THE SQUINT

Jul. 12th, 2025 09:00 pm
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By mrjaymaninang
The TIE/IN interceptor, also known as the TIE Interceptor, or TIE/in was a type of TIE fighter used by the Galactic Empire, most notably during the Battle of Endor.

THE ROYAL STARFIGHTER

Jul. 12th, 2025 09:00 pm
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By mrjaymaninang
These starfighters were commonly used to escort Emperor Palpatine's Lambda-class shuttle and its decoys during his travels.

Steele v. Monboddo

Jul. 12th, 2025 04:40 pm
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Posted by Mark Liberman

In "AI win of the week" I explored the inter-personal dimensions of Rousseau's 1754 contention that "there is neither rhythm nor melody in French music, because the language is not capable of them". In the comments, AntC objected that "But, but. Rousseau wrote an opera, in French, to his own Libretto. audio + full score available on Youtube".

For now, I have only two comments on this. First, trolls are often happy to abandon consistency in the service of pwning their audience. And second, the 1754 edition of Rousseau's screed, published two years after the debut of his opera, goes into considerable detail about how he painfully transferred the musicality of Italian prosody to the composition and performance of a work with French lyrics.

But rather than diving further into Rousseau's argument about the relative musicality of different languages' prosody, the point of today's post is to note its resonance with another mid-18th century prosodic dispute, namely Joshua Steele's refutation of James Burnett's claim that English prosody gives its syllables "nothing better than the music of a drum, in which we perceive no difference except that of louder or softer, according as the instrument is more or less forcibly struck".

My connection with this argument began in 1973, when I was trying to learn something about English intonation. The (very small) relevant section of the stacks in MIT's library happened to have (a facsimile edition of) Steele's 1775 work, An Essay Towards Establishing the Melody and Measure of Speech to be Expressed and Perpetuated by Peculiar Symbols. I read it carefully and learned a lot.

One of the first things I learned was Steele's motivation for the enterprise. His description starts this way:

[M]y learned and honoured friend Sir John Pringle, President of the Royal Society, desired me to give him, in writing, my opinion on the musical part of a very curious and ingenious work lately published at Edinburgh, on The Origin and Progress of Language, which I should find principally in part II. book ii, chap. 4. and 5. wherein several propositions, denying that our language has either the melody of modulation, or the rhythmus of quantity, gave occasion to the following systematic attempt to prove the contrary.

At that point I paid no further attention to Monboddo's  "very curious and ingenious work", partly because I was convinced by Steele's arguments against it, and partly because the library didn't have a copy of (any of the six volumes) of  the work in question.  But digital facsimiles are now easy to come by, and so I've taken a look at the stuff that led Pringle to question Steele, and led Steele to write his essay.

The author was James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (see Language Hat's post on the interpretation of the name), and the six volumes of The Origin and Progress of Language were published between 1774 and 1792. Volume II was part of the initial 1774 publication,  giving Steele only a year to prepare and publish his response a year later.

The relevant pages of Monboddo's work are here, if you really want to slog through them. The critical passage comes at the end:

But what do we mean then when we speak so much of accent in English, and dispute whether a word is right or wrong accented? My answer is, That we have, no doubt, accents in English, and syllabical accents too: but they are of a quite different kind from the antient accents ; for there is no change of the tone in them; but the voice is only raised more, so as to be louder upon one syllable than another. Our accents therefore fall under the first member of the division of sound, which I made in the beginning of this chapter, namely, the distinction of louder, and softer, or lower.

That there is truly no other difference, is a matter of fact, that must be determined by musicians. Now I appeal to them, whether they can perceive any difference of tone betwixt the accented and unaccented syllables of any word; and if there be none, then is the music of our language in this respect nothing better than the music of a drum, in which we perceive no difference except that of louder or softer, according as the instrument is more or less forcibly struck.

Of course Monboddo is also wrong that drum sounds can differ only in loudness and not in frequency content — watch and listen here for a refutation, or here for another (and more linguistically relevant) one.

But in fairness to Lord Monboddo, his "English accents are like drum beats" claim is not quite so idiotically tone-deaf as it seems, since he makes two other claims earlier that fuzzify it somewhat. One is the idea that English pitch changes exist, but only as "the tones of passion or sentiment":

As to accents in English, Mr Foster, from a partiality, very excusable, to his country, and its language, would fain persuade us, that in English there are accents such as in Greek and Latin. But to me it is evident that there are none such; by which I mean that we have no accents upon syllables, which are musical tones, differing in acuteness or gravity. For though, no doubt, there are changes of voice in our speaking from acute to grave, and vice versa, of which a musician could mark the intervals, these changes are not upon syllables, but upon words or sentences. And they are the tones of passion or sentiment, which, as I observed, are to be distinguished from the accents we are speaking of.

