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Could dementia be the key to saving endangered Jewish languages?

JL;DR SUMMARY The revival and preservation of endangered Jewish languages, such as Judeo-Kashi and Judeo-Tuyserkani, are finding unexpected allies in older generations affected by dementia. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

LinguisticsLanguage PreservationCultural PreservationHeritageJewish LanguagesDementiaIntergenerational RelationshipsIranian JewsJudeo KashiJudeo Tuyserkani

Places mentioned

Tehran, Fars, Iran
"Inside the Youssef Abad synagogue in Tehran."
Kashan, Isfahan, Iran
"Judeo-Kashi, a variety of Judeo-Iranian. Her father spoke this language as a child in the Iranian city of Kashan before he moved to the capital, Tehran."
Tuyserkan, Hamadan, Iran
"Mommy Po-Po was born around 1939 in the small Iranian city of Tuyserkan in Hamadan province."
Great Neck, New York, United States
"Ashton, an 18-year-old from Great Neck, New York, had always been close with his grandmother, Mommy Po-Po, who began showing signs of dementia more than a year ago."
Brooklyn, New York, United States
"Lauren Hakimi is a journalist based in Brooklyn, New York."

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Cairo Item ID 63597
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-10-12 05:30:41 UTC
Curated 2025-10-12 08:30:59 UTC