From the beginning, Jewish history and culture is closely tied to language, from Hebrew and Aramaic to the languages of diaspora such as Yiddish and Ladino. Focusing on issues of language in society, this course will survey the languages spoken by the Jews throughout their long history in diverse communities around the world. We will learn about Hebrew as a spoken and a sacred language, examine how Jewish languages are born and die, and discuss the resurrection of Modern Hebrew in the state of Israel. All readings are in English. No prior knowledge of languages or linguistics is required. (Same as LING 338.)