May you continue to be blessed in my life, my friend. Thank you for sharing your story.

[@rebnoyekh]

I’m kvelling! It was an honor to teach you Yiddish, Ahrele Moishe!

[@soundofperserverance3363]

Oy vey

[@rebnoyekh]

@@soundofperserverance3363 haha oy vey iz mir!

[@soundofperserverance3363]

@@rebnoyekh work will set you free

[@rebnoyekh]

@@soundofperserverance3363 actually speaking yiddish and learning about beautiful Jewish culture will ;)

[@soundofperserverance3363]

@@rebnoyekh ⚡⚡

[@iankahn6426]

Hey Xiamoa! Your video inspired me to try to learn to read Yiddish. I speak German and my grandfather was a German jew who fled to NYC during WWII and spoke Yiddish as well, but I never learned it. Turns out it's a lot easier to read than Hebrew because it includes all the vowels like German does! I have a new exciting skill now thanks to you and a much better understanding of the Hebrew alphabet.

[@killawatt8243]

I love how less surprised they all are and how fast word travels about how he speaks it really well

[@TooColdProdz]

“Just search white guy speaks Chinese on KZbin.” I laughed way too hard at that 😂

[@NintenJoe09]

Not wrong though 😂

[@scarreb7691]

Lmaoo was just about to comment ahah

[@Jack-cq9pv]

he has the youtube algorithm wrapped round his finger at this point lmao

[@MiaLeona69]

There's a guy on the street in one of his other videos that addressed him literally as that "see you later 'white guy speaks Chinese!' “ 😂

[@wm6549]

That’s actually how he titled his videos

[@stahl8641]

This man is a walking translator. Much respect. I’m still trying to learn one other language and it’s not easy for me

[@jonathankraig425]

Translators usually walk with the person they translate for but ye

[@doyley2038]

@@jonathankraig425 😐

[@petrusmaximus5363]

To be honest he doesn’t speak that well. But i think he understands much.

[@eldiabloramon]

😂 right he should be working for Star Fleet - translating the next klingon or romulan langauge for when aliens appear lol

[@sfbayareagirl]

I always enjoy your videos and the sense of community they impart, especially when others realize you’ve taken the time to learn their language. I’m inspired to go back and learn German again, I had to drop it in college and always regretted that! Cheers. ❤

[@patrickjoseph9158]

You get such honesty by speaking to all these different people in their language. Such a good perspective on human nature in general. Thank me man.

[@patrickjoseph9158]

Thank *YOU man lol

[@share_accidental]

you can edit comments 😊

[@ca6248]

It's amazing how quickly you pick up on these different languages. Very impressive and very entertaining as always!

[@ReloGP14th]

1) When you enjoy something you learn extremly fast 2) His brain is used to learn new language so he adapts to a new language really really fast

[@ca6248]

@@ReloGP14th You make a great point.

[@gacy90]

hes jewish,,,he should have known this since 5

[@lisasim]

@@gacy90 I'm Jewish, I live in Israel, my mom and grandparents were speaking Yiddish and I don't understand almost any of it, just funny slang that you can hear on Seinfeld 😂 None of my friends knows this language. Bravo to Xiaoma, for being so passionate about learning languages and connecting with people.

[@since1876]

Once you learn a second language, picking up another one is always just a little easier. But it should never be as easy as this man makes it happen 😂😂😂😂 he's a very special person in that regard.

[@natalievegas]

The fact that so many different cultures you visit have people who recognize you says a lot. You are making a difference in history. You help bridge cultural differences. You inspire many people, myself included to try harder to learn other languages and not be shy about approaching

[@ANTIStraussian]

First video he didn't get anything free Lol jk jk

[@laurenh6668]

Loved these reactions. Perfect time for these videos, the world needs it! Also love the facts on Judaism thrown in, I'm learning! 🧐

[@reece7528]

Really love this video man. I show my English students some of your videos sometimes. This one is a real banger. Nice one!

[@jasoncreamer5747]

Xiaoma feels like a protestant walking through a Greek Orthodox festival.

