The Endless Knot: Recent Episodes
Mark Sundaram & Aven McMaster
Aven & Mark discuss etymology, history, literature, language, and cocktails, and the sometimes surprising connections between them all.
We talked to Kory Stamper, lexicographer and author, about the unexpectedly gripping story of the struggle to define colours and wrestle the kaleidoscope of our social, scientific, artistic, sartorial, and commercial understanding of hues into some sort of order. This is truly one of our favourite books we’ve ever read for this podcast!
Kory’s book True Color
Kory Stamper’s website
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What does your accent say about you? (And yes, you DO have an accent!) Why do accents develop, and what is the history behind the wide range of modern American accents? We talked to Valerie Fridland about all of these questions and more, covered in her delightful new book “Why We Talk Funny”.
Valerie’s book “Why We Talk Funny”
Like, Literally, Dude! and our interview with her about it
Dr. Valerie Fridland’s website
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We spoke with linguist, writer and podcaster Dr Danny Bate about his debut book, Why Q Needs U, a “linguistico-historical non-fiction book” that sets out to answer two big questions: Where did we get the letters of the alphabet from? And why does English use them so strangely? We had a delightful conversation about the book, his podcast, Indo-European, and cats!
Danny’s book “Why Q Needs U”
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An apology for absence, some personal news, and the guests coming in the next few months.
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Grace Tierney is back with another great book about the word origins, this time “Words Christmas Gave Us"! She regales us with festive stories and we talk about some of the fun traditions and treats of the winter holidays.
It’s been a long, unintended break since our last episode, but we’re happy to be back at it, in time to wish everyone very happy holidays!
Wordfoolery website
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We spoke with Dr. Anne Curzan about her new book, “Says Who? A Kinder, Funner Usage Guide for Everyone Who Cares about Words”. We talk about language change, inner grammandos, the benefits of learning the rules of texting from one’s students, and of course, surprising connections!
Also, please check out the Defeat Depression fundraising event, and the Sudbury Walk/Run on May 25.
Anne Curzan’s website
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Buried deep under volcanic ash lie hundreds of burnt scrolls containing texts from the first century. A new project is driving the work to try to read these chunks of carbon, to uncover new works and open new doors into the past. We spoke to one of the leaders of this project, Dr. Stephen Parsons, about the Vesuvius Challenge, the technical aspects of ‘virtual unrolling’, the possibilities of new classical texts, the development of new ways of doing scholarship, and more.
Also, please check out the Defeat Depression fundraising event, and the Sudbury Walk/Run on May 25.
The Vesuvius Challenge
Kaitlyn Hill’s books
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We talked to Dr. Karen Carr about the global history of swimming — in myth, folktale, and history. Who swam, who didn’t, and how do the stories different cultures told reflect these patterns? We also talked a bit about Dr. Carr’s next book, all about silver, women, and textiles.
Dr. Carr’s academic website
Dr. Carr’s history website and blog, Quatr.us
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We discuss the language and history of the ecological sciences, all the way back to the ancient Greeks, and the development of the food chain and food web models of ecological systems. And apologies for the unscheduled hiatus!
Golden Chain Cocktail
Food Web video
Cuckold video and podcast
Frank N. Egerton. “A History of the Ecological Sciences: Early Greek Origins”, Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America 82.1 (2001): 93-97
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 2: Aristotle and Theophrastos”, BESA 82.2 (2001): 149-152
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 3: Hellenistic Natural History”, BESA 82.3 (2001): 201-205
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 4: Roman Natural History”, BESA 82.4 (2001): 243-246
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 5: Byzantine Natural History”, BESA 83.1 (2002): 89-94
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 6: Arabic Language Science—Origins and Zoological Writings”, BESA 83.2 (2002): 142-146
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 7: Arabic Language Science—Botany, Geography, and Decline”, BESA 83.4 (2002): 261-266
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 8: Frederick II of Hohenstaufen: Amateur Avian Ecologist and Behaviorist”, BESA 84.1 (2003): 40-44
———, “A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 9: Albertus Magnus: a Scholastic Naturalist”, BESA 84.2 (2003): 87-91
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We talk to Melanie Racette-Campbell about her new book, “The Crisis of Masculinity in the Age of Augustus”, and discuss why Roman elite men were particularly vulnerable to a societal transformation that changed their role in the state. What did it mean to be a good man in ancient Rome, and how and why did that change?
Melanie’s book is available here
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The word “chauvinism” is an unlikely eponym, but it turns out that the story behind it has all sorts of interesting connections. And our discussion of those connections also leads us into the long history of misogyny in the western world, from Eve and Pandora to the Virgin Mary, courtly love, and Victorian womanhood.
Cocktail: Pandora’s Jar, from Nectar of the Gods
“By Jingo” song
Hesiod’s Works and Days
Hesiod’s Theogony
Semonides 7
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We look at the history of English’s conceptualization of time, and update Mark’s research on spatiotemporal metaphor. Also, words for arrows, the surprising origin of ‘toxic’, and a bit of Latin poetry!
Blue Arrow cocktail
Bow and Arrow cocktail
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We spoke to Dr. Valerie Fridland about her new book, “Like, Literally, Dude!” and talked about the fascinating role that many ‘errors’ in English speech actually play in communication. We discuss the never-ending changes that English has gone through, the surprisingly sophisticated rules behind our use of ‘um’ and ‘uh’, and much more.
Dr. Valerie Fridland’s website
Like, Literally, Dude!
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It’s Part 2 of our mega-episode on spelling! This time, we get into some of the notorious mismatches between English spelling and modern English pronunciation. Explaining them takes us all the way back to Phoenician — several times — but maybe, just maybe, some bits of this odd language will make more sense to you when we’re done!
The XYZ Cocktail
Our video on “Spelling”
Christopher Upward & George Davidson, The History of English Spelling (2001)
David Sacks, Letter Perfect (2003)
Kevin Stroud, The History of the Alphabet (audiobook)
NativLang “Thoth’s Pill - an Animated History of Writing”
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We’re wading into the messy world of English spelling in this episode — the first of two, since we couldn’t fit all of the ‘quirks’ of the language into one episode. The history of orthography in English is all tangled up with the history of the alphabet, so in this part we trace some of the twists and turns that resulted in our modern script.
The ABC Cocktail
Our video on “Spelling”
Christopher Upward & George Davidson, The History of English Spelling (2001)
David Sacks, Letter Perfect (2003)
Kevin Stroud, The History of the Alphabet (audiobook)
NativLang “Thoth’s Pill - an Animated History of Writing”
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In this bonus episode, we answer questions from viewers and listeners during a livestream on our YouTube channel, as part of #LingFest23.
Apologies for the sound quality, which isn’t great.
Also, sorry that we didn’t manage a regular episode in February, but we’ll definitely have one in March.
LingComm23
LingFest
@AllEndlessKnot@toot.community
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Just a reminder that we’ll be doing a Q&A livestream on our YouTube channel as part of LingFest in connection to the LingComm23 Conference on Sunday, February 12, 2023 at 1:00pm Eastern.
Please leave us your questions on this website, email us, or post on social media, or just show up on the day at the livestream.
The livestream will be here, just click on Sunday afternoon to join in!
In this episode we talk to the authors of two new books on Ovid’s Metamorphoses, the Latin epic poem he wrote in 8 CE. Stephanie McCarter has published a new translation of the poem, and Gareth Williams has written a short interpretive introductory work on the epic to go with the Columbia Core Curriculum. We talked with both of them about the way Ovid fits into contemporary society, what considerations there are when teaching this epic, and the joys and difficulties of engaging with Ovid’s poetic brilliance.
Content note for sexual violence and brief description of trauma.