And he adds

[T]here is another difference betwixt our accents and the antient, that ours neither are, nor can, by their nature, be subjected to any rule ; whereas the antient, as we have seen, are governed by rules, and make part of their grammatical art.

Anyhow, Steele took it on himself not only to show that English had "melody and measure", but also to provide "peculiar symbols" for expressing it. The pages where he introduces his notation are here.  His instrumental analysis method — using a bass viol — is better than any other one that would be available for the following couple of hundred years:

Along with some other notational inventions, the result is transcriptions like this:

And his conclusions:

1st, That the sound or melody of speecb is not monotonous, or confined like the found of a drum, to exhibit no other changes than those of loud or soft.

2dly, That the changes of voice from acute to grave, and vice versa, do not proceed by pointed degrees coinciding with
the divisions of the chromatico-diatonic scale; but by gradations that seem infinitely smaller (which we call slides); and though altogether of a great extent, are yet too rapid (for inexperienced ears) to be distinctly sub-divided; consequently they must be submitted to some other genus of music than either the diatonic or chromatic.

3dly, That these changes are made, not only upon words and upon sentences, but upon syllables and monosyllables. Also,

4thly, and lastly, That in our changes on syllables or monofyllables, the voice slides, at least, through as great an extent as the Greeks allowed to their accents; that is, through a fifth, more or less.

Not having access to a bass viol, I followed Steele's example using a computer program for a PDP-9, allowing figures like this one from my 1975 dissertation:

Though for presentational purposes, Ivan Sag used a kazoo in presentations like this one:

 

superpeanuts

Jul. 11th, 2025 10:00 pm
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By infinityinfinity
Super-powered cuteness overload! These two are unstoppable heroes on a wild adventure!
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Posted by Hooks Orpik

Washington Capitals v Pittsburgh Penguins
Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images

Seeing what happened to some former Pens in the latest off-season free agency carousel

Welcome to another summer Saturday. The dust is starting to settle on the initial burst of free agency and teams are gradually gearing down to settle into their summers prior to the start of another hockey season in the fall.

What has happened with some former Penguin players? Let’s check in on some:

NHL.com has a list of this season’s free agents:

Group 3 Unrestricted Free Agents: Kasper Bjorkqvist, Nathan Clurman (signed: MTL), Matt Grzelcyk, Marc Johnstone (signed: Toronto of AHL), Matt Nieto, Colton Poolman.

Group 6 Unrestricted Free Agents: Mac Hollowell (signed: Yaroslavl of Russia), Jimmy Huntington (signed: SJS), Filip Kral (signed: Brno of Czechia), Mathias Laferriere.

Unrestricted Free Agents (did not receive qualifying offer): Raivis Ansons (signed: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of AHL), Emil Bemstrom, Connor Dewar (re-signed), Taylor Gauthier (signed: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of AHL), P.O Joseph (signed: VAN), Philip Tomasino (re-signed).

There hasn’t been too much surprising activity - both Connor Dewar and Phil Tomasino came back to the Pens. P.O. Joseph signed a one-year deal at league minimum ($775k) to join Jim Rutherford, Patrik Alvin and company with the Canucks where he could be back in a 6/7 type of role.

Of this list, Conor Timmins remains a restricted free agent with Buffalo after the trade from June’s draft sent him there.

Otherwise, not much movement. Matt Grzelcyk has found the same market almost two weeks into free agency as he did at the NHL trade deadline with nothing to write home about. Given his assist totals, it’s a bit surprising he hasn’t caught on anywhere yet but given the tape he’s had in the last 12-16 months with Pittsburgh and Boston, then again it’s not that surprising.

Looking deeper into Penguins from longer in the past..

Anaheim

—The Ducks reportedly were interested in signing John Tavares, before the former Toronto captain re-signed with the Leafs. So Anaheim switched gears and got Mikael Granlund signed to a three-year contract with an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $7,000,000. The SJ/PIT Erik Karlsson trade didn’t work out for very many parties involved well, but Granlund sure was a winner to rack up a lot of points with the Sharks in a big role and play himself into a huge raise on this contract.

Carolina

—Didn’t qualify Ty Smith, it looks like he remains as an unrestricted free agent. Smith could be on the Derrick Pouliot path of being a career AHLer. The Hurricanes also watched veteran goalie Dustin Tokarski go to free agency, where he also currently remains looking for his next stop.

Colorado

—Said goodbye to short-time former Penguin (and short former Penguin) Matthew Phillips. Phillips went on to sign an AHL contract with San Diego.

Colorado also opted to not extend a qualifying offer to John Ludvig, who remains as a free agent.

Columbus

—Is this the end of the line for Jack Johnson? Columbus let him go as a free agent, Johnson, 38, appeared in 41 games for the Blue Jackets last season.

