The team are headed with Boltykh to the next interview with Semyon Semyonovich Katerberg. The team arrives at his apartment and sets up the interview with him and his wife Tatyana Yakovlevna Katerberg.
From the machine transcript
The team travels with Boltykh to the next interview, with Russian talk about parking, and arrives at Semyon Katerberg's home. Kerler introduces the team and explains the project to Katerberg and his wife, who has doubts about publishing; Lemster adds that they can use initials.
adds the travel and the project's explanation to the couple
The formal part of the interview begins. Katerberg provides personal information and talks about his family. His father was born in Yenovits, Ukraine, and owned a shop. He states that his mother and sister were shot at the beginning of the war.
From the machine transcript
The formal interview begins. Katerberg gives his name Shimen, his father's name Shmuel and his father's birthplace in Bukovina, Yenovits (?), and says the father kept a shop in Berlinți and died in 1941. His mother and sister, born 1930, were shot in the war; he names his sister (Maniya/Mariam, unclear) and gives dates of birth.
adds the details of the father's trade, the sister's name and the shooting of Jews in Berlinți
Katerberg speaks about Jewish life in Berlintsy before the war. According to him, thirty Jewish families lived there.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg describes Berlinți before the war as a village of about thirty-odd Jewish families, with small shops and a bit of land. There was a primitive prayer house, later a Soviet club, and he recalls a teacher.
Katerberg talks about his education. He attended a religious school (cheder). After the war, Katerberg was the president of a kolkhoz in the village Larga and moved to Berlinţi fifteen years ago. He then briefly mentions his bar mitzvah.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg talks about cheder in Berlinți and his teacher, named Steingauz (?), who died in the war and who beat the children. He studied Humash and Rashi. He says he moved to Briceni fifteen years ago after being kolkhoz chairman in Larga, and that he lived among Christians. Lemster asks about his bar mitzvah; he recalls only a meal.
adds the name of the teacher and the content of the studies
Katerberg discusses his childhood memories. In particular, he recalls how families gathered during the long winter nights. He also addresses food customs.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg recalls long winter evenings when neighbors gathered in turns at one house or another, baking bread and drinking tea, and Friday baking of challah. Lemster asks about Sabbath food: meat, gefilte fish, which Tatyana still makes. Her name is given as Tube.
Tatyana provides personal information.
From the machine transcript
Tatyana gives personal information: her Yiddish name Tube, now Tatyana, maiden name Akkerboim, from Berlinți, born in 1930 (?), and the interview date is repeated.
Tatyana explains how she prepares gefilte fish.
From the machine transcript
Tatyana explains how she prepares gefilte fish, from skinning to grinding the flesh, adding salt, pepper and sweet water, and baking or boiling it; the questions go on to fish skin stuffed with pieces and fish broth. Lemster asks about further details.
Semyon talks about the family gatherings during winter before the war. Tatyana adds that families from Berlinţi would often go to the neighboring village Beleavinţi.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs say that people spent winter nights with different families, and Tatyana explains that Berlinți and the neighboring village of Bilavintsy (Beleavinți) had Jews who often gathered in the latter. Asked about Yiddish reading, they recall little; their son cannot speak Yiddish.
adds the neighbouring village and the discussion of reading
Semyon talks about his family. Their son lives in Stanislav.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg says he remembers his grandmother, his mother's mother, who lived with them, but not his grandfathers; his father's parents were in Yenovits. He names his paternal grandfather Manes and maternal grandfather Aron. Their son, named for the father, lives in Stanislav.
adds the grandparents' names and the naming of their son
Tatyana talks about holiday celebration, particularly Purim. Semyon then explains how to play nuts, which he often did during Passover.
