Matthew Scarborough ๐‹'s Avatar

Matthew Scarborough ๐‹

@mattitiahu

Philologist and historical linguist. Formerly UCPH, MPI-SHH, and Cambridge. Mostly Ancient Greek, comparative Indo-European, and nonsense. (โฒ›ฬ„โฒงโฒŸฯฅ/โฒ›ฬ„โฒงโฒŸโฒŸโฒฉ) https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1782-5223 https://brill.com/display/title/57781 https://iecor.clld.org/

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Latest posts by Matthew Scarborough ๐‹ @mattitiahu

my ET of the Armenian:

"It was also suspected that his relationship with Alkibiades was based on a detestable desire, but the Socratics remark, saying, 'His relationship with everybody was based on divine desire, not the desire of the passions.'"

06.03.2026 18:11 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 2 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Old Armenian word of the day
ีทีกีฒีกีทีกึ€ีฅีด
entwine, combine, connect

as 2x in ps.-Nonnos, ed. Manandian, 253.15-17

ิฑีตีฌ ีฏีกีฝีฏีกีฎ ีฅีฒีฅึ‚ ีฉีง ีฅึ‚ ีจีถีค ิฑีฒีฏีซีบีซีกีคีฅีกีต ีทีกีฒีกีทีกึ€ีซ ีจีฝีฟ ีฃีกึ€ีทีฅีฌีซ ีฟีผึƒีธึ‚ีฉีฅีกีถีถ. ีขีกีตึ ีฝีธีพีฏึ€ีกีฟีฅีกีถึ„ีถ ีกีฝีฅีฌีธีพ ีกีฝีฅีถ, ีฉีง ีทีกีฒีกีทีกึ€ีฅึีกึ‚ ีจีถีค ีกีดีฅีถีกีตีถ ีธีน ีกีญีฟีกีฟีผึƒีธึ‚ีฉีฅีกีดีข, ีกีตีฌ ีกีฝีฟีธึ‚ีกีฎีกีตีถีธีพีถึ‰

my ET (+ Grk) โฌ‡๏ธ

06.03.2026 18:11 ๐Ÿ‘ 5 ๐Ÿ” 2 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Continuing to resist that primal masculine urge to start a podcast. That one's still difficult.

05.03.2026 16:56 ๐Ÿ‘ 5 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Never would I have expected that in the year 2026 my commitment to shaving and reading books would be a marker of gender non-conformity.

05.03.2026 16:55 ๐Ÿ‘ 4 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

While I had it marked in my calendar for reasons, I missed it myself and I didn't see anyone posting about it yesterday so I'm glad แผฮพฮตฮปฮฑฯฮฝฯ‰ day is officially dead. It was very dumb.

05.03.2026 16:04 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I think the idea is that he's talking about the reflexes of what he assumes to be his proto-form *สขสทneHยช-, but it's definitely not standard cover-signs.

I find it strange he's weirdly specific about *สขสท, but *Hยช is just some indeterminate a-colouring laryngeal.

05.03.2026 00:30 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I assume that's what Hamp thought the third laryngeal was supposed to be.

04.03.2026 23:54 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Instead of the article title, which is "*สขสทneHยช- in Greek" JSTOR has (highlighted) "Math input error in Greek"

Instead of the article title, which is "*สขสทneHยช- in Greek" JSTOR has (highlighted) "Math input error in Greek"

Eric Hamp broke JSTOR lmao

04.03.2026 23:21 ๐Ÿ‘ 34 ๐Ÿ” 10 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 3 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Needless to say once I finally got the author's offprint that was the first thing I saw after looking at the first page for only 15 seconds.

04.03.2026 18:08 ๐Ÿ‘ 1 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Highlighted: "Myc. (Myceanaean)" for Mycenaean.

Highlighted: "Myc. (Myceanaean)" for Mycenaean.

I have this published book chapter that was read by at least five or six other people before it reached final proofs and yet...

04.03.2026 17:56 ๐Ÿ‘ 10 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

well, this kept getting more true, huh

03.03.2026 18:51 ๐Ÿ‘ 374 ๐Ÿ” 75 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 15 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

lmao

03.03.2026 07:19 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Look, I have the concept for a podcast. I will talk about the news and pronounce proper names correctly.