LingComm23
LingFest
@AllEndlessKnot@toot.community
Stephanie McCarter’s website
Ovid’s Metamorphoses
Gareth Williams faculty page
On Ovid’s Metamorphoses
“Landscape Near Rome during Storm” by Simon Denis
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We welcome back Paul Anthony Jones, of Haggard Hawks fame, to ell us about his new book “Why Is This a Question?”. We talk about how his experience of social media has changed since we last interviewed him in 2016, what it was like researching a book covering such wide-ranging topics, the state of the publishing industry, and more.
Haggard Hawks
Our previous interview with Paul (episode 21)
Citogenesis (the Wikipedia citation problem) coined in xkcd comic
Ridley, R. T. “To Be Taken with a Pinch of Salt: The Destruction of Carthage.” Classical Philology, vol. 81, no. 2, 1986, pp. 140–46.
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We talk about the origins of music, its connection (both etymological and scientific) with the mind, how language is used to describe and teach music, the Muses, and the Museum of Alexandria. Also featuring brief cameos from music YouTuber 12Tone.
Monk’s Muse Cocktail
12Tone’s video “Why Do Notes Have Names?”
Ghost Notes Podcast
“Future” video
Murdoch Mysteries episode “The Dominion of New South Mimico”
Language: The Cultural Tool by Daniel Everett
Erskine, Andrew. “Culture and Power in Ptolemaic Egypt: The Museum and Library of Alexandria.” Greece & Rome, vol. 42, no. 1, 1995, pp. 38–48. JSTOR.
Hardie, Alex. “Etymologising the Muse.” Materiali e Discussioni per l’analisi Dei Testi Classici, no. 62, 2009, pp. 9–57. JSTOR.
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We spoke with Tim Brooks of the Endangered Alphabets project about the cultural importance of scripts, the pressures on marginalized and isolated scripts, his beautiful wood carvings, and the various initiatives he and his group have been working on to support script revitalization and creation around the world.
Website: Endangered Alphabets
Inhabit Media
Twitter: @endangeredalpha
Instagram: @endangeredalphas
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Commemorating the 6th anniversary of the death of Mark’s father, and the 75th anniversary of Indian independence, this episode connects widows and partition, and while also touching on the legacy of Alexander the Great, the origins of badminton and tennis, and obscure typesetting vocabulary.
Merry Widow Cocktail
Black Widow Cocktail
Olson, Kelly. “Fringed Clothing in Roman Iconography and Written Sources.” Textiles in Ancient Mediterranean Iconography, edited by SUSANNA HARRIS et al., Oxbow Books, 2022, pp. 149–60.
Olson, Kelly. "Insignia Lugentium: Female Mourning Garments in Roman Antiquity". American Journal of Ancient History (New Series 3-4, 2004-2005 [2007]): 3-4, 2004, pp. 89-130.
Hagerman, Christopher A. “In the Footsteps of the 'Macedonian Conqueror": Alexander the Great and British India.” International Journal of the Classical Tradition, vol. 16, no. 3/4, 2009, pp. 344–92.
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We have a very fun conversation with Dr. Natalie Swain about her work on classical reception and the polar regions — the Arctic and Antarctic — science fiction, and comics. And Natalie and Mark find lots of overlaps and connections between their interests!
“Between the Sheets: Reading the Coverlet as Comics in Catullus 64.” Image [&] Narrative 22.2 (2021)
Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics
@mazonianfeline
ClassicsTwitterComics
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We’re talking all about the future in this episode — and if we even have one (in English). This is a topic near and dear to Mark’s heart, and in part the subject of his dissertation! We get into the nitty gritty of grammatical tense, ways of thinking about the future, and a mystery cocktail.
Our video on the Future
Whisky Exchange article about Futurist cocktails
Lavery, Gerard B. “Hoc Aeui Quodcumquest : Lucretius and Time.” Latomus, vol. 46, no. 4, 1987, pp. 720–29. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41534650
Berns, Gisela. “Time and Nature in Lucretius’ ‘De Rerum Natura.’” Hermes, vol. 104, no. 4, 1976, pp. 477–92. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/4475983
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This episode we have a fascinating conversation with classicist, dramatug, and translator Emma Pauly about all things Dionysian, Greek tragedy, and their translation of Euripides’ Bacchae. We explore how Emma brings their experience with acting and directing to translating and analyzing Greek literature, and how our understanding of the past changes as we develop our understanding of gender and sexuality.
Emma’s website
Bacchae recording
Emma’s translation of the seventh Homeric Hymn to Dionysus
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It’s time for some Old Norse, sagas, and daring Viking explorers! In this episode we talk to author Grace Tierney about her newest book, Words the Vikings Gave Us. We had a ton of fun in this conversation, and we’re sure you will too!
Grace Tierney’s blog, Wordfoolery
Our video on Runes, and NativLang’s matching video
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It’s April Fool’s Day, and time for the annual Podcast Switcheroo, where podcasters trade episodes to give their audience something a little different and introduce them to a new show.
This year we’ve got an episode from “The Greatest Song Ever Sung (Poorly)”, all about the joys and embarrassments of singing karaoke. IN this episode hosts Adam Wainwright and Ed Cunard discuss questions like is a karaoke performance a cover song? What do musicians have to say about karaoke? What are the barriers to making music, and creativity in general? They also talk to punk and folk singer-songwriter Frank Turner about some of his most memorable karaoke experiences and about how he feels about cover songs, singalongs at concerts, and karaoke versions of his songs. After you’ve listened to this, why not add them to your subscriptions?
Thanks to Moxy from “Your Brain on Facts” for organizing this event, and happy April Fool’s Day to everyone!
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Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! In this episode we talk about the saint’s history, then dig into the potato — its etymology, its history, and how it’s changed the world. With some tangents about batteries, famines, and travel in the Roman world.
Old Potato Cocktail
Irish Maid Cocktail
Potato battery video
Monster video
Talking Turkey, episode 24
Season to Taste, episode 35
ORBIS
Article about Irish Famine Relief by the Choctaw Nation
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We’re talking about bread again! This time, about ancient Greek bread — its vocabulary, the many types of bread and how they were made, and the economic aspects of bread production. Josh shares his practical experiences of baking along with his research into the classical Greek world.
Josh Nudell’s website
Josh on Twitter: @jpnudell
Tavola Mediterranea
Our previous episode on bread, “Loaf”
Thank you to Emma Pauly for editing and transcribing this episode.
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We start off the new year with a three-part discussion of statistics, insurance, stocks, astrologers, coffee, and more. We also trace some of the vocabulary that has come to English from Arabic, along with important mathematical concepts.
Podcast recommendation: Khameleon Classics
Cocktail: The Revolver
Average Part 1
Average Part 2
Average Part 3
Ep 31 CreateICG
Ep 39 From Fossil Hunters to Mammoth Cheese
Ep 32 Ariadne’s Clue
video “How Do We Perceive a Poem?”
Ripat, Pauline. “Expelling Misconceptions: Astrologers At Rome.” Classical Philology, vol. 106, no. 2, The University of Chicago Press, 2011, pp. 115–54, https://doi.org/10.1086/659835
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Our hundredth episode! We’re celebrating reaching three digits — and more than 6 years — with a whole bunch of our podcasting friends! These are just some of the amazing creators who make the independent podcasting world so wonderful, and we’re very happy to be connected to them all. Please check out their shows at the links below. We also give you a brief “State of the Pod” update. Thank you to everyone who’s been with us so far, and here’s to the next century (of episodes)!
Thank you to Christine Couisineau for help editing and transcribing this episode.