Dallas

—The Stars bid adieu to minor league goalie Magnus Hellberg. Hellberg has gone on to sign with Djurgarden of the Swedish league. The Stars also watched Cody Ceci go to free agency and cash in with a big contract with the Kings.

Edmonton

—The Oilers gave a one-year contract to Kasperi Kapanen for 2025-26 worth $1.3 million to keep that party going.

Florida

—The Panthers were the ones to sign Jesse Puljujarvi once the Pens cut him loose in the middle of last season. Puljujarvi played five regular season games (but none in the playoffs) and was with the AHL Charlotte Checkers in their deep playoff run this year. Puljujarvi decided to switch gears and is going overseas in 2025-26, signing with Geneve-Servette HC of Switzerland. So that’s how that story ends.

Los Angeles

—Cody Ceci signed a four-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 1, 2025, with an average annual value (AAV) of $4.5 million. Brian Dumoulin signed a three-year contract with the Kings featuring a cap hit of $4,000,000. Ken Holland, ladies and gentlemen!

Minnesota

—Marc-Andre Fleury has retired. Probably. Five teams called his agent to see if he wanted to stick to the retirement, but at this point the 40-year old looks ready to move into the next stages of his life beyond being an NHL goalie.

New Jersey

—Cody Glass wasn’t qualified by the Devils, but they decided to bring him back just the same with a two-year contract that retains the $2.5 million cap hit he played under last year. Not a bad little career revitalization for Glass last year between his stints in Pittsburgh and New Jersey.

The Devils also moved on from Daniel Sprong, who remains a free agent. Sprong, 28, will be looking for his ninth different team if he catches on (though he only scored one goal and added three assists in 21 games combined between Seattle and NJ last season).

New York Rangers

—Signed Pouliot to a two-year contract for league minimum with a nice downside guarantee. Pouliot, as mentioned, has become a great AHL level defender and has been valued by organizations to help out down the depth chart.

Ottawa

—The Sens brought on Lars Eller with a one-year, $1.25 million contract, with an extra $1 million available in performance bonuses. Not a bad deal for the 36-year old veteran after he quietly fizzled out back in Washington last season following the Pens trading him there.

Philadelphia

—The Penguin-related news was off the ice with the Flyers by picking up Rick Tocchet as their head coach and then hiring Todd Reirden to be an assistant.

San Jose

—The Sharks re-signed Colin White to a one-year deal. Jan Rutta’s contract ended and he remains as a free agent.

Seattle

—Signed Matt Murray to a one-year contract, $1.0 million contract to re-join Jason Botterill. Gotta like this as a sneaky way for Murray to set himself up, Philip Grubauer has been among the shakiest NHL goalies in the past few years and there’s got to be a good chance that Murray gets the opportunity to play NHL games next season for the Kraken at some point, even though he’s their No. 3 goalie in the organization.

St. Louis

—In perhaps one of the few team-friendly free agent signings, the Blues made a nice piece of business by signing Nick Bjugstad to a a two-year contract with the St. Louis Blues with an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $1,750,000. Bjugstad had a tough season last year with Utah (19 points in 66 games) but is only one-year removed from having a 22 goal, 45 point season with Arizona back in 2023-24.

Tampa

—Said goodbye to a few former Penguins, Anthony Angello became (and remains) a free agent. Conor Sheary approached the Lightning to dissolve the last year of his contract in 2025-26 after spending most of it in the AHL to seek a better opportunity. It hasn’t developed yet for him, he’s still a free agent, worked out well for Tampa to get to wipe a $2 million cap hit off their books.

Toronto

—Let Alex Nylander go as a free agent. Nylander only played five NHL games last season (no points) and any magic from his shocking 11 goal in 23 game stint with Columbus in 2023-24 looks like it has dissipated as quickly as it came on.

Utah

—The Mammoth went 1-2 with bringing one former Penguin in and watching two leave. Brandon Tanev, 33, signed a three-year contract with an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $2,500,000, which isn’t the first time he was able to pull an impressive contract out of the UFA market. Bjugstad, as mentioned above, jumped to STL. And it looks like it might be the end of the road for 36-year old Robert Bortuzzo, who is now a free agent and was hinting at retirement at the end of the season.

Vegas

—Reilly Smith signed a one-year contract extension with the Vegas Golden Knights on June 25, 2025, with an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $2,000,000 for the 2025-26 season. Nice for him, since Vegas is the place that he really wants to be after unsatisfying stints in Pittsburgh and New York.

Washington

—Shortly after learning that Nik Ehlers didn’t want to play for them (ha ha), the Caps quickly shifted gears and announced that Anthony Beauvillier signed a two-year contract on July 3, 2025, that carries an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $2,750,000. That more than doubles Beauvillier’s salary from last season and gets him a second year as well and serves as another Penguin mid-career revitalization success story.

Winnipeg

—Tanner Pearson signed a one-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets on July 1, 2025, with an average annual value (AAV) and cap hit of $1,000,000.

