MALKE BERLANT’S 1836 YIDDISH GUIDE FOR “THE HAPPY MOTHER“

Malke Berlant, one of three Jewish professional midwives active in Vilna in the first half of the nineteenth century who left their mark on the Jewish public life of that period, was the author of Di gliklikhe mutter (Vilna 1836), the first modern Yiddish printed guidebook for pregnant women, mothers of newborns and young children. This article explores the general historical and cultural background and context in which the guidebook was authored and published. It presents the phenomenon of academic institutions (mainly in Vilna) open to Jewish women at this early stage, with the intention of training qualified midwives. Berlant’s book includes new insights regarding pregnancy, childbirth, baby care and child-raising. Some of these rules negated widely accepted norms and traditions. The main purpose of the book was to expose the lay female reader to the advantages of modern medicine and persuade her to avoid the traditional “experts” and their healing methods.