[@luketimewalker]

looooooool

[@henrystoes6508]

except judaism is an ethnicity

[@Byelmao]

I’m Jewish and speak Hebrew, honestly I thought Yiddish would be more similar to Hebrew and it actually wasn’t, it was very interesting to hear this language!!! :)

[@ACyoutube46]

It's mainly German, so if you learn the vowel-shifts and pronunciation, you can understand quite a lot in Yiddish if you speak German. I can understand maybe 80% of what I hear in Yiddish. Incidentally, a lot of non-Jewish people had some Yiddish in the old days. Even people who didn't speak German sometimes had some. One famous example is former Secretary of Defense Colin Powell.

[@darthjarjar8]

I thought the same thing!!

[@divemylollol6152]

הוא צריך לדעת עברית היוטיובר הזה

[@Dhi_Bee]

It’s basically like German Creole with Hebrew words thrown in & written in Hebrew script. Edit: I forgot to mention there are a few Slavic words thrown in too.

[@reuven2010]

@@divemylollol6152 הוא יודע קצת.

[@xFrostByte77]

As an only English speaker, I'm amazed at literally any language you speak and glad there are subtitles to go along with it 👍

[@Someoneudontknow1231]

love this video

[@Diablochild123]

"Buy a yamaka, speak Yiddish, you're one of ours." How freaking wholesome is that?!

[@Ordo1980]

He is Jewish, so it is not that strange that they say that 🙃

[@Diablochild123]

@@Ordo1980 Some groups of people have the “if you weren’t born and lived it, you’re not it” mentality. I’m just glad he’s welcoming of it. :)

[@Ordo1980]

@@Diablochild123 Usually orthodox Jews have that belief, that no jew can leave completely the religion, because it is like something what you inherit as a jew. So they think that everybody can come back, they just have to practice it again. So they see somebody like Arieh as a potential returnee.

[@adamcohen1570]

@@Ordo1980 ye kind of. Your born Jewish, and that’s that. A non-Jew cannot turn around one day and say “I believe in Hashem (G-d)” and be Jewish. That’s why even myself I’m not religious at all, but if I went to that neighbourhood and told them my name (which is very Jewish) they would take me in no doubt in my mind.

[@PaulWashington..]

@@Ordo1980 Yes he is born Jewish but is a secular Jew and these gentlemen in the video are religious Jews. We all are from Adam, thats what really matters.

[@charlescurran1289]

A friend of mine was an Orthodox Jew who was a farmer and knew Yiddish. One day at a farmer’s market several Russian emigre women were insulting him in Yiddish assuming he didn’t know what they were saying. You should have seen their faces when he told them “that’s not very nice” in their own language.

[@NYC_Goody]

What the hell were they saying about your friend?!

[@charlescurran1289]

@@NYC_Goody as I recall they were insinuating that he was stupid and so would be easy to con into a lower price.

[@definitelynotanAIchatbot]

@@charlescurran1289 Typical

[@PK-oy4fe]

My Jewish grandmother shared a bedroom with my sister and I for years. She would speak Yiddish and had started teaching me as a teenager. Your video brought back many memories.

[@DrGreenhut]

Glad to see you made it to my old neighborhood! It's changed in many ways since I moved away 20 years ago, but it's nice to see how much stayed the same.

[@artiek1177]

What people don’t realize is that in the old days you could’ve been Jewish from practically anywhere in any country in Europe (except where they spoke Ladino) and yet Yiddish was the unifying language that everyone understood.

[@rlt9492]

And Yiddish and Ladino speakers would use Biblical Hebrew to communicate with each other when they met.

[@fearlessAx]

@@rlt9492 Which is the actual unifying language.

[@YOLOnyc]

Actually, the were Judeo versions of many other languages too, Yiddish (Judeo Middle-High German) is the only surviving one but there was Judeo Italian, Judeo French, etc. Ladino (Judeo Spanish) is a novel language at this point used mostly in music, very few people speak it as their primary language these days.

[@Rialagma]

Do they speak Yiddish in Israel?

[@mitzavor8468]

@@rlt9492 Not Biblical Hebrew. Medieval Hebrew.

[@flochristim9316]

As a German, this was very satisfying. It's always so much more engaging when you even understand without subtitles. I hope Xiaoma reboots his German project. It would be fun to see how he connects German, Yiddish and Durch together.

[@hanshansomahammau]

many german words also come from the yiddish originally. Tohuwabohu, Ganove, meschugge, it's pretty awesome how the 2 languages are woven together.

[@dasarcanaeum]

@@hanshansomahammau And Kosher :)

[@bonerchamp2695]

@@hanshansomahammau and many terms for money.