The Kir Royale cocktail
Sandman Stories Presents
The Partial Historians
Accentricity Podcast
Lexitecture Podcast
The History of English
Pontifacts Podcast
Because Language
Your Brain on Facts
Bunny Trails Podcast
The Spouter Inn Podcast
Grammar Girl Podcast
Wonders of the World Podcast
Let’s Talk about Myths, Baby Podcast
Lingthusiasm Podcast
Footnoting History
The Vocal Fries Podcast
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We talked to Jeremy Swist about his work on the reception of antiquity in heavy metal music. He discussed the ways the genre looks to the past for stories and imagery, and the many fantastic songs and albums that have been produced from this mix. We also talked about the problems with racism and white nationalism that can plague the intersection of the ancient world and metal music.
Playlist of the songs Jeremy mentioned
Pour Forth Surquidous track
@MetalClassicist
Heavy Metal and the Ancient World on Facebook
Jeremy’s blog
Metal-archives.com
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It’s Halloween, and the monsters are out! In this episode we tackle Monster Theory (as formulated by J.J. Cohen) , examine the linguistic and cultural origins of a range of Classical and classic movie monsters, look at how they connect to the history of currency and money, and explore the intersections of monsters and the New Woman. We also sample a beautiful cocktail from the upcoming cocktail book Nectar of the Godsby Liv Albert from “Let’s Talk about Myths, Baby”. Thank you, Liv!
The Monster video
Monster Theoryby J.J. Cohen
Tracking Classical Monsters in Popular Culture by Liz Gloyn
Our podcast episode interviewing Dr. Gloyn
Horace Odes 1.37
Hesiod passage about Medusa is Theogony 270ff; more info about Medusa here
Ovid passage about Medusa is Metamorphoses 4.753ff
General sources for this episode
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We speak to Bet Hucks about Roman importation and love of Egyptian art and other cultural material, the importance of thinking about material remains in assemblages and considering the contexts in which they were displayed, and some innovative ways of bringing the physical experiences of the past to modern audiences. Oh, and also, crocodiles!
Bet’s Twitter: @RomanAegyptiaca
Bet on academia.edu
Thanks to Emma Pauly for editing and transcription of this episode.
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What do you think the earliest English word was? How could we possibly look for such a thing, and what do the possible options tell us about early English history and the movement of peoples in the early medieval period? We tackle these questions, in an episode about Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Frisians, Celts, Tacitus, Bede, and more.
Reminder: Mark will be running another session of his Speakeasy seminar course, The Origins of English: Learning to Think Like an Etymologist, which is open to anyone who’s interested. Registration is now open at Speakeasy.com for the session running on Sunday afternoons (Eastern time) from September 12th October 3rd.
Recipe for Old English cocktail
Earliest English Word video
Jabzy’s Anglo-Saxon Invasion video
The Early Greek Alphabets: Origin, Diffusion, chpt 4 by Rosalind Thomas
C. Krebs, A MOST DANGEROUS BOOK: TACITUS’ GERMANIA FROM THE ROMAN EMPIRE TO THE THIRD REICH. London: W.W.Norton & Co., 2011.
Other sources
Why do Poles call Italy WŁOCHY? (video)
Bonus episode about the term “Anglo-Saxon” from December 2019
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It’s time for a reckoning! Or, to be more accurate, a number of reckonings. We talk to Dr. Stephen Chrisomalis, a linguistic anthropologist who specializes in the anthropology of mathematics and the interaction of language, cognition, and culture, about his new book Reckonings. It’s a fascinating discussion of how we write and represent numbers, and how that’s changed over the years. Why don’t we use Roman numerals any more? It’s more complicated than you might think…
Announcement: Mark will be running another session of his Speakeasy seminar course, The Origins of English: Learning to Think Like an Etymologist, which is open to anyone who’s interested. Registration is now open at Speakeasy.com for the session running on Sunday afternoons (Eastern time) from September 12th October 3rd.
Glossographia (blog)
Twitter: @schrisomalis
Wayne State University faculty page
Reckonings webpage
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We talked to Isobel Williams about her fascinating and illuminating new translation of selected poems of Catullus, illustrated with her drawings of the Japanese art of rope binding, shibari. Our discussion ranges over the connections between the world of shibari and the emotional struggles depicted in Catullus’s poetry, the way translation and learning Latin can feel like being tied up in, and untangling, knots, and much more.
Content Note: fetish, sex, brief mention of sexual violence, discussion of enslavement and use of slavery as metaphor
Blog about drawing shibari (Japanese rope bondage): Boulevardisme
Straight blog about drawing: Drawing from an uncomfortable position
Website: Isobel Williams
Twitter: @otium_Catulle
Instagram: @isobelwilliams2525
From Isobel: “For the online book launch, I compiled a video (>20 minutes) of self and others reading in Latin and English from the book. It starts with Sappho in ancient Greek and ends with Shakespeare, to show the continuity Sappho -> Catullus -> Ovid -> Shakespeare (it contains no Ovid). The video is here 'Catullus: Shibari Carmina' - readings and performances - YouTube”
Page about the book
Link to the book for Canada and US: Catullus: Shibari Carmina | Independent Publishers Group
James Methven’s Precious Asses– highly recommended
Irish poet and mediaevalist Bernard O’Donoghue – Poet, Academic, Medievalist and Literary Critic
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A day after Independence Day in the US, we investigate the history of the name “America” and two related cocktails, with some side trips into the sack of Rome in 410 CE and the use of the Fall of Rome as a historical parallel for the United States. This episode completes our mini series on country names, in the season of national holidays in north America.
Cocktails: Americano & Negroni
Rutilius Namatianus, De Reditu Suo
"The Fall of Ancient Rome and Modern U.S. Immigration: Historical Model or Political Football?" Frank Argote-Freyre and Christopher M. Bellitto. The Historian Vol. 74, No. 4 (WINTER 2012), pp. 789-811
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This episode is being released for Canada Day, but it’s not a celebration. This year, even more than most, we feel that this day needs to be one of reckoning with our past and trying to make a better present and future. So we talk about the history of the word Canuck and the various stories that Canadians tell themselves about their county, and we also discuss the role of Classics in the early history of the colonial project in Canada, as well as how to think about Classics today in relation to Indigenous issues. And then we finish with some quick etymologies of uniquely Canadian words and phrases. Content note: there is brief mention of residential schools and discussion of historical racism.
Le Canuck Cocktail
Jacques Cartier Heritage Minute
Minute Women podcast
Dictionary of Canadianisms on Historical Principles
Brill’s Companion to Classics in the Early Americas
Zachary Yuzwa on Twitter
Robinson-Huron Treaty lawsuit
Muskoka chair
Beavertails
Nanaimo bars
Fiddleheads
Spile
Porketta Bingo
“Only in Canada, You Say?” by Katherine Barber
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We talk to Dr. Victoria Austen about Roman gardens. What defines a garden? Where were the gardens at Rome, and what were they for? How did Romans think about gardens and gardening, and what roles did they play in literature, philosophy, and the public relations efforts of emperors?
@Vicky_Austen
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We talk about the history of the book, the reading habits of the ancient Romans, the pliability of sheep skins, and the mechanisms of semantic change that cause words to evolve over time. Oh, and we discuss Charles Darwin’s own language for his new theory.
"Codex Cocktail" was created for us by Ed Bedford — recipe here
Liber Adest newsletter
McCutcheon, R. W. “Silent Reading in Antiquity and the Future History of the Book.” Book History, vol. 18, 2015, pp. 1–32., www.jstor.org/stable/43956366
“In Ancient Rome” by Joseph Howley, in Further Reading, edited by Matthew Rubery and Leah Price. 2020.
Erasmus Darwin video
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This year for April Fool's Day we're taking part in a podcast switcheroo where podcasters are trading episodes to introduce their audiences to other podcasts they think you might enjoy. So we're having the great folks from Bunny Trails, Shauna and Dan, showcase one of their episodes, about the phrase “Queen Bee”.
