# Yiddish speech-to-text API (ייִדיש)

> KolWrite transcribes Yiddish audio into right-to-left Hebrew-script text with one API call: send "language": "yi" and get timed segments with speaker labels as JSON, TXT or SRT. Oracle models can translate the Yiddish into English or Hebrew in the same job.

Last updated: 2026-10-08 · HTML: https://console.kolwrite.com/speech-to-text/yiddish

## Transcribe Yiddish with one request

Set `language` to `yi` and start a job. Poll `GET /transcribe/{jobId}` for the result, or pass a `webhook_url`.

```bash
curl https://app.kolwrite.com/transcribe \
  -H "x-api-key: $KOLWRITE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"audio_url": "https://example.com/oral-history-yi.m4a", "model": "oracle", "language": "yi", "include_diarization": true, "output_format": "json"}'
```

Translate Yiddish audio into English in the same job (Oracle models only):

```bash
curl https://app.kolwrite.com/transcribe \
  -H "x-api-key: $KOLWRITE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"audio_url": "https://example.com/oral-history-yi.m4a", "model": "oracle_mini", "language": "yi", "translate_to": "en", "output_format": "srt"}'
```

## Yiddish at a glance

| Property | Details |
| --- | --- |
| API code | `yi` |
| Native name | ייִדיש |
| Writing direction | Right to left |
| Automatic detection | Yes: omit `language` or send `"auto"` |
| Translate Yiddish audio into | Any of the 100 supported languages, on Oracle models |
| Translate other languages into Yiddish | Yes: `translate_to: "yi"` on Oracle models |
| Output | JSON (segments, word timings, speakers), TXT, SRT |
| Price | US$0.48 (Base) to US$3.60 (Oracle Max) per audio hour; US$1.44 on Oracle |

## What to know about Yiddish transcription

- Yiddish is written right to left in Hebrew letters. Display transcripts with `dir="rtl"`.
- Spelling conventions differ (standard YIVO orthography and the spellings common in Hasidic publications). The transcript may not follow your house style; plan a normalization step.
- Yiddish is a lower-resource language for speech recognition. Expect more variation than for Hebrew or English and test a sample before you transcribe an archive.
- Recordings often switch into Hebrew, English or Russian. Send `yi` when Yiddish dominates.

## Where teams use Yiddish transcription

- Oral-history and archive digitization projects.
- Community media and lectures in Yiddish-speaking communities.
- Research on Yiddish speech, with word timings for alignment.

## Choosing a model

Start with `oracle` (US$1.44 per hour) for production Yiddish audio. Use `base` (US$0.48) for clean, single-speaker recordings at volume, `oracle_mini` (US$0.96) for the cheapest translation, and `oracle_pro` or `oracle_max` for noisy or difficult audio. KolWrite does not publish a Yiddish accuracy figure for this API, so test a sample of your own recordings before committing. Full comparison: [models and prices](https://console.kolwrite.com/models).

## Questions and answers

### Does KolWrite follow YIVO spelling?

There is no spelling option. Normalize to YIVO or your own convention in post-processing.

### Can I translate Yiddish recordings into Hebrew or English?

Yes, on an Oracle model with `translate_to: "he"` or `"en"`.

### How reliable is Yiddish transcription?

Yiddish has far less training audio than major languages. Test a representative sample and plan human review for archival work.

## Related pages

- [Hebrew speech-to-text](https://console.kolwrite.com/speech-to-text/hebrew)
- [German speech-to-text](https://console.kolwrite.com/speech-to-text/german)
- [English speech-to-text](https://console.kolwrite.com/speech-to-text/english)
- [Language research & linguistics](https://console.kolwrite.com/use-cases/researchers)
- [Universities & students](https://console.kolwrite.com/use-cases/education)
- [Supported languages](https://console.kolwrite.com/languages/)

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Get an API key: https://console.kolwrite.com/auth · API documentation: https://console.kolwrite.com/public_api_docs · llms.txt: https://console.kolwrite.com/llms.txt