03.03.2026 07:16 ๐Ÿ‘ 7 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

It's remarkable how Jason Kenney, the founder of the Leopards Eating Your Face party, is so surprised at how the leopards ate his face and now they're coming to eat everybody else's.

02.03.2026 23:56 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I mean, also I have those characteristics which helped.

02.03.2026 07:42 ๐Ÿ‘ 1 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Narrator: He could only get legally paid for the job he was already hired to do for that time already unless it was deposited in a Danish bank account.

02.03.2026 07:41 ๐Ÿ‘ 1 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Denmark is also real, but for me that's only because it took me almost three months of being a resident in order to finally get a bank account opened.

02.03.2026 07:40 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

My perception from visiting Switzerland to attend a conference a year and a half ago is that Switzerland is a great country to live in... if you're Swiss.

(No shade towards my Swiss friends, you're the cool ones.)

02.03.2026 07:39 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Sorry I've been silent all day I hate all this and everything right now.

01.03.2026 08:18 ๐Ÿ‘ 14 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
Polymarket Iran Bets Hit $529 Million as New Wallets Draw Notice As US and Israeli bombs fell on Iran this weekend, bettors on Polymarket โ€” where $529 million was traded on contracts tied to the timing of the strikes โ€” were cashing in. Almost immediately, blockchai...

oh? oh?! I am so fucking surprised. God I fucking hate the future.

01.03.2026 08:16 ๐Ÿ‘ 12 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

It would be infinitely better for humanity if the humans that run the AI Bubble had the cascade errors their agents have

26.02.2026 13:15 ๐Ÿ‘ 46 ๐Ÿ” 10 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 4 ๐Ÿ“Œ 2

I first encountered Grimshaw's painting in the Scarborough Art Gallery in North Yorkshire when I went to Scarborough for a visit for no better reason than I shared a surname with the town and I was really impressed with his paintings there.

22.02.2026 07:52 ๐Ÿ‘ 9 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
How far back in time can you understand English? An experiment in language change

ok this post is great but can we also really appreciate Grimshaw's ability to perceive and reproduce light in painting which was appended, I suppose, as a stock image to this blog post?

22.02.2026 07:50 ๐Ÿ‘ 16 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Post image

On a mere whim, I picked up at the airport bookshop a Japanese mystery novel, Inspector Imanishi Investigates, by Matsumoto Seichล. I'd never before heard of author nor of book. It turned out to be the perfect choice, as can be seen from the title of chapter 6: "The Distribution of Dialects".
/1

19.02.2026 22:15 ๐Ÿ‘ 24 ๐Ÿ” 2 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

It's worth reading that speech in full. Everyone quotes that one bit without reading the whole lotta nonsense surrounding it.

20.02.2026 18:44 ๐Ÿ‘ 0 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Facebook memory post:

On this day
10 years ago
Matthew Scarborough

20 February 2016
Went to the PBFA Book Fair this morning. I didn't buy anything, but I did see something there that made the admission fee completely worthwhile. (Photographed with permission of the bookseller)

[Attached image: Jones, Sir William. 1798 [delivered February 2, 1786]. Third anniversary discourse: on the Hindus. Asiatick Researches 1.415-31. First edition printing.]

Facebook memory post: On this day 10 years ago Matthew Scarborough 20 February 2016 Went to the PBFA Book Fair this morning. I didn't buy anything, but I did see something there that made the admission fee completely worthwhile. (Photographed with permission of the bookseller) [Attached image: Jones, Sir William. 1798 [delivered February 2, 1786]. Third anniversary discourse: on the Hindus. Asiatick Researches 1.415-31. First edition printing.]

I don't always look at old Facebook memories, but sometimes it serves up something fun I encountered 10 years ago.

20.02.2026 18:42 ๐Ÿ‘ 4 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

It's a good book.

20.02.2026 15:47 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Ah, our good old friend Quintus Legatus made an appearance.

19.02.2026 07:42 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Tired old joke, but does Michigander imply the existence of Michigoslings?

18.02.2026 15:38 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

the stemma codicum of any texts that survive the Digital Dark Ages will be like

[original]
|
[uploaded PDF]
| |
wikipedia chatgpt
redaction summary
| |
chatgpt |
summary ---- Papyrus
of wikipedia nukecraterus N. 47

18.02.2026 15:04 ๐Ÿ‘ 81 ๐Ÿ” 30 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1