Tâigael, part 2

Jul. 11th, 2025 10:05 pm
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Posted by Victor Mair

[This is a guest post by Chau Wu]

The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (TPC) was first planted by British missionaries in Tainan, which later expanded to all southern parts of Taiwan, constituting the present Southern Synod of TPC. The most important pioneer among them was the Scottish missionary Rev. Thomas Barclay who worked in Taiwan-Fu (the present Tainan).  He was born in Glasgow, and matriculated at the University of Glasgow. While there, he studied under Sir William Thomson, later Lord Kelvin [according to Wikipedia]. The celebrated Lord Kelvin reminds me of the absolute zero degree in physical chemistry and the electric cable equation as the underpinning of the Transatlantic cable as well as the conduction of electric impulses along nerve fibers. 

The majority of Taiwanese Christians are Presbyterian. Those who are aware of the church history always associate the solid establishment of TPC with Barclay, and his name shows up in Barclay Memorial Park and Barclay Memorial Church in Tainan City. The following picture shows the church name on the lintel above the door of the church in POJ: Tâi-Lâm Tang-M̂ng Pa-Khek-Lé Kì-Liām Kàu-Hōe (Tainan East Gate Barclay Memorial Church). You see there are no Sinographs such as the expected 台南東門巴克禮紀念教會 on it!  Only the Romanized Taiwanese script.  Since Barclay was a Scot, I would say this title on the church lintel may qualify as a good example of Tâigael.

(From Wikipedia)

Interestingly, the present Northern Synod of TPC had its beginning in 60 churches established by Rev. George Mackay, a Scottish-Canadian who graduated with a theological degree from Princeton Theological Seminary and received postgraduate training in theology at Edinburgh University. His parents, George Mackay and Helen Sutherland, emigrated from Sutherlandshire of Scotland. So, here we have another case of Tâigael linkage, albeit by a generation removed from Scotland. On a personal note, my grandfather was the second earliest of his many students and was among the first 5 Taiwanese of northern Taiwan to receive baptism from him at Tamsui. The Presbyterian church at Tamsui has a marble plaque recording this event.

Perhaps to those of us among Language Log readers who are interested in Taiwanese linguistics, one of the most important figures is the Scottish missionary Rev. William Campbell.

William Campbell (ChinesePe̍h-ōe-jīKam Ûi-lîm) (1841–1921) was a Scottish Presbyterian missionary to Formosa (Qing Taiwan). He wrote extensively on topics related to Taiwan and was also responsible for founding the island's first school for the blind.[3] Interested in the early history of the island (particularly the Dutch era), his knowledge of the time was such that he was called "without doubt the greatest authority on this subject living".[4] He was probably the first European to see Sun-Moon Lake,[5] which he named Lake Candidius in honour of the seventeenth century Dutch missionary George Candidius.

Campbell arrived in Qing-era Taiwan in 1871 to begin his mission in southern Taiwan, being stationed in Taiwan-fu, the capital of Taiwan Prefecture (modern-day Tainan) and serving both Han Chinese and Taiwanese aborigines in the area.[6] He was a contemporary of Thomas BarclayJames Laidlaw Maxwell and George Leslie Mackay, who were all engaged in missionary work in Taiwan.

(source)

A major contribution of his, “A Dictionary of the Amoy Vernacular Spoken throughout the Prefectures of Chin-chiu, Chiang-chiu and Formosa (Taiwan) 廈門音新字典” stands out as the Tâigael example par excellence. This dictionary, compiled by a Scot, is ironically for me a Taiwanese, the go-to handbook for studying Taiwanese historical linguistics.

Tâigael works wonders in the spread of gospel to Taiwan.

 

Selected readings

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Posted by Victor Mair

As announced in the title of the first post on this subject, my aim is to understand where the Galatians originated and how / why they migrated to where they were when Apostle Paul wrote his epistle to them.  Since I was apparently insufficiently clear about both of those purposes in part 1, in this follow-up post I will provide additional scholarly material.  Inasmuch as the identification of the Gauls / Celts and the languages they spoke will be important for several posts about them that I will write in the coming weeks, today's post will necessarily be long and detailed. 

Here I will quote from Ben Witherington III, Grace in Galatia: A Commentary on St. Paul’s Letter to the Galatians (Grand Rapids, MI:  Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1998), pp. 1-7.

N.B.:  Illustration for art historians below.

The term Γαλάται was used interchangeably with Κέλται or Κέλτοι by Greek writers, as were the terms Galatae, Galli, and Celtae by Latin writers. These terms were used to refer to a group of people originating in central Europe in the Danube river basin but who migrated into Switzerland, southern Germany, northern Italy, France (hence the Roman name Gaul for this region), Britain (the Celts) and then finally into the Balkans, and Asia Minor. The region which these peoples inhabited and took control of in Asia Minor came to be called Galatia or even Gallogrecia (the land of Greek-speaking Gauls).

