DRBR 18: In which more Nuptials feature

[hatam_soferet]

This is from the wedding of Julius Lorsch and Rebecka Cahn, special call number DR6-R36. A Hochzeits-Hagada, dated 1911, Fulda.

I like the little photos stapled to the top here. Julius has a very traditional German Yekkish käppchen, and Rebecka looks like she has those over-the-ears buns that were in style in the 1920s.

Julius and Rebecka perhaps had a sentimental attachment to Pesach; they have a Wedding Haggadah, which follows the form of the Pesach Haggadah. I assume it featured at the wedding dinner; it’s full of cute little poems about the couple. Maybe written by their friends or family?

The front reads:

Hochzeits-Hagada
das ist
Seder und Erzählung
von der Verliebung, Vehrlobung und Verheyratung
des ehrengeachteten und frommen
Herrn Dr. Julius Lorsch
und der hochachtbaren, fürnehmen und minneglichen Jungfrau
Fräulein Rebecka Cahn

Here’s one of the poems. I chose this one because it shows us that Becki was also Dr. Cahn.

והיא שעמדה Das alles hat ihm beigestanden Hat behrümt ihn gemacht bei allen Bekammten Man hat ihm viele angetragen Doch keine wollt ihm recht behagen Denn seit dem grossen Trennungsschmertz Besas Rebecka allein sein Hertz. Er macht eine Eingabe an Dr. Cahn Führt alle seine Dorzüge an, Auf die gestüsst, er sich getraut, Verlangen zu dürfen die Becki aus Braut.

All this served him, Gave him fame among all his acquaintances. Many have been suggested to him, But none would be to his liking, For since the great pain of separation, Rebecka alone possessed his heart. He petitions Dr. Cahn, lists all his advantages, leaning on which he dares to ask for Becki as a bride.

Thanks to Phillip Lipman for translation. You see it isn’t Great Poetry or anything, but it’s Telling The Story of The Couple, like the haggada tells the story of the Jews. Which is cute.

For your edification, here are all the pages. All images, as usual, copyright Jewish Theological Seminary of America, used with permission, click through to see larger versions. Anyone with good German who wants to translate the whole story of the couple is more than welcome to share it with the rest of us!

Page 1

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4

Page 5

Mirrored from hasoferet.com.

Comments

Adir hu

[leftyjew]

I can't speak for the others, but it looks like Adir Hu matches the rhythm of the original!

[lethargic_man]

I hate to say, but I suspect Dr Cahn is not actually Rebecka but her father.

(There's also a few mistooks in your transcription: should be "Verlobung", "minniglichen"^* and "Besaß" (or "Besass").)

* Though this may possibly be a typo, since my German etymological dictionary has Minne, and Google Translate (which cannot make sense of the whole word) supplies glichen.

[hatam_soferet]

Oh rats, you're right, it would be her father wouldn't it. Bleg. I shall amend the post at some point.

[jillt]

I was going to make the same point - Er macht eine Eingabe an Herrn Doktor Cahn.

[lethargic_man]

Been looking at these a bit more since. You know, it's funny: since, to a first approximation, I only ever see Hebrew transliterated according to its Israeli pronunciation, or (in places like ArtScroll books) the Polish (?) pronunciation, no matter how I try and write the Yekkish pronunciation I use, it looks wrong. So, with the exception of a few well-known words such as "Shabbos" I tend to transliterate according to Israeli pronunciation but read it back Yekkishly. As a result, it looks very odd seeing the pronunciation I actually use written down (whether or not with German orthography): "Parſchiauß", "Thauroh", etc—though, like Regina Jonas in her rabbinical dissertation (though not to the same extent: they're writing earlier in the period of the revival of spoken Hebrew), they're inconsistent in their pronunciation scheme: "Hagada" on the front page, not "Hagodoh".

[hatam_soferet]

Try reading it when it's also broken up into syllables and spread out along a stave...