Bunny Trails Podcast
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We speak to Dr. Carolyn Willekes about horses in antiquity: their development and domestication, their use in warfare, their training and breeding, and her many adventures riding horses across Greece, Turkey, Mongolia, and Canada.
The Horse in the Ancient World: From Bucephalus to the Hippodrome
Greek Warriors: Hoplites and Heroes
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Aven: Hi everyone. This isn't a regular episode of the Endless Knot podcast. Just a quick announcement.
Mark: I wanted to let you all know about something new that I'm doing: an online seminar series. It's basically a short course open to anyone, on the Speakeasy platform. The title is: "The origins of English: learning to think like an etymologist" and it's going to be four one-hour classes on zoom, in which, through a series of linguistic puzzles, we will follow in the footsteps of etymologists and historical linguists to reconstruct the relationships between languages and long forgotten roots of English words.
The class is limited to 12 people and starts on Thursday, March 4th, at 7:00 PM eastern time, running on the three following Thursdays at the same time. If you're interested, you can go to our website at alliterative.net, and there's a link to the Speakeasy page, where you can buy a ticket.
Or if you'd like to take part, but the timing doesn't work for you, you can leave Speakeasy a message about what would be better, and we'll try and take that into consideration when we schedule the next session. Because if this goes well, I'm hoping not only to be able to repeat it, but also do some different courses on Old English poetry, on the development of English from the early middle ages to today, and more
Aven: So if you think this sounds fun, please go to our website at www.Alliterative.net for more information.
Mark: Hope to get to meet you online sometime soon!
Link for more info and to buy tickets
We talk about the etymology of “Etymology” itself, and then discuss the basics of historical linguistics, including Grimm’s Law, Verner’s Law, and more. We also talk about Isidore of Seville, the etymological puns of Latin poets, and the way Mark does his research for his videos.
The Simple Truth cocktail
Our “Etymology” video
Isidore of Seville’s Etymologiae
Keith, A. M. “Etymological Wordplay in Ovid's 'Pyramus and Thisbe' (Met. 4.55-166).” The Classical Quarterly, vol. 51, no. 1, 2001, pp. 309–312.
Shelton, Colin. “Logical Complexity and Etymological Wordplay.” Latomus, vol. 73, no. 2, 2014, pp. 385–398.
O'Hara, James J. “Vergil's Best Reader? Ovidian Commentary on Vergilian Etymological Wordplay.” The Classical Journal, vol. 91, no. 3, 1996, pp. 255–276.
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This episode is all about Alexander the Great, and especially about his reception by later Greeks & Romans, the middle ages, and modern popular culture. We had the pleasure of interviewing Meg Finlayson who studies Alexander and his reception and shared her knowledge, enthusiasm, and dreams of a new Alexander movie with Colin Farrell playing Philip!
Meg’s twitter @agameganon
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Happy holidays! In this seasonal episode we discuss the origins of the modern Western calendar, the names of the months and days of the week, and the sources we have for Roman calendars and Germanic gods. Happy new year, and may it be better than the last!
Our poster store
Crosscut Distillery
Sabbath
Millennial
Ovid's Fasti
Herbert-Brown, Geraldine. “Fasti: the Poet, the Prince, and the Plebs” in A Companion to Ovid, ed. Peter E. Knox, Wiley-Blackwell. 2013.
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It’s election night 2020 in the US, and our video from 4 years ago about the language of politics is relevant once again. We discuss the changing vocabulary of democracy and what it can tell us about shifting attitudes towards popular rule and politicians. It may not be a complete break from political coverage, but at least it’s mostly about the distant past, not the uncertain future!
Ballot Box Cocktail
Mashed Radish blog post on Candidate
Mashed Radish blog post on Poll
Anatoly Liberman on Booth
“Sublime” video
“Sublime” podcast
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n this episode we go from the origin of the world to the many uses of olive oil, with discussions of Roman mosaics, and trademark law along the way. This is the third of our episodes on Intellectual Property, following Episode 42: Bugging Out! on patents and Episode 57: Freebooting, Piracy, & Copyright on copyright. Also, it’s the start of Season 6, and we want to thank everyone who’s joined us over the last 5 years. It’s been a blast, and here’s to another half decade!
“The asàrotos òikos mosaic as an elite status symbol” by Ehud Fathy
Ancient History Encyclopedia — the olive
Oxford Dictionaries blog post on “gasoline”
Hesiod, Theogony
First oil derrick — picture
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Back in June we had the pleasure of being part of the Intelligent Speech Conference 2020 — this year, held entirely online. It was a day filled with amazing podcasters and great conversations, and in this short episode we’re sharing the talk that we gave at the event. It’s about the word Recipe and early cookbooks, medicine, and women’s magazines. If you’d like to see the images that accompanied the presentation, you can watch the talk on YouTube, where the questions and post-talk discussion are also included.
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It’s time for us to talk about plagues — ancient, medieval, literary, etymological, and psychological! We’re joined by Moxie from Your Brain on Facts for a very fun — if slightly disturbing — discussion of many aspects of historical plagues.
Transcript of this episode
Your Brain on Facts
Gardner, H.H. Pestilence and the Body Politic in Latin Literature. 2019.
Episode 44: "Us" & "Them" in the Ancient & Anglo-Saxon Worlds
Episode 51: Race & Racism in Ancient & Medieval Studies, Part One: The Problem
Episode 52: Race & Racism in Ancient & Medieval Studies, Part Two: Responses
Thorneloe Race forum episode
Statue/Systemic
Crisis/Discrimination
Thug/Protect
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In an episode that was recorded in late May before the protests started, we took a break from COVID talk to give our thoughts on the final movie in the Star Wars saga. We discussed how it was similar to or different from ancient epic, medieval romance, and Icelandic sagas, but mostly we talked about the ways it failed to bring together the many threads of the Star Wars story.
Given current events, and the protests against police brutality and systemic anti-Black racism, we urge our white and non-Black listeners to continue their education on these subjects and, if you’re able, donate to support people fighting for justice. One good podcast series is “Seeing White” from SceneOnRadio, and there are anti-racism reading lists here and here; you can donate to Black Lives Matter or The National Bail Out Fund, or any of the many causes that need funds right now.
We also have two episodes on race and racism in medieval studies and classics; they’re several years old now, but may be of interest for thinking about issues of race in our particular fields, and the role our disciplines have played in supporting structural racism in Europe and North America. EPISODE 51: RACE & RACISM IN ANCIENT & MEDIEVAL STUDIES, PART ONE: THE PROBLEM and EPISODE 52: RACE & RACISM IN ANCIENT & MEDIEVAL STUDIES, PART TWO: RESPONSES.
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Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge: Black Spire Cookbook
Lyceum
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We take a look at the history of runes and their connection to early alphabets and Germanic culture. Then we take a trip back to the Phoenician and Egyptian origins of the modern English alphabet, and talk about some of the earliest examples of Greek writing, in inscriptions, epic poetry, and myth. Also, introducing Lyceum, a new platform for educational podcasting!
Transcript of this episode
The “Screaming Viking” cocktail
Lyceum
NativLang’s video Muslim Vikings & Magic Letters: The Odd History of Runes pt 1
Images of English Runes
The story of Hyacinth (see under “Larkspur”) and images of possible “Ai Ai” flowers
“THE TEXT: Signs of Writing in Homer.” Homer: The Poetry of the Past, by ANDREW FORD, Cornell University Press, Ithaca; London, 1992, pp. 131–171. JSTOR.
The Runecast podcast
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We trace the etymologies and development of the words “sex” and “gender”, as well as words for women and men in Greek, Latin, and English, touching on Roman, Greek, and medieval English ideas about gender. Then we discuss the grammatical term “gender” and how it differs across languages around the world.
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The History of Sex Podcast
The “Pink Lady” cocktail
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This year’s holiday episode is all about festivals and feasts — and in particular, midwinter celebrations, the solstice, and the seasons. And we read a couple of Latin poems about drinking — and explore the odd connection between them and a tire company!