It was in about 278 b.c. that this migratory people made their way into Asia Minor, originally on the invitation of Nicomedes the king of Bithynia who sought to use them as mercenaries. Basically these people settled around Ancyra, and after a series of battles with their neighbors were confined to an area in north central Asia Minor bordered by Phrygia to the west, Cappadocia and Lycaonia to the south, Pontus to the east, and Bithynia and Paphlagonia to the north. By 189 b.c. Galatia had suffered the same fate as the rest of Asia Minor by coming under the control of Rome.

It is fair to say that the Galatian people, who had originally migrated to Asia Minor, and their descendants, retained a great deal of their original culture well beyond the NT era. They spoke a Celtic dialect which continued to survive into the fourth century a.d., at least in rural areas of ethnic Galatia. They had a distinctive form of Celtic religious and political organization and were widely revered and feared as great warriors and mercenaries. They were considered barbarians due to their strange dialect, considerable physical stature, and wild appearance, though by Paul’s time most of them seem to have been capable of speaking Greek.

The province of Galatia continued to have territory added to it by the Roman authorities up to and beyond the time when Paul visited and wrote to people in this region. For example, in 5 b.c. portions of Paphlagonia in the north was  [recte were] added to Galatia, and then perhaps about a.d. 4 a part of Pontus was added to the region (this portion being called Pontus Galaticus). Sometime just before or during the reign of the Emperor Claudius (a.d. 41–54) a part of the northern Taurus region was added to the province of Galatia as well.

In short, in Paul’s day the province of Galatia was an enormous province, usually governed by a legate rather than a consul from the Senate, until at least the time of Nero. This is what made it a praetorian province. It bordered on the Black Sea in the north and the Mediterranean Sea in the south, and in theory when Paul addressed persons as Galatians, if he used Roman provincial designations, he could be addressing people anywhere in this region. Strabo in his discussion of Galatia confirms that the province included old Galatia, Pisidia, Lycaonia, parts of Pamphylia, and Cilicia Trachea (12.5.1). At least thirteen Roman colonies were established in the province of Galatia, mainly in its southern portion, either by founding cities or reconstituting cities. Among these were Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra.

Despite the enormous size of this province there does not seem to have been any regular presence of legions in Galatia during Paul’s time there, though there were of course retired soldiers in various of the colony cities. One reaches this conclusion because after years of quiet the Parthian tribes did arise in rebellion in about a.d. 55 in Armenia and Nero put the Galatian legate Cn. Domitius Corbulo in command of the eastern forces to check the advance of the Parthians. However, as Corbulo hastened east he had to requisition two legions from the governor of Syria in order to have troops for the task. Furthermore, it took him two years of training to get them ready to fight the Parthians and he had to conduct levies throughout Galatia and Cappadocia as well. Sherk goes so far as to say that during the period from Augustus until Nero there were no legions stationed in the Galatian province. This reminds us that it is a mistake to over-estimate the Roman military presence in most of the regions Paul evangelized.

In part, what made the province, especially its southern portion, governable was the building of a great Roman road, the Via Sebaste, sometime around or just before 6 b.c. This road linked most of the major colonies of the southern part of the province including Pisidian Antioch, Iconium and Lystra.  It is important to bear in mind that Roman roads in the northern part of the province were only constructed for the first time in the 70s and 80s a.d. which led to great growth in Roman military presence in that part of the region thereafter. The existence of Roman roads in the south but not in the northern part of the province in Paul’s day must be factored into the discussion of the audience Paul is addressing in Galatians.

What must also be borne in mind is that since the Roman province of Galatia included many different tribes and peoples and not just the descendents of the Celts or Gauls, the only term which could be predicated of all of them in Paul’s day would be Galatians. He could not for instance call them Phrygians or Lycaonians if he had evangelized a cross section of the residents of this Roman province. In fact, there is clear evidence from the inscriptions of the period that the entire region was regularly called Galatia in the NT era (cf. ILS 9499; IG Rom. 3.263, Eutropius 7.10), and not just the Celtic or Gallic part.

The further history of this province is of some relevance to our discussion because the earliest Christian discussions of Paul’s Galatians were undertaken with a knowledge only of subsequent developments in the province. By this I mean that we need to be aware that Vespasian detached almost all of Pisidia from Galatia in a.d. 74 and about a.d. 137 Lycaonia Galatica was removed and added to an enlarged province of Cilicia. In a.d. 297 southern Galatia was united with surrounding regions to form a new province of Pisidia with Antioch as its capital, and this in turn meant that the province of Galatia at this point reverted back to its original ethnological dimensions. It was this later truncated form of Galatia that was known as the province of Galatia to Christian commentators who discussed Paul’s Galatians between the fourth and nineteenth centuries of this era. It is not surprising under these circumstances that these commentators assumed that by ‘Galatians’ Paul was referring to the residence of ethnic or old kingdom of Galatia which coincided with the Roman province of Galatia after a.d. 297. The older commentators were all or almost all north Galatianists in regard to where they located Paul’s audience. It was only with the rise of the age of archaeology that this assumption about the locale of Paul’s Galatian converts began to be challenged by W. M. Ramsay and others, starting at the end of the nineteenth century.

