Yiddish Fight Club/YIVO at 90

May 8, 2015

Last week, YIVO hosted two audience-packed events: the opening of the exhibition, Yiddish Fight Club and “YIVO at 90,” an all-day conference in honor of YIVO’s 90th anniversary.

Yiddish Fight Club is based on a 1926 linguistic study of Yiddish fighting terms and combines the now-forgotten slang of a violent Yiddish underworld with images of Jewish brawlers from the past. The exhibition was curated by YIVO Academic Advisor Edward Portnoy and designed by YIVO Web and Graphics Designer Alix Brandwein. It runs through September 1, 2015.

“Building a Future in America,” which took place on May 3, focused on YIVO’s work and activities in the 75 years since its relocation to New York and featured a keynote address by Kalman Weiser, as well as three panels with presentations by leading scholars. Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Mantvydas Bekešius was an honored guest.

Download the conference program.

Press coverage of Yiddish Fight Club:

Jewish Boxers and Wrestlers, and Yiddish Fighting Words, at Yivo Institute Exhibition (New York Times)
People of the Ring: New York exhibition celebrates Jewish boxers and wrestlers (Haaretz)
Fighting to Keep Yiddish Culture Alive (The Jewish Week)
Yidisher kampf-klub in YIVO (Forverts)
“How Do You Say ‘Uppercut’ in Yiddish?” (Forward)
YIVO Gives a Zetz To Jewish Wrestlers As Mayweather and Pacquiao Prepare to Brawl (Jewlicious)