The Christmas Cake cocktail
Hesiod’s Works and Days in English
Horace’s Odes in Latin
Horace Odes 1.37 in English
Feast video
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This bonus episode contains two talks we gave at our university in November. Mark spoke about “The ‘Anglo-Saxon’ Problem: Language and Racism in Medieval Studies” and Aven spoke about “Defining ‘Race’ in the Ancient Mediterranean and Today”.
Google ngrams for collocations of “Anglo-Saxon”:
All English Texts
American English
British English
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Crossover time! We’re joined by Scott Lepisto, of the Itinera Podcast, in a conversation at the SoundEducation podcasting conference in Boston. We talked about the conference itself, the use of podcasting in classrooms, and the importance of public-facing scholarship in Classics and Medieval Studies. And please check out Scott’s podcast, in which he interviews classicists about their work and their journey to and through the field!
Scott on Twitter
Itinera Podcast
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Happy Halloween! This year we’re talking about the origins of “Magic”, the differences between religion and magic, Greek and Roman spells and curses, and some rather bizarre tales about Virgil & Aristotle.
Our “Magic” video
Cocktail: Black Magic
Religion in the Roman Empire, James B Rives, 2007
Arcana Mundi,Georg Luck, 2006
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We speak with Dr. Liz Gloyn about her new book, Tracking Classical Monsters in Popular Culture. We talk about Hercules: the Legendary Journeys, the Odyssey, the problems with Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey pattern, and more!
Liz Gloyn
Classically Inclined blog
Tracking Classical Monsters in Popular Culture
Facebook Page for Tracking Classical Monsters
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We talked to Winston Black about his new book, The Middle Ages: Fact & Fiction, which addresses the most common myths and misconceptions about the Middle Ages. And we touch on video games, D&D, and Game of Thrones in the process!
The SoundEducation Conference page
The Middle Ages: Fact & Fiction
Winston on Twitter
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The Fates have decreed that it’s time for us to talk about the word “Weird”! We discuss its etymology, the concept of fate in the ancient and medieval world, whether mythical women really do usually appear in threes, and Shakespeare.
Twist of Fate cocktail
Weird Sisters Blood & Hand Punch
Shakespeare Not Stirred book
“Weird” video
“Does English have a future tense?” video
“Arrow” video
“As We Like It Podcast” – Macbeth episode
Chart of ‘strange’ vs ‘weird’ usage
Chart of ‘weird’, ‘uncanny’, ‘eerie’, & ‘unearthly’
More information about the Moirai
Hesiod passage about the Fates
Catullus 64
Theoi site for Greek mythology
Articles about WEIRD linguistics and WEIRD psychology
Professor Elemental “Everybody’s Weird”
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While at VidCon this year, we sat down and chatted with a few of our fellow educational YouTubers: The Cynical Historian, Knowing Better, 12tone, and Step Back History. This is a compilation of our discussions about their channels, their reasons for making videos, and their experience of VidCon and its educational companion event, EduCon. If you don’t already watch their videos, we strongly recommend you check them out. Thank you to them all for taking part!
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We discuss a person who had an important impact on both science and language: Erasmus Darwin, grandfather of Charles. In particular, we talk about the use of poetry to explain science, from Hesiod to Lucretius to Darwin to Baba Brinkman, and the new wave of science communicators on and off line.
Erasmus Darwin cocktail menu, based on The Loves of the Plants
D.G. King-Hele. “Erasmus Darwin, Man of Ideas and Inventor of Words.” Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London 42.2 (1988): 149–180 .
Baba Brinkman
Hesiod’s Theogony
Aratus’s Phaenomena
Acapella Science
Thomas Meritt
Susan McMaster
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We spoke to Carly Silver, an editor and a writer on ancient history and horse racing, about how she connects the past to contemporary issues, the intriguing stories in curse tablets in Roman Britain, murder mysteries set in the ancient world, romance novels, breeding programs for American Thoroughbreds, and more!
Carly’s website
Carly’s article about Hadrian’s Wall
Carly’s article about the sexual assault charges against a workman in ancient Egypt
Carly’s writing about horse racing
Ancient murder mysteries mentioned in the podcast:
Gary Corby, Athenian Mysteries
Lindsey Davis
David Wishart
John Maddox Roberts, SPQR series
Rosemary Rowe
Big Finish Cicero series
Robert Harris
Paul Doherty
Agatha Christie “Death Comes as the End”
Elizabeth Peters
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Happy (?) April Fool’s Day! We talk about the origins of the holiday, its connections to the Tom Collins cocktail, and hoaxes throughout history, from Athenian tyrants to the ‘Scratching Fanny’ ghost to the Da Vinci Code.
Tom Collins recipe
Podcast episode on Cuckold
Podcast episode 7, with discussion about urban legends
Podcast episode on Sublime
Bunny Trails episode on ‘wild goose chase’
Herodotus passage
Erasmus Darwin video
Podcast episode about the 12 Days of Christmas
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We talk about names for countries — endonyms and exonyms — and the trade goods named after the places they come from, in a discussion that ranges from Japanese guns to the connection between Wales and roosters to the colour of the phoenix, and much more. If you can make it to the end of the podcast, you’ll never look at porcelain the same way again!
Red Dragon Cocktail
The Rising Sun Cocktail
Jabzy’s Japan videos: Europeans in Japan and Guns in Japan
Cynical Historian’s video on gun history
Eidolon article about cooking sows’ vulvae (I’m afraid I said “vagina” not “vulvae” in the podcast, mea maxima culpa!)
Schork, R. J. “Egyptian Etymology in Vergil.” Latomus, vol. 57, no. 4, 1998, pp. 828–831. JSTOR
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We talk to Edward Watts about his new book Mortal Republic: How Rome Fell into Tyranny, which covers the history of Rome from the 3rd century BCE to the rise of Octavian to princeps. Our conversation ranges across questions of Roman identity, our fascination with transitional periods, and the connections between Roman history and contemporary politics.
Edward Watts
Ancient Greece Declassified episode 19 “America's Greco-Roman Legacies w/ Caroline Winterer”
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Amalia Dillin is an author of mythic fantasy and historical fiction set in the ancient and Viking worlds. Among other books, she’s written the Fate of the Gods trilogy, about Eve and Adam (and Thor and Athena and more!), and the Orc Saga, beginning with Honor among Orcs. She also writes, as Amalia Carosella, about Bronze Age Greece (Helen of Sparta & sequels, about the love between Helen & Theseus) and the Viking Age (Daughter of a Thousand Years, about Freydis, daughter of Erik the Red, and also a modern women wrestling with her newly found pagan faith).
We spoke to Amalia before the holidays about her love of mythology, the complexities of writing historical fiction, and goats!
And hey, the Kindle of Daughter of a Thousand Years is on sale for $0.99, and the paperback is also on sale!
Amalia’s website with links to her blog and all of her books.
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Time for a holiday episode! This time we’re talking about how Santa’s reindeer got their names, including some of their classical ties to Roman religion and Greek myth, the Reindeer Rule in US law, and NORAD’s Santa Tracker. And we have a quiz about the animals that bring the winter gift giver around the world!
Our video “Who are Santa’s reindeer?”
Mark’s Lexitecture episode
Our Christmas videos playlist
Episode 8: Yule
Episode 25: The 12 Days of Christmas
Episode 49: Stocking Stuffers
The Rudolph Cocktail
Catullus 14
The two versions of Eros: Protogenos & Ouranios
Ovid Amores1.2
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While at the Sound Education conference we had the chance to sit down with Kevin Stroud, host of the History of the English Language podcast. We talked about his passion for language, his experiences with enthusiastic but pedantic listeners, his project to gather a database of accent samples from around the world, and much more. Thank you Keven for chatting with us, it was great fun to meet you and hang out!
