Dorothea Greve

We are very sad to have to announce that our dear friend and colleague, Dorothea Greve, passed away on may 14. Dorothea was a woman of incredible energy, and spirit. Her feeling for and dedication to Yiddish language and culture was at the core of her life. She was an absolutely brilliant teacher, and she introduced Yiddish language and culture to countless people. She was also a wonderful musician who inspired her colleagues everywhere with her skill, knowledge, humor and love. She was a cherished and beloved colleague and friend, teaching Yiddish in Yiddish Summer Weimar since 2004.

Dorothea Greve was an experienced Yiddish teacher and scholar – one of the few in Germany. She has taught Yiddish language, literature and culture at a number of universities and institutions of adult education in Germany, the UK, and Italy.

Dorothea was on the teaching staff of Yiddish Summer Weimar since 2004, offering Yiddish classes for beginners as well as an introduction to Yiddish song.

Besides teaching she was a singer and storyteller in the klezmer ensemble Karahod and The Yiddish Vocalists. She was also been involved in various Yiddish/Jewish theatre productions, the latest being Joshua Sobol’s “Ghetto” in Bremerhaven. In 2009 she was a guest lecturer at the Ruhrtriennale in Bochum. A year later her numerous film interviews with Yiddish creative artists and activists in Israel were turned into a documentary.

In Hamburg she co-founded the “Salomo-Birnbaum-Society for Yiddish” (1995), a non-profit organization that promotes Yiddish culture in Germany and abroad.

Last but not least Dorothea Greve was a translator of modern Yiddish prose into German. She has translated the famous Vilna ghetto diary of Masha Rolnikaite “IKh MUZ DERTsEYLN”, and edited several volumes of short stories.

Recently she co-authored the textbook “DER ALEF-BEYS, TRIT BAY TRIT”, a practical introduction to the Yiddish alphabet.

http://yiddish.forward.com/articles/196827/inspiring-yiddish-instructor-dorothea-geve-has-die/

obituary of the Birnbaum-Gesellschaft: http://www.birnbaum-gesellschaft.org/

www.hempen-verlag.de/der-alef-beys-trit-bay-trit.html  
www.birnbaum-gesellschaft.org/index.php/in-hamburg.html
www.stefan-goreiski.de/karahod.html
www.klezmerwelten.de/2004-04-24.htm

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