In August 1908, a few prominent Jews - socialists, liberals, non-political writers and cultural organizers - worked out a programme for promoting Yiddish as the official language of Ashkenazic Jews. Ninety years later, leading scholars explore the influence of this historic meeting, providing a panoramic view of Yiddish at the century's end. An annual international gathering provides ongoing analysis of Yiddish language, literature and culture. Published here are papers from the 1998 conference, held in Oxford.