[@Ultrapro011]

@@hanshansomahammau meshuga and ganuv is from hebrew

[@davidmitnick868]

My dad actually understands Yiddish. It’s wild because he’s an old Californian surfer but his roots are New York Jew. Every now and then the Brooklyn accent and Jewish storytelling humor will come out and it’s like a different person 😂

[@ericthiel4053]

Xiaomanyc is legit one of, if not the best, KZbinr ever. The guy speaks multiple languages, travels the world and speaks to everyone and breaks barriers most could only dream of. Seriously deserves a humanitarian award!!

[@rawrimreptar08]

this was an amazing video! I used to take care of 2 sweet boys for a little over 6 years who were autistic and lived in a relatively strong Jewish household. they would have me over for holidays and cook delicious foods and bread. but the most precious moment was when one of the boys held my newborn for the first time. he recited the Shehecheyanu prayer, which most Jewish people do for their first time experiencing something new, and it made me cry. it was a sweet moment. the Jewish culture has always piqued my interest, so this was a nice to watch.

[@IAmTheStee]

That’s beautiful

[@deirdrekiely6187]

* Piqued....not peeked.

[@erinslays]

@@deirdrekiely6187 not to be that person but OP was right with the piqued

[@0Honey_Nut_Cheetos0]

@@erinslays OP was not right. OP edited their comment after they were corrected. So yeah, you were that guy

[@tonyvelasquez6776]

@@erinslays you look the teeny tiny little hats??

[@Twittershouldceasetoexist]

The smile on some of the people you interact with their mother tongue is beyond any earthly descriptions… it makes me feel really happy too

[@luisalbertonajeraperez5230]

Xiaoma changed my mind about learning many languages, it is very useful and you meet more interesting and lovely people everytime.

[@beardown6574]

This was a great learning experience to help understand the culture. And the reactions never get old lol

[@drippyrat1178]

massive massive respect for donating the proceeds in accordance with the tradition of the holiday

[@CrunchyMom88]

Your username fits you.

[@ReptilianTeaDrinker]

Keep being cool, drippy rat. Respect!

[@lisaroan9029]

Exactly,much respect for doing that. ❤️🕊️

[@zoeywyllie1411]

As an english & german speaker with some dutch, Yiddish feels like the language part of my brain just melting together with a bit of flair. Very interesting sounding language

[@jamescanjuggle]

same here, i always knew yiddish was a think but never actually clicked how much sense it makes when I hear it?

[@leibmenter2331]

Yiddish is so fascinating. It’s really a melting-pot kinda creole language. Yiddish and Modern German both diverged from Middle High German in the 11th and 12th centuries, if I’m not mistaken. All things considered, they’ve had very little time to diverge, and until 100 years ago, very little space to diverge. Their pronunciations are noticeably different, and Modern German uses prefixes, suffixes, and single-word conjugations more than Yiddish does, but the smaller words and root words and nearly identical. Yiddish incorporates a lot of Hebrew, as well as influences from Polish and Russian in some dialects. But anyone who speaks German today should be able to understand Yiddish. They’re not perfectly mutually comprehensible, but you’ll get the gist for sure

[@YOLOnyc]

The sound of the Yiddish varies by the speaker's accent. Brooklyn "Yeshivish-style" Yiddish (in this video) is very distinct and sounds different than the European Yiddish that European-born Jews from the older, now-geriatric, generation speak.

[@Aquafre5h]

I'm swedish that understands german and some dutch, this was definitely some hybrid thing. Sounded odd but very interesting and fascinating.

[@leibmenter2331]

@@YOLOnyc If I can make one correction to an otherwise great point, “Yeshiva-style” Yiddish would actually be spoken by non-Hasidic ultra Orthodox Jews, mostly of Lithuanian descent. Hasidic Yiddish is what was spoken in this video. There is a radical vowel shift between “Yeshivish” Yiddish, which is unfortunately dying very quickly, and Hasidic Yiddish.

[@Jamster3116]

Thank you for showing us what is sometimes misunderstood in the community, it was very informative. You have inspired me to learn languages... and so starts a difficult journey for me.

[@tannergiesler6555]

Xiaoman, I would love to see a video of you learning a very special (to me) Russian dialect. Doukhobor Russian is a combination of English and Russian and is only spoken in a few towns in Canada and the USA. I am a descendant of Doukhobors, and with there only being 30,000 left here in Canada, only 50% can speak Doukhobor and its sad that in 100 years it wont exist at all. Thank you for all the good vibes and awesome content :D Huge Fan Right Here!!

