Pesach is less that a week away and as Jewish families around the world prepare for a joyous annual getogether, I want to create a special holiday gift for Yiddish Translation’s visitors, fans and customers.

So here I present an original video: The 4 Questions of the Passover Seder (Mah Nishtana), in Yiddish and Hebrew, with my own English translation. The tune is by Alter Yachnes, also known as Rebbe Alter, and I find that it always puts me in a good mood when I hear it:

I always thought the Mah Nishtana was the highlight of the seder. Maybe that’s because I was the youngest in my family and that meant that I got to sing it first – my once-a-year spotlight performance. Since Pesach is such a family-oriented holiday, it seems to me that the four questions are very symbolic. Basically we all need someone to ask our question to and someone to ask us questions, and that is the intersection of generations.

Oh yeah, and Passover is Paysach in Yiddish!

A Kashern und fraylichen Paysach to you all!

PS. Thanks to Rebbe Alter’s management for permission to use this song. In our family, we are big fans of Rebbe Alter!  If you like his music you can hear more at Mostly Music.

PSS. Want to learn Yiddish? Get some free lessons at Yiddish Academy