Recently, J. M. Scott has made the interesting suggestion that Paul’s image of the world, which he learned while a Jew, be taken into consideration. Specifically he suggests that Paul shared the same view as Josephus and other Jews that the table of nations in Gen. 10 determined how a Jew would view the pagan nations. Josephus identifies Gomer, the first son of Japheth with the Galatians “who are understood as occupying the whole Roman province of Galatia, including south Galatia (Ant. 1.123, 126)”. Paul may have thought in similar fashion as Josephus, but Paul’s use of provincial terminology elsewhere in his epistles, and the fact that he is addressing mainly Gentiles who are unlikely to have been familiar with the traditions Josephus cites, makes it more probable that Paul is simply using provincial terminology in Galatians.

In closing this part of the discussion it is important to note that everything in Galatians suggests that the majority, perhaps the vast majority, of Paul’s Galatian converts are Gentiles not Jews, otherwise all these arguments about not submitting to circumcision would not be on target. Then too, these arguments also suggest that these Galatian Christians were attracted indeed even bewitched by the Judaizing suggestions or demands of the agitators and this makes it natural to suppose that the Galatian Christians had already had some exposure to Judaism before becoming Christians. Perhaps they had even had a positive and close exposure by spending time with Jews in the synagogue in at least some cases. One must also make sense of the fact that Paul feels he can use an elaborate Jewish allegory in Gal. 4 and arguments about covenants and Abraham and the development of salvation history to convince them not to listen to or follow the teaching of the agitators. In short, Paul is using Jewish arguments to convince Gentiles not to become more Jewish! This too suggests an audience conversant with Judaism and perhaps the basic lineaments of the Hebrew Scriptures as well. All of this is understandable if Acts 13–14 is right that Paul’s standard operating procedure when he was in the province of Galatia was to preach in the synagogue first until he was thrust out, and that his converts, both Jewish and Gentile came out of that Jewish matrix (cf. Acts 13:43, 48; 14:1). In other words, Galatians would be a word on target if his audience already knew a good deal about Judaism and the Hebrew Scriptures, it would be a word on target if he is in the main addressing God-fearers. It would be less apt if the Gentiles he is worried about had had no association with or knowledge of Judaism prior to Paul’s arrival in Galatia.

Migration was a key factor in the movements of the Gauls into Asia Minor, as were inducements from the Hellenistic Bythnians, under their king Nicomedes.  Bythnia later became a Roman province.

One of the most moving sculptures from the classical period is that of "The Dying Gaul".  Although the warrior has been vanquished, he is dignified in death:

The Dying Gaul, also called The Dying Galatian (Italian: Galata Morente) or The Dying Gladiator, is an ancient Roman marble semi-recumbent statue now in the Capitoline Museums in Rome. It is a copy of a now lost Greek sculpture from the Hellenistic period (323–31 BC) thought to have been made in bronze. The original may have been commissioned at some time between 230 and 220 BC by Attalus I of Pergamon to celebrate his victory over the Galatians, the Celtic or Gaulish people of parts of Anatolia. The original sculptor is believed to have been Epigonus, a court sculptor of the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon.

(Wikipedia)

The reputation of the Gauls / Galatians / Celts as mercenaries was not unwarranted.

gladiator (n.)

mid-15c., "Roman swordsman," from Latin gladiator (fem. gladiatrix) "fighter in the public games; swordsman," from gladius "sword" (there is no verb *gladiare), which probably is from Gaulish (compare Welsh cleddyf, Cornish clethe, Breton kleze "sword;" see claymore). Old Irish claideb is from Welsh.

The close connection with Celtic words for 'sword', together with the imperfect match of initial consonants, and the semantic field of weaponry, suggests that Latin borrowed a form *gladio- or *kladio- (a hypothetical variant of attested British Celtic *kladimo- 'sword') from [Proto-Celtic] or from a third language. [de Vaan]

(etymonline)

Phonological-etymological notes from Doug Adams:

It is indeed an imperfect match of initial consonants but throughout its history Latin has shown a tendency to voice initial k's.  Thus Romance (Spanish) has gato < cattus and golpe 'blow' < colophos.  No explanation has ever been offered up for the phenomenon.

The Celtic connection is quite probable.  And certainly these kinds of words are liable to borrowing.  Look at epee or claymore in English.

