Reading Yiddish: Vowels Are Letters!

Yiddish uses the Hebrew alphabet, but it is much easier to read than Hebrew. Why? Because Yiddish is written phonetically: almost every sound has its own letter, and the vowels are letters too. Once you know the alef-beys, you can sound out almost any Yiddish word.

The Yiddish alphabet

Vowels are letters

This is the big difference from Hebrew. In Yiddish, vowels are full letters:

Combinatory letters (digraphs)

💡 Tip: Modern Yiddish often writes וו for v, ױ for oy, ײ for ey, and ײַ for ay.

Final forms

Five letters have final forms, just like Hebrew:

Reading strategy

1. Read left to right? No — Yiddish reads right to left, like Hebrew.
2. Sound out each letter. Vowels are already there.
3. Watch for combinatory letters: װ, ױ, ײ, ײַ.
4. Remember that final forms only appear at the end of a word.

✅ Key takeaways

• Yiddish is written phonetically: vowels are full letters.
• Main vowel letters: אַ (a), אָ (o), ו (u/o/v), י (i/y/ey), ע (e).
• Digraphs: װ = v, ױ = oy, ײ = ey, ײַ = ay.
• Five letters have final forms: ך, ם, ן, ף, ץ.
• Read right to left, sound out letter by letter.

✏️ Practice

1. What sound does אַ make?
2. What is the Yiddish word for "house" and how do you read it?
3. Which digraph represents /oy/?
4. Name the five final-form letters.
5. Read this word: קינד (kind). What does it mean?

Answers

1. /a/.
2. הויז (hoyz) — read h-o-y-z.
3. ױ (vav-yud).
4. ך, ם, ן, ף, ץ.
5. "Child."