[@adamhochron2191]

I think this is one of the most interesting videos you’ve done. Yiddish may be a major language in that community, but it’s also a dying language outside of it. My grandparents spoke Yiddish, their parents spoke Yiddish, but it wasn’t really passed on to my parents or my generation. Definitely a fascinating choice. Also good to show this community in a more positive light to a larger audience. Looking forward to part 2.

[@JTheTeach]

as long as there are Orthodox Ashkenazi, I don't see it disappearing. So that's good.

[@amazingabby25]

It’s funny I was told it was dying growing up, but it’s flourishing in Israel and the US in the Hasidic and Ultraorthodx communities. What’s sadly dying is the Judeo-Arabic, Judeo-Maaylan, etc. The Hebrew and other languages for the non European communities

[@mollyk3768]

same, all of my grandparents spoke it and didn’t pass it on so they could talk without the kinderlach understanding🫠

[@AugustBlue96]

My dad's grandfather was Jewish and grew up speaking Yiddish at home with his parents, who were immigrants from Belarus and Ukraine. But he and his siblings didn't pass Yiddish down to their kids, in an effort to assimilate and be more American. I always think it's a tragedy when a culture is lost that way, and I hope younger generations of secular Jews will be interested in reconnecting with Yiddish. I definitely want to learn.

[@haha-lj5sq]

The reintroduction of Hebrew seemed to replace Yiddish for the most part.

[@peter-radiantpipes2800]

I’ll never forget how a Jewish charity helped my family out with paying the electricity bill and some food during very hard times thought we’d never be in. I’ll be paying it back many fold.

[@HPMTube1991]

Or just "family". Jewish obsession is unbelievably demonstrated and common. Saying that Jewish people are fascinating or good with money or even so kind and helpful, is the same of saying and thinking the opposite. What a crazy stupid Neurotypical world!

[@varoth465]

@@HPMTube1991 Your point is?

[@peter-radiantpipes2800]

@@HPMTube1991 I have no such opinions. That’s a pretty aged opinion and small demographic. I don’t know anyone that says that except nazis and some odd elderly. I didn’t say any of that too so don’t hijack my post with this junk

[@HPMTube1991]

@Varoth The point is- that neurotypicals tend to associate a parameter that is irrelevant as a factor. For example here; One taxpayer who was helped as a child by a family that lived near his home, apparently. Why the immediate tendency is, to mention that they are of Jewish origin. Moreover, it is an almost universal subconscious, classifying other taxpayers, according to one irrelevant variable. Usually religious or ethnic or national. 'Origin' or 'religion', in a context that is not national or religious, is the same as a reference to an eye color or a preferred taste or color. It is an archetype of social construction and primitive conditioning. And everyone suffers from it, almost without exception. I am outstanding. Although I am autistic and highly integrated and schizoid, it is enough to have a basic intelligence and an objective line of thought. In addition, the world needs to stop with the Jewish obsession. But also, with any other obsession. A saying like 'Jews are kind and they tend to help others' (similar to the response of the one above) is just like the saying 'Jews are greedy and dominate the dome' or any other dogmatism. I will suggest a literal (but not thoughtful) correction to the following: As a child, I was once caught up in state X and was helpless. For my benefit, a family that lives near where I live was provided with assistance. falcon

[@user-bj5eh9ji9z]

@@HPMTube1991 dude, relax the guy was showing appreciation for someone who did a good deed for them, and I'm Jewish orthodox,and appreciated the gesture... not everything is offensive

[@miguimau]

Thanks for the walk. The Jewish Community in NY is very interesting!!! And your brother apparently is a legend there! :D

[@nordicson2835]

You bring together people with your good heart . Thank you ,mire men like you are needed today.

[@ielizabethm2]

It’s amazing to be able to delve into a different culture or religion through Xiamoa/Arie’s videos. And to see how he can interact with others can be very intriguing and also heartwarming.

[@coloradotrader7202]

it is a culture that treats women like 2nd class citizens

[@ydubin]

@@coloradotrader7202 and what’s your basis for that statement? Let me guess. You watched “unorthodox” on Netflix and now you think you understand hassidic culture?

[@sheen2694]

@@coloradotrader7202 islam?