From the machine transcript
Tatyana recalls one Purim when children gathered and ran around a courtyard, with masquerade. Semyon describes nut games at Passover, such as setting up nuts to knock down, and mentions the dreidel at Hanukkah. They also recall Hanukkah money and sweets, but no recipe for latkes.
adds the nut games, dreidel and Hanukkah customs
The Katerbergs talk about prewar life in Berlinţi with a majority of Christian residents. Semyon attended a Romanian school for seven years.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs describe prewar Berlinți as a pleasant village with many Christians; the children played and attended Romanian school together. Semyon says he studied for seven years. They discuss whether Christians spoke Yiddish and say Jews and Christians were not distinguished, even in the army.
adds the discussion of Christians speaking Yiddish
Semyon briefly talks about his life during the war. He served in the Red Army at the Japanese front. He then touches upon local Jewish writers and postwar Yiddish press.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg briefly says he was in the army and on the Transbaikal (Japanese) front (?). Asked about Yiddish writers from Lipcani and about Soviet Yiddish press, he and Tatyana recall little, and she says people feared keeping such a journal in the house. Kerler closes by explaining the project and its dialect research aims.
adds the discussion of the Soviet Yiddish press and Kerler's closing explanation
Semyon talks about prewar religious life, in particular his religious education at a cheder. Semyon attended cheder, before going to a Romanian school. He also addresses Sabbath celebration at home.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg answers questions about a rabbi's wife in the village and about cheder. He went to cheder every day except Sabbath, and afterwards to the Romanian school. Lemster asks how his mother blessed the candles on Friday evening and what she wore on her head. A concluding stretch is about the end of the Sabbath and the 'good week' greeting.
The passage also covers the rabbi's wife and details of the mother's Sabbath candle blessing.
Semyon talks about his work before the war. After graduating from school, Semyon worked at a mill until 1940. He then worked for the Executive Committee of the District Soviet of People's Deputies in Lipcani until 1941.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg says he worked from the age of thirteen in a mill, until the Soviets arrived. He then worked in Lipcani until the war.
The catalogue gives an employer (district executive committee); the transcript only says he worked at a mill from age 13 and then in Lipcani.
Semyon speaks about prewar religious life, particuarly a kosher butcher.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg talks about the ritual slaughterer, who came every week from Cotiujeni and served several villages, including a trip to Lipcani. Lemster and Kerler ask about rabbis and the 'good Jew' to whom people travelled. S3 tells the saying about a non-Jew who speaks Yiddish, and Kerler compares this with a Yiddish-speaking Ukrainian he met in Sharhorod. It ends as Lemster asks him a question about his time as a chairman.
The passage adds a saying about Yiddish-speaking non-Jews and talk of rebbes visited.
Semyon talks about his work as president of two kolkhozy (for four and sixteen years) after the war. Specifically, he addresses how he was accepted as a Jew and antisemitic stereotypes during the war.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg recounts being elected kolkhoz chairman in two villages, for four years in one and sixteen in the other. He tells an anecdote about a meeting where he answered a remark that there had been no Jews at the front. He says he spoke Moldovan in the Moldovan village and Russian in the Ukrainian one, names other Jewish chairmen, and tells of seminars at which he had to tell Jewish anecdotes. The talk ends with Lemster asking about awards.
The passage adds the language he used in the two villages, other Jewish chairmen and the seminars with Jewish anecdotes.
Semyon lists his military decorations. He states that the received sixteen different medals. He then talks more about his work on the kolkhoz. He graduated from an economic institute.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg lists his decorations, including the Order of Lenin and a number of medals. He says he was in the countryside but did not deal with agriculture itself, since specialists did that; he graduated in economics at Lipcani, a degree he completed in 1948 at the time of his wedding.
The passage adds that he finished the institute in 1948, the same year as the wedding.
The Katerbergs speak about their traditional wedding with a rabbi in Lipcani in 1948. Tatyana describes where they put the canopy and also addresses food customs.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs talk about their 1948 wedding in Lipcani, held under a canopy next to the house. They discuss the rabbi who spoke in Yiddish, the music at the wedding, a relative who stood in as a 'sitting' sponsor, the dancing and drinking, the small number of guests and the cake that was baked. Lemster and Kerler ask the questions.
The passage adds the language used at the wedding, the guests and the music.
Tatyana shares her recipe for flat cake (flodn).
