A Frog Under the Tongue: Jewish Folk Medicine in Eastern Europe
A Frog Under the Tongue: Jewish Folk Medicine in Eastern Europe
Cite
Abstract
Jews have been active participants in shaping the healing practices of the communities of eastern Europe. Their approach largely combined the ideas of traditional Ashkenazi culture with the heritage of medieval and early modern medicine. Holy rabbis and faith healers, as well as Jewish barbers, innkeepers, and pedlars, all dispensed cures, purveyed folk remedies for different ailments, and gave hope to the sick and their families based on kabbalah, numerology, prayer, and magical Hebrew formulas. Nevertheless, as new sources of knowledge penetrated the traditional world, modern medical ideas gained widespread support. Jews became court physicians to the nobility, and when the universities were opened up to them many also qualified as doctors. At every stage, medicine proved an important field for cross-cultural contacts. Jewish historians and scholars of folk medicine alike will discover here fascinating sources never previously explored — manuscripts, printed publications, and memoirs in Yiddish and Hebrew but also in Polish, English, German, Russian, and Ukrainian. The author's careful study of these documents has teased out therapeutic advice, recipes, magical incantations, kabbalistic methods, and practical techniques, together with the ethical considerations that such approaches entailed. The research fills a gap in the study of folk medicine in eastern Europe, shedding light on little-known aspects of Ashkenazi culture, and on how the need to treat sickness brought Jews and their neighbours together.
-
Front Matter
- Introduction
-
Part I Health and Sickness in the Culture of Ashkenazi Jews
Marek Tuszewicki -
Part II A World of Similarities and Signs
Marek Tuszewicki -
Part III Redemption and Festivals
Marek Tuszewicki -
Part IV Unclean Forces
Marek Tuszewicki -
End Matter
Sign in
Personal account
- Sign in with email/username & password
- Get email alerts
- Save searches
- Purchase content
- Activate your purchase/trial code
- Add your ORCID iD
Purchase
Our books are available by subscription or purchase to libraries and institutions.
Purchasing informationMonth: | Total Views: |
---|---|
November 2022 | 3 |
January 2023 | 1 |
April 2023 | 1 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 6 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
June 2023 | 3 |
October 2023 | 3 |
October 2023 | 2 |
October 2023 | 1 |
October 2023 | 2 |
October 2023 | 3 |
October 2023 | 3 |
October 2023 | 1 |
October 2023 | 3 |
October 2023 | 5 |
November 2023 | 2 |
November 2023 | 1 |
November 2023 | 2 |
November 2023 | 1 |
November 2023 | 2 |
November 2023 | 2 |
November 2023 | 2 |
January 2024 | 1 |
January 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 1 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 1 |
February 2024 | 2 |
February 2024 | 2 |
April 2024 | 1 |
April 2024 | 1 |
April 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 2 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 3 |
August 2024 | 2 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 5 |
August 2024 | 2 |
August 2024 | 2 |
August 2024 | 1 |
August 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 3 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
October 2024 | 1 |
December 2024 | 1 |
December 2024 | 1 |
February 2025 | 3 |
February 2025 | 1 |
February 2025 | 1 |
February 2025 | 2 |
March 2025 | 2 |
March 2025 | 1 |
March 2025 | 1 |
March 2025 | 1 |
March 2025 | 4 |
March 2025 | 1 |
April 2025 | 2 |
April 2025 | 3 |
Get help with access
Institutional access
Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:
IP based access
Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account.
Sign in through your institution
Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Shibboleth/Open Athens technology is used to provide single sign-on between your institution’s website and Oxford Academic.
If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institution’s website, please contact your librarian or administrator.
Sign in with a library card
Enter your library card number to sign in. If you cannot sign in, please contact your librarian.
Society Members
Society member access to a journal is achieved in one of the following ways:
Sign in through society site
Many societies offer single sign-on between the society website and Oxford Academic. If you see ‘Sign in through society site’ in the sign in pane within a journal:
If you do not have a society account or have forgotten your username or password, please contact your society.
Sign in using a personal account
Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. See below.
Personal account
A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions.
Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members.
Viewing your signed in accounts
Click the account icon in the top right to:
Signed in but can't access content
Oxford Academic is home to a wide variety of products. The institutional subscription may not cover the content that you are trying to access. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian.
Institutional account management
For librarians and administrators, your personal account also provides access to institutional account management. Here you will find options to view and activate subscriptions, manage institutional settings and access options, access usage statistics, and more.