[@vercot7000]

@@coloradotrader7202 Why are you acting like your culture didn't do that during the 60s? In fact, if you're conservative, you should agree with the culture you hate so much

[@coloradotrader7202]

@@vercot7000 I never said I hated anything, I was just stating a fact. dont get butt hurt bozo

[@Drumming_Monkey]

It's always so funny and interesting to me (as a German) how much Yiddish I can actually understand. Stuff like "a bissl" ( a bit ) is also very much how southern Germans/Swabians speak, where I am from. By the way, how come your brother is so well versed in the Jewish community and you not as much? Were you brought up differently or what is the reason?

[@caroline5573]

maybe he met his wife or something and he decided to be more religious

[@Drumming_Monkey]

@@caroline5573 definitely could be the case. It's just very interesting to me. :)

[@CornholioPuppetMaster]

I’ve been learning German for a few months and I recognized words like danke and fleish

[@Drumming_Monkey]

​@@CornholioPuppetMaster That is very cool. The language is not easy to master. A lot of Germans struggle with it too, haha. May I ask what made you learn German? You forgot the C in "Fleisch" by the way :) But that's an easy mistake because it's pronounced like the English "sh", so don't worry.

[@SalisburySnake]

@@Drumming_Monkey My wife is half German. She hates it when I translate Fleischküchle to "flesh cakes". Even though it's 100% accurate :D Her mother is Schwabish, so Fleischküchle is just meat. Not the pastry covered version from the Black Sea area.

[@pamm5]

This was so fun to watch. I enjoy your regular content, but being a Hmong woman who has also converted to Judaism. This almost felt full circle with the my Asian side and my Jewish side.❤

[@Silverpicker]

Absolutely amazing to see a top tier mainstream KZbinr being openly Jewish and donating the proceeds of the video to Jewish charities. Amazing! ישר כח!

[@PROVOCATEURSK]

Does god not provide enough for those charities? SUS

[@alexanderduff6018]

@@PROVOCATEURSK אלוהים יקלל אותך

[@chatter4427]

@@PROVOCATEURSK god is waiting for his own stimulus check

[@tombeacher9667]

You already have all of Hollywood, can we just have KZbin?

[@girlhappy6442]

@@tombeacher9667 and most of the billionaires

[@nickrnmaui]

I like that your brother said as an example "if you're gonna honk your horn at somebody in traffic think twice" then the video proceeds with plenty horn honking. So funny.

[@DonVideoGuy007]

The drivers honking were probably not Jewish?!?

[@VegetaAFH]

@@DonVideoGuy007 they’re still human and are not perfect. C’mon dude, a “reminder.” I’m sure you’ve missed your alarm a few times in your life, but you still set it. We are not robots and rigid in our convictions, even if at times we should be. The reminders we place on ourselves to improve our behavior are helpful tools.

[@zyuh64]

this was so funny and informative 😂

[@Nooticus]

Super great video apart from the NFT reference at the end... It's so nice to see more videos in the last couple of years of the very much unique world of chasidic judaism! We have something like this in London, but on a MUCH MUCH MUCH smaller level!

[@EvanEraTV]

Never realized you were Jewish! Shalom brotha!! Great video as always

[@mikewizowski441]

Never new YOU were Jewish either…shalom אחי 😁😁😁 it’s a small world we live in.

[@carlinthomas9482]

@@mikewizowski441 I never knew you were Jewish as well. It really is a small world after all. Shalom!

[@amirahp1690]

Shalom!

[@Traveltownvlog]

Hello sir🙏 please help me😭

[@wee5h]

You blind bro ? 😂

[@henrahmagix]

I love how immediately the conversation starts about your lineage, it keeps the story going, always sharing from where your ancestors travelled and when, I love it 🥰

[@tanyaglover4129]

"I'm Jewish and I don't think I've seen so many people at once in my life" Same same same! Being Jewish in most places in America you're always the minority. The feeling of being surrounded by so many of your own tribe is an amazing feeling indeed! Also, why aren't you wearing a kippah??? Lol

[@sylvanticx]

It’s so amazing. As a kid, I was one of two, maybe three Jews in my class. At Jewish summer camp the weight of explaining your heritage constantly being gone was an experience like no other. I loved it. My high school had almost 30% Jewish population (public school), which was a culture shock- I was used to being one of the only Jews, and the only observant one!

