Babel in Zion : Jews, Nationalism, and Language Diversity in Palestine, 1920-1948 / Liora R. Halperin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Halperin, Liora R., Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Multilingualism--Palestine--History--20th century.

Multilingualism.

Jews--Palestine--Languages--History--20th century.

Jews.

Hebrew language--Palestine--History--20th century.

Hebrew language.

Jews--Identity.

Physical Description:

1 online resource : illustrations (black and white)

Place of Publication:

New Haven, CT : Yale University Press, [2014]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The promotion and vernacularization of Hebrew, traditionally a language of Jewish liturgy and study, was a central accomplishment of the Zionist movement in Palestine in the years following World War I. Viewing twentieth-century history through the lens of language, author Liora Halperin questions the accepted scholarly narrative of a Zionist move away from multilingualism, demonstrating how Jews in Palestine remained connected linguistically by both preference and necessity to a world outside the boundaries of the pro-Hebrew community even as it promoted Hebrew and achieved that language's dominance. The story of language encounters in Jewish Palestine is a fascinating tale of shifting power relationships, both locally and globally. Halperin's absorbing study explores how a young national community was compelled to modify the dictates of Hebrew exclusivity as it negotiated its relationships with its Jewish population, Palestinian Arabs, the British, and others outside the margins of the national project and ultimately came to terms with the limitations of its hegemony in an interconnected world.

Contents:

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

Note on Transliteration and Translation

Acknowledgments

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER ONE: LANGUAGES OF LEISURE IN THE HOME, THE COFFEE HOUSE, AND THE CINEMA

CHAPTER TWO: PEDDLERS, TRADERS, AND THE LANGUAGES OF COMMERCE

CHAPTER THREE: CLERKS, TRANSLATORS ,AND THE LANGUAGES OF BUREAUCRACY

CHAPTER FOUR: ZION IN BABEL

CHAPTER FIVE: HEBREW EDUCATION BETWEEN EAST AND WEST

CONCLUSION: THE PERSISTENCE OF BABEL

NOTES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INDEX

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 24. Apr 2020)

ISBN:

9780300210200

0300210205

OCLC:

894506963