There is still much to mull over about Celts and Celtic.

 

Selected readings

[Thanks to Mark Metcalf]

superpeanuts

Jul. 11th, 2025 09:00 pm
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By infinityinfinity
Super-powered cuteness overload! These two are unstoppable heroes on a wild adventure!

AI win of the day

Jul. 11th, 2025 08:38 pm
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Posted by Mark Liberman

In "Beautiful music and logical warts", I quoted (part of) the trollish conclusion of Rousseau's Lettre sur la Musique Française:

Je crois avoir fait voir qu’il n’y a ni mesure ni mélodie dans la musique française, parce que la langue n’en est pas susceptible ; que le chant français n’est qu’un aboiement continuel, insupportable à toute oreille non prévenue; que l’harmonie en est brute, sans expression, et sentant uniquement son remplissage d'écolier ; que les airs français ne sont point des airs ; que le récitatif français n’est point du récitatif. D’où je conclus que les Français n’ont point de musique et n’en peuvent avoir, ou que, si jamais ils en ont une, ce sera tant pis pour eux.

I believe I have shown that there is neither rhythm nor melody in French music, because the language is not capable of them; that French song is only a continual barking, unbearable to any unbiased ear; that the harmony is crude, without expression, and full of childish padding; that French airs are not airs; that French recitative is not recitative. From which I conclude that the French have no music and never will have any, or that, if ever they have some, it will be a disappointment for them.

There are some interesting issues behind Rousseau's argument that the prosody of the French language makes French music impossible — but more on that later. Struck by his evident trollishness, I asked Google "was Jean Jacques Rousseau an asshole?", and got this reply:



Jean-Jacques Rousseau's personal life and philosophical ideas have generated considerable debate, and many, both his contemporaries and modern scholars, have indeed viewed him as having characteristics that align with the description of an "asshole."

Here's why:
  • Abandoning his Children: Perhaps the most glaring example cited is his abandonment of all five of his children (fathered with Thérèse Levasseur) to an orphanage, a practice he acknowledged in his Confessions. Given the extremely high mortality rates in such institutions during the 18th century, this was tantamount to a death sentence for his children. This act stands in stark contrast to his influential writings on education and the importance of family, particularly in works like "Emile, or On Education," leading to accusations of profound hypocrisy.
  • Difficult Relationships and Paranoia: Rousseau was known for his volatile and difficult relationships with friends and fellow Enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire, Diderot, and David Hume. He was prone to paranoia, suspecting plots and betrayals, even from those who had offered him hospitality and support, like Hume.
  • Self-Centeredness and Arrogance: Some interpretations of his personality suggest he was highly self-centered and driven by a need for admiration and recognition. Despite criticizing societal corruption, he seemed to indulge in the pursuit of fame and status.
  • Misogynistic Views: Rousseau's views on women are considered highly problematic and misogynistic by modern standards. He viewed women as less rational and primarily destined for domestic roles, to be pleasing and subservient to men, according to ThoughtCo. This perspective was criticized even by some of his contemporaries, such as Mary Wollstonecraft.
However, it's also important to acknowledge:
  • Context of the Era: Some argue that his actions and views, particularly regarding women, were largely a product of the societal norms and expectations of the 18th century, according to WordPress.com.
  • Introspective Nature and Self-Critique: Rousseau was remarkably introspective and openly discussed his flaws and contradictions in his autobiographical works like "Confessions". This willingness to expose his own failings provides a degree of nuance to the picture.
  • Influence of His Ideas: Despite his personal flaws, Rousseau's ideas on politics, education, and human nature have been profoundly influential and continue to be studied and debated.
In conclusion, while Rousseau's philosophical contributions are undeniable, his personal conduct and character, particularly his abandonment of his children and his relationships with others, have led many to conclude that he exhibited traits that could be described as those of an "asshole." His life serves as a stark reminder that even brilliant thinkers can have deeply flawed personalities and make morally questionable choices. 


No doubt most of this is copied in large chunks from stuff online, though I haven't verified the extent of direct plagiarism. And there are some problems, like the attribution of Lesley Kucharski's essay to "WordPress.com", and the false interpretation of her discussion as excusing Rousseau's misogyny rather than condemning it.

Still, fair is fair — Gemini could have done a lot worse.

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Posted by Hooks Orpik

Pittsburgh Penguins v Winnipeg Jets
Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images

Who should be staying and going this summer?

Well, we better get this Friday Poll in before something goes off and happens to make it unnecessary. Today’s topic, what to do in the trade market for the Penguins. Kyle Dubas and the Pens have the proverbial “for sale” sign out in the yard, they’re not going to move Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin, but just about anyone else could be had by another team if the offer was right.

In several of those cases, the league won’t be lining up for the Tristan Jarry’s or Ryan Graves’ of the roster when it comes to their performance and hefty contracts. But several other names are at the top of mind when it comes to league-wide chatter about players that could be on the move.