[@WisamSafi1978]

as an Arab, I was surprised to hear that the Yiddish word for “charity” at 0:44 sounds exactly like the Arabic world “Sadakh” صدقة which is exactly the same meaning. 8:42 “Shalum Alyikom” and it’s reply “Walayum Shalam” is almost exactly like our السلام عليكم ، وعليكم السلام

[@Dourkan]

All things considered, both islam and judaism come from the same place on earth, so it really should have some linguistic similarities even if jews went to europe and ended speaking an almost german language, the common salutes and god praises must've been mantained throughout the years. Humans are not so distant and different after all!

[@coldcuts3248]

The Yiddish word for charity is actually Hebrew. The word you heard is Tzedaka which means charity.

[@coldcuts3248]

Interesting tidbit: abracadabra comes from Hebrew. The Hebrew term is אברא כשאדבר pronounced Evra K’adaber, which means in Hebrew, I will create as I say”

[@Tomato_frog1]

Thanks I was about to clarify that too. Also “ shalom aleichem” is also Hebrew. It’s just that in Yiddish some of the words used are actually just normal Hebrew. So Yiddish is not really at all related to Arabic. But Hebrew, as a Semitic language just like Arabic, is.

[@sylvanticx]

Yes, Hebrew and Arabic are related languages, and Yiddish is mostly German but it has some Hebrew words mixed in, so that makes sense.

[@teadragonnaahva]

I knew Yiddish is very similar to German, but hearing it being actually spoken is crazy! It feels epic being able to understand it without tons of effort, haha! Thank you for the video!

[@Veritas-dq2hs]

I mean it's basically German.

[@jaredf6205]

Which is crazy because it split from High German over a thousand years ago.

[@Veritas-dq2hs]

@@jaredf6205 Yiddish evolved alongside other German dialects through the centuries. It isn't that different to modern German, and very different to Old High German.

[@dmitriyburd7044]

Finally you’re covering Yiddish! Danken God! Your Jewish viewers were wondering when you’re going to cover it 😊

[@harveydontell777]

The response from people, for his effort is priceless!

[@lolnuckle]

Great video! I like how he's brother talking about the yamaka and giving the example of honking, and a minute later there is a lot of honking

[@markmulder996]

It's truly remarkable how much this sounds like a middle ground between Dutch and German. I'm Dutch myself and also speak German, after seeing this, i will definitely take up some yiddish courses.

[@raydemi4488]

because its yiddish and not hebrew language

[@andyrobin7196]

thats antisemitic unless you're jewish

[@LaFlaneuse0]

@@andyrobin7196 How?

[@andyrobin7196]

@@LaFlaneuse0 cultural appropriation

[@tostcronch]

@@andyrobin7196 as a jewish person, no it isn't lol

[@g0hl]

Xioma, thank you for showing us all of these different cultures and showing appreciation for them in such a positive light. These videos never fail to make me laugh, smile, and appreciate thing a little more.

[@Isaacmg187]

Huge respect for this 🙌🏻

[@jeannetteelizabeth144]

This was a cool video to watch because even though I've learned Hebrew, I could understand the Yiddish thanks to the German I've studied!!😆😂🤣 LOL! It's great that you have such a love for languages! I enjoy watching these videos, and it will keep me learning more as well! Baruch Hashem!

[@rebvilla1]

One thing I like about your videos it is that we can experience other cultures, learn about them, get to know the people, and much more. I love NY with such a cultural diversity.

[@brianakelley123]

I found out I was Jewish through some ancestor tracing recently, my family had no idea and I know nothing about the ethnicity or religion, thank you for this ❤

[@jaybloomfield5082]

Welcome... If you are in the big city you could check out some of the Jewish delicatessens.

[@brianakelley123]

@@jaybloomfield5082 i worked at Carnegie deli in nyc for 2 years 😭

[@whitemailprivilege2830]

@@brianakelley123 they’re not kosher. JS

[@zachhamilton456]

I have never paid attention to Yiddish till this video, but it's crazy how so many words sound German. It's like I understood it to a degree without knowing the language.

[@Noimdirtydanko]

Man…the channel name, the video title 👌 compliments to the chef

[@alfie4734]

This guy would probably win a battle against duolingo😫

[@K4H_974]

This guy IS Duolingo

[@leviblalock7996]

Or at least win a lil taco. Lol

[@beorlingo]

Yeah, Duolingo maybe...

