Throughout all generations, Yidden have had a language of their own and spoke differently from the nations around them. Generally, this was done by intentionally jumbling the local language, and adding many words from lashon hakodesh. (In fact some speakers of Yiddish call it not “Yiddish,” but “zhargon.”)
Some opinions consider speaking like the nations to be part of the Torah’s explicit prohibition against following chukos hagoyim, the ways of the non-Jews, while the Talmud Yerushalmi includes this practice among the decrees that Chazal instituted during the days of Hillel and Shammai, to keep Yidden separate..
Some tzaddikim have explained that the language of a nation expresses its nature, and speaking that language influences the speaker.
Reprinted from the Parshas Bo 5786 of The Weekly Farbrengen