Sound Education
The History of the English Language podcast
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From modern words for ghost, to Latin and Greek terms for spirits, to ghost words that haunt dictionaries, we explore some spooky etymologies and tell some ancient ghost stories.
Sound Education
Green Ghost Cocktail
Liquified Ghost Cocktail
Ghost video
Eidolon online journal
Pliny’s letter 7.27 in English
VIdeo of a performance of the Latin version of Pliny’s ghost story
List of ancient ghost stories sourced from Twitter
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In this episode we talk about the history of education in Europe, from classical Greece to the 19th century, covering the origins of many education-related words. Then we turn to the history of second-language teaching of Latin, from Roman Egypt to today’s Living Latin movement.
DSM (channel about language and etymology)
Sound Education
Classic Cocktail
Education video
Learning Latin and Greek from Antiquity to Present, chapters on teaching Latin to Greek speakers (Dickey) & Latin in Anglo-Saxon England (Fisher)
“Medieval and Modern Views of Universal Grammar and the Nature of Second Language Learning” by Margaret Thomas
“Inside the Anglo-Saxon Classroom“ by Kate Wiles
“Grasping Sentences by Wholes: Henry Sweet’s Idea of Language Study in the Early Middle Ages” by Mark Atherton
Learn Latin from the Romans: A Complete Introductory Course Using Textbooks from the Roman Empire by Eleanor Dickey
Learning Latin the Ancient Way by Eleanor Dickey
“The MovieTalk: A Practical Application of Comprehensible Input Theory” by Rachel Ash
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We report on our trips to EduCon, VidCon, Iceland, & England. Lots of museums and historical places, and check out the web page for pictures of some of our favourite artifacts and images.
Sound Education podcasting conference
We Create Edu community
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Travelling Etymologies: Names in Iceland and England
Golden Circle Tour
Volcano House
Westman Island Eruption
Penis Museum
Vagina Museum
Rodin and the Art of Ancient Greece
Earliest English Word video
Episode with James Andean
Sator square
Our friend Michael (Wombat)’s blog post about the Battle of Towton
The etymology of 'sublime' takes us through a discussion of the Gothic, Neo-Classical, and Romantic periods, the origins of the Romance languages, the roots of romantic love, and more.
The Sublime Moment Cocktail
Mats Malm “On the Technique of the Sublime”, Comparative Literature, Vol. 52, No. 1 (Winter, 2000), pp. 1-10.
Sarah Bond on Polychromy in Ancient Statues
Alex Potts, Flesh and the Ideal: Winckelmann and the Origins of Art History
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This episode, we travel to Calgary, Alberta for a conference, and try some very questionable "ancient" potables! Aven takes a microphone on the road, and chats with a bunch of classicists about Roman beer, barley water, Homeric kykeon, conference papers, social media, and more!
Matt Gibbs' article in The Conversation
The slides & papers & resources from the Public-Facing Scholarship panel
Our previous episode about ancient and medieval beer brewing
Kevin Solez
Matt Gibbs
Amber Porter
Mary Deminion
Carolyn Willekes
Conor Whately
Peter Miller
Vicky Austen-Perry
Paul McGilvery
Alison Innes
Melanie Racette-Campbell
Melissa Funke
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We sail the high seas and surf the interwebs for this episode all about the etymology of pirate-related words and the coinage of a new term for stealing videos. We also cover the development of copyright law, the reasons pirates say "Arrrr!", and what Julius Caesar did to his kidnappers.
Show Notes
Bumbo cocktail recipe
"Freebooting" video
The Maritime History podcast
The Academic Podcast by Sam McLean
"CAESAR AND THE PIRATES: OR HOW TO MAKE (AND BREAK) AN ANCIENT LIFE", JOSIAH OSGOOD, Greece & Rome, Vol. 57, No. 2 (OCTOBER 2010), pp. 319-336
de Souza, Philip. "Rome's Contribution to the Development of Piracy". Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome. Vol. 6, The Maritime World of Ancient Rome (2008), pp. 71-96
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We have the great pleasure to be joined by Megan & Carrie from the Vocal Fries podcast to talk about linguistic discrimination: what is it, why is it bad, what is its history, and how can we combat it?
Show NotesThe Vocal Fries Podcast
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In part two of our miniseries on pets, we cover cats, monkeys, birds, and more. Find out the surprising origins of the word for parrot, what medieval people named their cats, and what bird was symbolic of the Virgin Mary.
Show Notes@AllEndlessKnot on Twitter
Medieval Pets by Kathleen Walker-Meikle
"Greek and Roman Household Pets", Francis D. Lazenby
Animals for Show and Pleasure in Ancient Rome, George Dennison
Companion Animals and Us: Exploring the Relationships Between People and Pets Anthony L. Podberscek, Elizabeth S. Paul, James A. Serpell, eds.
Our episode on farm animals
Paw prints on a manuscript
Mosaic from Istanbul (from Caitlin Green's blog)
Dr. Caitlin Green's blog
Pangur Bán
Catullus 2 & 3
Ovid Amores 2.6
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What makes an animal a pet? Who kept pets in the ancient and medieval worlds? What kinds of animals were they? And why are all the words for pets in English of (mostly) unknown origin?! We start a mini two-part series with a general discussion of ancient and medieval pets, and then some great stories about some Very Good Dogs.
Show Notes@AllEndlessKnot on Twitter
Medieval Pets by Kathleen Walker-Meikle
"Greek and Roman Household Pets", Francis D. Lazenby
Federico II Gonzaga by Titian
Odyssey, 17. 309-10
Martial, 1.109
Petronius, Satyricon, 71
The Lady and the Unicorn, Desire
Animals for Show and Pleasure in Ancient Rome, George Dennison
Companion Animals and Us: Exploring the Relationships Between People and Pets Anthony L. Podberscek, Elizabeth S. Paul, James A. Serpell, eds.
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We head back to the Endless Knot Cocktail Bar to talk about the history of the Mai Tai, the Tiki craze, Polynesian mythology, cultural appropriation, and World's Fairs. And then we turn to Rome's relationship to Greece, and discuss whether Horace wrote the Exotica music of the ancient world!
Show NotesMai Tai Video
@AllEndlessKnot on Twitter
Mai Tai Recipe
Polynesian Lexicon Project Online
Wallace-Hadrill, A. “To Be Roman, Go Greek Thoughts on Hellenization at Rome.” Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies. Supplement, no. 71, 1998, pp. 79–91.
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In part two of our discussion about racism, we talk about ways to respond to the problems in the field, in teaching, scholarship, and more. Thank you to Katherine Blouin, Damian Fleming, Usama Ali Gad, Rebecca Futo Kennedy, Asa Mittman, Dimitri Nakassis, Helen Young, and Donna Zuckerberg for their generous contributions of time and thoughtful discussion of these difficult subjects. Please join in the conversation with your thoughts and ideas about how to move the fields forward.