[@reinerca]

I LOVE the interaction starting at 14:05 - especially when she wishes you a happy holiday! So beautiful to see people from different cultures and places being respectful, working together, and existing as part of the same community. ווונדערלעך / maravilloso ❤

[@lindseyjacobson7094]

I love that I am suddenly on the Orthodox Jewish side of the internet. First with the Miami Boys Choir on TikTok and now this. I'm learning a lot!

[@stuartmiller7419]

All of your videos remind us that shared humanity brings us together and that unshared language keeps us apart.

[@Tipper1941]

Holy moly, a foreigner in your own hood. I feel you. Like my first visit to Japan, the homeland, surrounded by Japanese. Ha! Oddly, I took German in high school so I understood more Yiddish than I do in Japanese.

[@thorodinson6649]

Man i have somehow literally never met anyone of japanese ancestry here in north america.

[@shrayesraman5192]

@@thorodinson6649 Very common on the West Coast. LA SF etc. Whole communities.

[@aDubStepdrop]

@@shrayesraman5192 Vancouver Canada there are plenty

[@merrillgeorge1838]

Where fr do u live bro

[@IAmKnightsDawn]

日本語は少し話します。でも。。。まだまだです。

[@billdover3165]

I love this channel so much. Hearing the different dialects that you speak and the shock on everyone's face is just some of the best content I've ever consumed on KZbin.

[@nn_oogermany]

I had no idea that it’s that similar to German. I knew about the connection to the German langue but very interesting to actually hear and understand it.

[@igormorais358]

This guy is amazing,I only can't believe him when he says that he has been learning for only a few weeks

[@bemo98]

cool to be seeing more interactions with the Hasidic community since many of the people within are often worried that anyone with a camera is coming into their neighborhoods to criticize them in some way. Seems like in recent years especially there are more people even within the Hasidic community using KZbin to share the culture, which I think is fascinating. Time after time ari shows that choosing to speak someone else’s language is something that is warmly received and appreciated across cultures ❤

[@TheLozfan1000]

Yeah I watched a documentary and the hasidics refused to mention women because theres apparently a big abuse problem.

[@ShiyalaKohny]

Eh, their culture is toxic, I don’t think we should be pretending that an ancient religious way of living is somehow pure or beautiful. It’s primitive and full of shit speaking from first hand experience

[@GoBlueHTB]

These are Orthodox Jews, not Hasidic.

[@christophershirley3279]

@@GoBlueHTB I think Orthodox is kind of an umbrella term that could include many orthodox groups. If you’re Jewish, please educate me if I’m wrong.

[@davidcohenboffa1666]

​@@christophershirley3279 Orthodox means traditional, aka not Reform or Conservative. Inside Orthodox Jews there are Modern Orthodox (also Religious Zionists in Israel) and Haredim (what some people call Ultra-Orthodox). And inside the last group, there are Sephardic and Ashkenazi (wich also exist inside the other communities), and inside the Ashkenazi community there are Hasidic Jews and Misnagdim (opponents of Hasidism). Sorry if its too complicated, but Hasidic Jews are only a part of Orthodox Jews.

[@oscarm5368]

I love that you returned to your roots, Xiaoma. I spend so much time in other cultures that I appreciate so much when I am surrounded by my Mexican culture and people. It really makes it all special.

[@chashmal10]

Hell yea man!

[@layahchannahwillroth5857]

I knew you were rooted with the Jewish nation!!! Good for you braving the streets of NY on Erev Sukkos!

[@leonvanrenen4813]

bro i liked your video and then i tried to like it again because it was so nice

[@theirishhammer9108]

I was a Hebrew Linguist in the Air Force. I’m amazed at your ability to learn and remember languages. It’s a gift from God.

[@YOLOnyc]

אני מקווה שהוא תנסה ללימוד עברית, זה יהיה ממש מעניין אם הוא יכול להצליח - זה שפה אלף פעמים יותר קשה מיידיש.

[@rollsaround2096]

עד כמה שאני יודע לעברית אין שום קשר לספות אחרות. חוץ מאולי ארמית. וגם הדקדוק יחסית מוזר.