From the machine transcript
Katerberg gives a recipe for flodn (a layered pastry with filling), from walnuts, honey and jam, baked in the oven and cut into pieces. They also discuss what Yiddish called the ingredients.
The Katerbergs talk about weddings and their life after the war. They lived in Lipcani until 1959, before Semyon became the president of a kolkhoz.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs discuss the bride's and the groom's guests at weddings and where the groom's guests sat. They say that after the wedding they lived with the wife's parents in Lipcani until 1959, when he left for a kolkhoz.
The passage adds the terms for the wedding guests and who lived with whom.
Tatyana briefly speaks about her life during the war. She evacuated with her mother. They then speak about Jewish life before the war, in particular occupational structure.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg says she spent the war in evacuation with her mother, while her father was in the army. She and Katerberg then talk about the few Jewish families in the village and its tradesmen, including a tailor and a furrier, and the terms for a stream and river. Kerler asks about folktales.
The passage adds the village's few Jewish families, tradesmen and words for river and stream.
The Katerbergs answer questions about cultural terminology. Tatyana recalls a Christian healer.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs answer questions about terms: what 'getoyg' means and the folk cure of 'speaking away' illness by a Christian woman healer. The woman took coal and spoke words over the person, charging nothing. Lemster asks about doctors in the village.
The passage adds the healing practice and the terms asked about.
Semyon speaks about prewar Jewish life, including the local mohel and doctor. He then states that his son was circumcised in Chernivtsi in 1949. Tatyana then speaks about Yiddish books at home.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg says there was no doctor in the village, and the mohel and ritual slaughterer came from Cotiujeni. Their son's circumcision was done in Chernivtsi in the Soviet period, followed by a small celebration at home. Kerler asks about libraries and books at home; Tatyana says her teacher taught her at home from Yiddish primers and recalls a Russian rhyme.
The passage adds the lack of a village library, the home tutor and the mohel.
The Katerbergs address prewar cultural life. They recall performances by Sidi Tal in Lipcani. The then answer questions about cultural terminology.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs recall the Yiddish theater of Sidi Tal in Lipcani and travelling troupes, and the question of film. Kerler asks about words such as dybbuk, golem, apostate and convert, and the Katerbergs say what they remember about them.
The passage adds the terms asked about and the travelling troupes.
Tatyana shares her recipe for kamish broit. They then talk about food customs in general and Tatyana explains how she prepares "esikfleysh" (meat in sweet and sour sauce). She then describes how she cooks stuffed goose neck.
From the machine transcript
Katerberg gives recipes for kamish bread and esikfleysh, the Jewish meat dish in sweet and sour sauce. She also describes filled goose neck and giblets, stuffed fish, kishke and potato latkes made for Passover. Kerler and Lemster ask which dishes were Jewish and what they were called.
The passage adds other dishes: esikfleysh, giblets, kishke and latkes.
The Katerbergs answer dialectological questions from the AHEYM Yiddish linguistic questionnaire.
From the machine transcript
Kerler and Lemster put questionnaire items to the Katerbergs: the words for 'earlier' and 'once', how to say them in Yiddish, and a song for Passover. They also ask about serenades before the wedding canopy.
The Katerbergs talk about how they met after the war. Tatyana's mother brought them together, she explains. Tatyana then talks about her parents. Her mother worked at a brick factory during the war in evacuation.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs tell how they met after the war: Tatyana's mother met him at the market and brought him home. Tatyana was sixteen and still in school, so her mother did not want her to marry yet; he returned a year later. She also talks about her parents: her mother was shot in the war, her father was an atheist who liked a drink, and her mother lit candles.
The passage adds Tatyana's account of her parents, which the catalogue places in evacuation.
Tatyana talks about contemporary Jewish life. The team then concludes interview.
From the machine transcript
The Katerbergs talk about contemporary life: they speak Yiddish together only a little, do not hear Yiddish broadcasts, and there are few Jews in Briceni. They say they have no contact with former residents, apart from a quarrel with a relative in Israel. Kerler and Lemster thank them and end the interview.
The passage adds the lack of contact with former residents and Yiddish broadcasts.