Show Notes@AllEndlessKnot on Twitter
The Optimist Cocktail
Episode 44: "Us" & "Them" in the Ancient & Anglo-Saxon Worlds
Episode 51: Race & Racism in Ancient & Medieval Studies, Part One: The Problem
Dr. Katherine Blouin
Everyday Orientalism blog
@isisnaucratis
Dr. Damian Fleming
@FW_Medieval
Dr. Usama Ali Gad
Classics in Arabic blog
@Usamaligad78
Dr. Rebecca Futo Kennedy
Classics at the Intersections blog
Sourcebook on Race and Ethnicity in the Classical World
@kataplexis
Dr. Asa Mittman
Inconceivable Beasts: The Wonders of the East in the Beowulf Manuscript
Dr. Dimitri Nakassis
Aegean Prehistory blog
@DimitriNakassis
Dr. Helen Young
Race & Popular Fantasy: Habits of Whiteness
@heyouonline
Dr. Donna Zuckerberg
Eidolon
@donnazuck
The Public Medievalist's series on Race, Racism, & the Middle Ages
In the Middle blog (frequently has useful posts on these subjects)
Hold My Mead: A Bibliography For Historians Hitting Back At White Supremacy by Sarah Bond
Medieval People of Color Tumblr
Pharos -- documenting misuse of the Classics
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What are the problems surrounding race and racism in the fields of Classics and Medieval Studies today? Where did these fields come from, and how does that affect the way we think about the past, and how we construct the present? For this episode (and the next) we interviewed eight scholars and put it together into an exploration of these unfortunately timely topics. Thank you to Katherine Blouin, Damian Fleming, Usama Ali Gad, Rebecca Futo Kennedy, Asa Mittman, Dimitri Nakassis, Helen Young, and Donna Zuckerberg for their generous contributions of time and thoughtful discussion of these difficult subjects. In our next episode, we will hear about possible responses to these problems -- in teaching, scholarship, and more.
Show NotesTranscript
Conversation Starter cocktail
Episode 44: "Us" & "Them" in the Ancient & Anglo-Saxon Worlds
Part Two: Responses
Dr. Katherine Blouin
Everyday Orientalism blog
@isisnaucratis
Dr. Damian Fleming
@FW_Medieval
Dr. Usama Ali Gad
Classics in Arabic blog
@Usamaligad78
Dr. Rebecca Futo Kennedy
Classics at the Intersections blog
Sourcebook on Race and Ethnicity in the Classical World
@kataplexis
Dr. Asa Mittman
Inconceivable Beasts: The Wonders of the East in the Beowulf Manuscript
Dr. Dimitri Nakassis
Aegean Prehistory blog
@DimitriNakassis
Dr. Helen Young
Race & Popular Fantasy: Habits of Whiteness
@heyouonline
Dr. Donna Zuckerberg
Eidolon
@donnazuck
The Public Medievalist's series on Race, Racism, & the Middle Ages
In the Middle blog (frequently has useful posts on these subjects)
Hold My Mead: A Bibliography For Historians Hitting Back At White Supremacy by Sarah Bond
Medieval People of Color Tumblr
Our Patreon page
iTunes link
Stitcher link
Google Play Music link
This podcast episode on YouTube
This podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
We interview Emily Wilson, whose new translation of the Odyssey for Norton was published in November to great acclaim and critical praise. She tells us about some of her choices in the areas of metre, vocabulary, register, and more, and we discuss the very concept of 'choice' in translation, the notion of a 'faithful' translation, the complicated question of heroic women, and 70's blaxpoitation films!
Show NotesThe Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson
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Reindeer video
Merchandise (CafePress Site)
Stocking video
Gerry Bowler, The World Encyclopedia of Christmas
Bruce David Forbes, Christmas: A Candid History
Desmond Morris, Christmas Watching
Andrea Broomfield, Food and Cooking in Victorian England: A History
Kaufman, Cathy. “The Ideal Christmas Dinner.” Gastronomica, vol. 4, no. 4, 2004, pp. 17–24.
Leach, Helen. “Translating the 18th Century Pudding.” Islands of Inquiry: Colonisation, Seafaring and the Archaeology of Maritime Landscapes, edited by Geoffrey Clark et al., vol. 29, ANU Press, 2008, pp. 381–396.
History of shortbread.
Canadian Encyclopedia "Tourtière"
Lemasson, Jean-Pierre. "The Long History of the Tourtière of Quebec's Lac-St-Jean", in What's to Eat? Entrees in Canadian Food History, edited by Nathalie Cooke, McGill-Queens UP, 2009.
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Mythtake Podcast
Bakkhai at Stratford
Introduction to Mythology from Oxford UP
Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton
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Why Bob Dylan Matters
Monday, Dec. 4, 2017 at Newtonville Books in Boston, MA
Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017 at the University of Tulsa, in Tulsa, OK
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We talk to podcaster and author Mike Duncan about his book, podcasting, Roman history, and more. Thanks to Mike for joining us -- and everyone, go get his book, it's great!
Show NotesThe History of Rome Podcast
Revolutions Podcast
The Storm before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic
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Our Hallowe'en themed episode this year is about costumes -- and etymologies and origin stories of a whole bunch of iconic items of clothing. We talk about the semiotics of fashion, the many varieties of the toga, and hats that caused fainting fits, and finish off with a couple of spooky Roman stories! Also, check out this year's Hallowe'en video, on words for Ghost.
Show Notes#2PodsADay
Werewolf Cocktail recipe
"Costume" video
"Jack o'Lantern" video
Ep 22: Jack o'Lantern podcast
The "gens togata": Changing Styles and Changing Identities
Article about Trudeau
Attitudes of Lady Hamilton, by Novelli
Portrait of Lady Hamilton as Bacchante, by Romney
Petronius Satyricon vol 2 chpt 62 werewolf story
Pliny the Elder werewolf passage
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What words did the Greeks, Romans, and Anglo-Saxons use to talk about different groups of people? What differences did they think were important? How do those compare to modern conceptions of ethnicity, national identity, or race? We try to give some basic background on this complicated question, starting with the etymology of the vocabulary and addressing some of the ways differences were conceptualized.
Show Notes
Full transcript of this episode
2PodsADay
Video on the Anglo-Saxon Invasion, collaboration with Jabzy
Ethnicity in Herodotus--The Honest Entry
How is the Ancient Mediterranean Diverse If Everyone There Is "White"?
“Black Odysseus, White Caesar: When Did "White People" Become "White"?” James H. Dee. The Classical Journal. Vol. 99, No. 2 (Dec., 2003 - Jan., 2004), pp. 157-167
“Did ancient identity depend on ethnicity? A preliminary probe” Erich Gruen. Phoenix. Vol. 67, No. 1/2 (2013), pp. 1-22.
Were Medieval People Racist?
“Medieval and Modern Concepts of Race and Ethnicity” Robert Bartlett.
Caitlin Green’s blog, for general evidence of diversity in Britain
Race and Ethnicity in Anglo-Saxon Literature. Stephen Harris, Taylor & Francis, 2003.
Where the the term "White People" come from?
Colorlines in Classical North Africa
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We talk to Laura Carlson from The Feast Podcast about recreating historical recipes, the many meanings of food, and what exactly defines a 'recipe'. This is part of The Recipe Project's Virtual Conversation: What is a Recipe? and you can join in the conversation by leaving a comment here or by checking out the hashtag #recipesconf on Twitter and Instagram.
We discuss how the recent Guy Ritchie movie King Arthur: Legend of the Sword fits into the history of adaptations of the Arthur legend. What kind of Arthur does it present, how does it interact with the Arthurian tradition, and what themes does it explore? And who has the biggest...er...elephants?
We're getting saucy with a discussion about the etymology and history of condiments -- from Roman garum to Worcestershire sauce, through Escoffier and seasonings, to the global implications of ketchup.
We discuss the origins of the Gimlet cocktail, the stories about its name, and its connection to the treatment of scurvy; then we talk about some of the other diseases tied to the early era of European expansion and colonialism, including the classical history of malaria in Greece and Rome. Also featuring conversation about gin, the pronunciation of quinine, and a cameo appearance by Alexander the Great!
Gin, Glorious Gin: How Mother's Ruin Became the Spirit of London by Olivia Williams
"The Dead Do Tell Tales", Ethan Barnes, Corinth, Vol. 20, Corinth, The Centenary: 1896-1996 (2003), pp. 435-443. JSTOR
Malaria and Rome: A History of Malaria in Ancient Italy, Robert Sallares, OUP 2002.