[@inbarsimana3811]

@@rollsaround2096 עברית היא שפה שמית ויש לנו קשר להמון שפות שעדיין חיות וגם כאלה שמתו, המשפחה השמית מאוד עשירה וגדולה. ערבית, עברית, ארמית, אמהרית, אכדית (מתה), אשורית, אבלאית, אמורית, טיגרינית ועוד הרבה שפות

[@bellabana]

Show me proof your God exists….oh wait, you can’t! God is Santa Claus for grownups!

[@PROVOCATEURSK]

Such unlogical thing to say. He is learning, not getting it for free. May Lucifer free your mind from cultist thinking.

[@jaime_lynn]

I was just talking to my mother (in my sukkah, funnily enough!) about Yiddish and my daughter as asked to hear it more and then here you are! I loved seeing Borough Park-I miss being down there more! What a wonderful way to kick off the new year and Sukkot! Can’t wait for part 2! Chag Sameach!

[@TheJleliot]

Living in Southern California I think I missed out with not living in this kind of community

[@Traveltownvlog]

Hello maym please🙏 help😭 me

[@andygardner3300]

Africans: wow, you speak our language! Here’s a free meal Chasidim: you want a lemon? That’ll be 100$

[@magicteen1]

You must have missed the beginning where they gave a sandwich

[@mmmnn2]

that's not a lemon it's an Etrog, and it's not for eating but for making a commandment from the bible.

[@EL-oj6uq]

It's not a lemon it's an Etrog

[@Jewish_Israeli_Zionist]

It's not a lemon, it's an Etrog (citron), and it's a really expensive fruit.

[@danielhosianna2633]

True

[@MaxPMagee]

Captions are also wrong at 14:00 (cap says $15, but the flower-seller said "veintecinco" not even close to quince, 15) cool that you left the mistake in though. That's a sign of a real student (always learning and not afraid to make mistakes)! Your enjoyment of the culture and food has become one of my favorite parts of your videos.

[@YouCanIwill]

You just earned a sub just for the overall natural way you are behind the camera as well as you clear unadulterated acceptance for all people! The world needs a few million of you sir.

[@addaeus11]

I’m black and I Jewish. I go to a Chabad Shul here in Central Florida. I don’t go often, but when I do. It fills my heart and my Neshama with Joy.

[@janellek21]

How are you treated by non-Jewish Blacks, seeing how anti-Semitism is so rampant within the Black American community?

[@sylvanticx]

I love Chabad, even as a Conservative Jew, not Orthodox, because I know wherever I go I can find community. I read a story a while back about a man traveling in Myanmar, of all places (not known for its big Jewish kehillah!), who got sick and had to go to the hospital. On his trip, he had visited Chabad for Kabbalat Shabbat or something (maybe Shabbat shacharit), so the rabbi knew him, and when the rabbi learned he was sick he visited him in the hospital and the rebbetzin brought him food. Just wonderful people.

[@raenfox]

Wow, I wasn't aware about the etrog thing and how important it is that they're flawless. They're even examining them with magnifiers like one would examine gemstones. Very interesting.

[@minime220220]

Love the “running” part of your ad for the earbuds 😂😂😂 just a quick jog past the screen lmao

[@BrodysLab]

The extra touch with the text bubbles was very insightful and made the video more interesting. You effort doesn't go unnoticed!

[@BrooklynHudson]

I really enjoyed this video. I've always been fascinated by the Jewish culture and, growing up in NYC, I love the Jewish people and enjoyed celebrating many of the holidays with our family friends. Looking forward to part 2, Ari. Your brother's a bit of a rockstar :)

[@SRGoldfish]

Thank u for showing me this experience. I’m blown away.

[@Paradisepuppy1919]

You speak really good Yiddish. I'm ( GERMAN-JEWISH) too and I can speak some Yiddish but I was born and raised in America. So I can only speak fluently. But you do a great job and you speak so fluently I like that

[@thomasfisher763]

You're really talented having such a grasp on so many languages. That's just so cool honestly

[@marissabrinkman6895]

I feel as though I’ve been waiting for this video!! Glad you’re doing it + helping to resurrect such an old and important language:)

[@kerenhayesod1]

Would love to see you spending time in Crown Heights... That's a whole vibe this time of the year. Totally see you at the Aliya Teffilin booth!

[@elisepage4279]

Looool the guy in the first place, WHY NOT SO FRUM???? I'm a convert and currently learning Yiddish, I know a bit of German which really helps and taking on part of the heritage feels meaningful. Was so cool to watch you engrossing yourself!