"A Note on Alexander's Death", Donald Engels, Classical Philology, Vol. 73, No. 3 (Jul., 1978), pp. 224-228. JSTOR
We finish up our colour series (for now!) with a discussion of Purple, Pink, & Brown. From Phoenician shellfish, Virgil's Aeneas,& Propertius's Cynthia, to flowers, beavers, & bears, this episode covers a lot of ground. Let us know what fun colour facts we've missed, and what colourful topics you might like us to cover in the future!
We've joined forces with the MythTake podcast for a pair of episodes about the myth of Theseus, the Minotaur, and Ariadne. In our episode we talk about the story of Theseus & Ariadne, and the development of the word 'Clue' from Chaucer's version of the tale, as well as Catullus and Ovid's depictions of Ariadne's abandonment, and the connections to fingerprints, detective fiction, and Agatha Christie's life. Meanwhile, Alison & Darrin in their episode talk about two poems by Bacchylides, and the Greek sources for the life of Theseus and his heroic exploits, as well as a few more English words derived from his adventures.
It's #CreateICG Week! A bunch of internet creators are putting out videos, podcasts, blogs, & more, all on the theme of CREATE – with all sorts of different approaches and interpretations. The event is centred around the Internet Creators Guild, a non-profit organization with a mission to support, represent, and connect creators whose primary platform is online. If you’d like to find out more about them, you can go to internetcreatorsguild.com – and to find more amazing creations by ICG members, search #CreateICG on your social media of choice, check our show notes for links, or go to createicg.wordpress.com for lists of creators and their works. In this episode we talk about the etymology of CREATE, the origin of breakfast, how mealtimes moved around the day, the history of theatrical and artificial lighting, and Greek and Norse creation myths -- including the story of the body-fluid-filled mead of inspiration!
We have the immense pleasure of interviewing Baba Brinkman, a Canadian rap artist & award-winning playwright best known for his “Rap Guide” series of plays and albums, with which he has toured the world; these cover topics like evolution, religion, medicine, and most recently climate change. He’s also pioneered the genre of ‘lit-hop’ with his adaptations of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Gilgamesh, Beowulf & more. At the end of the interview we play a couple of tracks by Baba: his newest single "Erosion", and the first two tracks from his Rap Canterbury Tales album, "General Prologue" & "The Knight's Tale (scene 1)".
How do words change their meanings? What are the mechanisms behind semantic change? And how do technological advances -- like the development of e-books -- affect language? We discuss these topics and more with Ray Belli, host of the Words for Granted podcast.
We trace the history of 'coach' back to its Hungarian roots, and explore its connections to the development of higher education in Europe. Then we run through a capsule history of the goals (stated and unstated!) of education from classical Athens to today, and discuss how the new world of online learning, including YouTube and pocasts, fits into the ideals and best practices of the future of education. Please let us know about all the things we over-simplified, left out, or got wrong in the process of covering almost 3000 years of western European schooling, and weigh in on where you see things heading now!
We return to our series on colour words with a discussion of Yellow and Orange in Greek, Latin, & English. The Roman and medieval associations of the colours take us from a wedding hymn by Catullus to Mary Magdalene & pawnbrokers -- and finally to modern connections to cowboys and Cheetos.
We're joined by Sam McLean to discuss Rogue One's connections to Germanic heroism, Norse thautr, Roman epic, Terry Pratchett, heist films, & The Dirty Dozen. Following up last year's conversation about The Force Awakens, we're interested in seeing how the newest Star Wars film changes genres and develops new themes.
We delve into the origins of the gifts in "The 12 Days of Christmas" carol, talk about Christmas as the season for games, read a little Latin poetry, and discuss the parallels between feisty women and old farts. And there's a bonus song!
The origin of the turkey's name leads to discussion of the origin of Thanksgiving, the role of myths in constructing ideology, and some Horace, Homer, & Ovid. Also featuring some spicy cocktails.
We discuss Douglas Adams' Dirk Gently novels, the 2010 BBC miniseries, and the new BBC America adaptation, with Samuel Barnett & Elijah Wood, written by Max Landis We talk about "the fundamental interconnectedness of all things" as inspiration for Mark's work, the process of adaptation, and 1980's Englishness..
In our Halloween episode we discuss the origins of the holiday, the etymology of Jack o'Lantern, the Canadian connections to trick-or-treating, and the great pumpkin scandal of 2016, and we read a Roman poem about witches scared off by a wooden fertility god!
We talk to Paul Anthony Jones about where his love of etymology and obscure words came from, how he researches his books, the unexpected popularity of his Haggard Hawks twitter account, and more.
We explore the terms for blue & green in Greek, Latin, and English, and discuss their symbolism and meaning in the various cultures. Is it true the ancient Greeks couldn't see blue? Why do we go 'green with envy'? And what did chariot racing, colours, and religious riots in Constantinople have to do with the Italian national football team?
We chat about the Norman French influence on Anglo-Saxon words for animals and meat, the powerful emotional and political aspects of the words we use for food, and then delve into Latin technical terms for farmyard animals, ending off with Virgil's pastoral poems, the Eclogues.
All about beer! From experiments in baking bread with the leftovers from brewing beer to the etymology of beery words, and the complicated question of how fizzy beer has been through the ages. We follow up on questions raised in our "Loaf" podcast, and get some tips from other foodie podcasters.
Exploring bread-related etymologies, sourdough and Roman loaves, and the link between brewing beer and baking bread.
We talk about Old English, Greek, and Latin words for red, the cultural importance of dyes, basic colour terms, blushes, blood, and gods.
We talk to Stephen Le about his book 100 Million Years of Food, and his efforts to use an understanding of evolution to help us decide what to eat. We chat about what it means to "eat what your ancestors ate", the cultural history of food, and his wide-ranging travels in search of traditional foods to try.
We chat about possible origins for the cocktail, and the crazy stories about the word's origin. We also tell the tale of our first cocktail party, that sparked our interest in them and led to the cocktail video series.
We read passages from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales & Ovid's Fasti, to celebrate #WhanThatAprilleDay, a day for enjoying old languages.
We have an in-depth conversation about the Latin words for "white", the many terms for "shining" in proto-Indo-European, and the connection between the Beatles and medieval German students, while drinking White Ladies.
We discuss the origins of "Come From Away" in the unexpected connections caused by 9/11, and the ways David & Irene's backgrounds and interests have intersected to produce this show.
Sexual fetishes, middle English poetry, Jane Austen, and Ovid -- and how they're all connected to Valentine's Day!
We chat to James Andean about acousmatic music, interdisciplinary improvisation, the role of narrative in music, and, inevitably, Star Wars. With a piece by James at the end!
We talk about the ways SW:TFA connects to Classical epic and Norse sagas, and literary and theoretical aspects of the movie. Spoilers!
We discuss the etymology of Yule & the Germanic roots of Christmas traditions, along with Dr. Seuss & the Grinch, beer, & the unsavoury meaning of 'mistletoe'.
We chat about stories, myth, and cognition -- and some of the ways narrative shapes our understanding of the world around us. Includes more Doctor Who talk, and some Latin and Old English.
Announcing a new podcast, "As We Like It", about Shakespeare in film, and updating listeners on new videos and upcoming podcast episodes.
A conversation with history prof. Dr. Liedl about fandom, scifi, treason under Henry VIII, and history.
A special episode, recorded at the cottage! We chat about unplugging, the etymology of 'harvest', poetry, and what to call a group of loons.
We discuss Plato's views on writing, the effects of technology and relationships on memory, and the naming, origin, and mythology of Pluto.
We discuss and play "A Detective Story", touching on Sir Gawain, Sherlock Holmes, memory palaces and other ways to remember things.
The first episode of The Endless Knot Podcast, introducing the concept and exploring the idea of connections in the world around us.