Forwards Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell fit the bill, both coming off career seasons and both having exceedingly manageable salary cap hits. Another benefit is that both Rakell and Rust have three years remaining on their contracts — better than shopping in the free agent market where even marginal players like Connor Brown and Tanner Jeannot can secure 4-5 years worth of term and stars like Nik Ehlers and Brad Marchand signed on for six. More yet, Brock Boeser inked for the max of seven and Mitch Marner signed-and-traded his way to Vegas with an eight year deal. The perk of picking up a Rust or Rakell is less than half the commitment in time to a large free agent deal.

And then there’s the Erik Karlsson situation. It hasn’t gone as well as anyone would have hoped, but Karlsson is still a player that can score double-digit goals, put up 50+ points and play 23+ minutes per game at this stage of his career, while moving the puck through the zone and skating with more burst than just about anyone. The biggest hindrance to Karlsson has been his contract, but even that is becoming more manageable with only two years to remaining, added to the fact the Penguins have all the space and motivation in the world to retain a big chunk of the $10 million in cost if it means sweetening the return.

It leads to an interesting position. So let’s get to the polls

Beautiful music and logical warts

Jul. 11th, 2025 12:44 pm
[syndicated profile] languagelog_feed

Posted by Mark Liberman

In "Rococo" (7/6/2025), I quoted from Charles Carr's 1965 paper "TWO WORDS IN ART HISTORY II. ROCOCO" his evidence that the word rococo began as way of denigrating certain kinds of out-of-fashion ugliness. Jonathan Smith noted in the comments that "baroque itself was first a(n) (disparaging) epithet", and I quoted the OED's endorsement of that idea, though without going into the whole "an irregular pearl is like a wart" background.

But in a parallel 1965 article, "TWO WORDS IN ART HISTORY I. BAROQUE", Charles Carr lays out three etymological theories about baroque, after sparing us "fantastic etymologies to be found in certain eighteenth-century dictionaries".

Carr's second theory is the "elaborate art is like an irregular pearl is like a wart" one. And he quickly rejects a third theory, promoted by the 13th and subsequent editions of Kluge's Etymologisches Wôrterbuch der deutechen Sprache, that baroque is an eponym for the Urbino painter Federigo Barocci. But Carr's first etymological theory is the most fun, at least in my opinion:

Leaving aside fantastic etymologies to be found in certain eighteenth-century dictionaries, there are three main theories on the origin of the word expounded in recent writings on the subject.

According to the first, baroque is derived from the Med. Latin baroco, one of the mnemonic code-words apparently invented by the thirteenth-century schoolman William of Shyreswood to denote the several moods of the syllogistic figures. Baroco represents the fourth mood of the second figure, consisting of a major premise that is universal and affirmative and a minor premise that is particular and negative, yielding a conclusion that is particular and negative. By an extraordinary coincidenoe, extraordinary because of the more customary derivation of baroque from a Portuguese word barroco meaning a pearl, but undoubtedly a coincidence because he uses the example of the pearl for the other moods of the second figure, William of Shyreswood's example of the baroco syllogism is: every pearl (margarita) is a stone; some men are not stones ; therefore, some men are not pearls. The derivation of the French baroque from the syllogistic term seems first to have been suggested by J. J. Rousseau in an article on baroque music in his Dictionnaire de Musique (1767) : "Il y a bien de l'apparence que ce terme vient du Baroco des logiciens." This etymology is found sporadically in some nineteenth-century dictionaries, was revived in recent times, especially by Croce (op. cit.), but has not been generally accepted by philologists other than Italians. The evidence for and against it will be considered later.

Here's Rousseau's entry, courtesy of Gallica, clearly expressing a negative vibe:

BAROQUE. Une Musique Baroque est celle dont l'Harmonie est confuse, chargée de Modulations & de Dissonances, le Chant dur & peu natural, l'Intonation difficile, & le mouvement contraint.

Il ya bien de l'apparence que ce terme vient du Baroco des Logiciens.

Baroque music is music whose harmony is confused, full of modulations and dissonances, whose singing is harsh and unnatural, whose intonation is difficult, and whose movement is constrained.

There is every reason to believe that this term comes from the Baroco of the Logicians.

1767 is earlier than I would have expected for such a stylistic change — that was the year that Telemann died, and Mozart was 11 years old. But it's not clear to me whose music Rousseau was criticizing — maybe he was manifesting a genre difference rather than a change in time periods, or just being his often-nasty self? Readers may provide some evidence, beyond the clues in the book's preface and the (other strange) stuff in this page from Grove's Dictionary., e.g.

His 'Lettre sur la musique Française' (1753) raised a storm of indignation, and not unnaturally, since it pronounces French music to have neither rhythm nor melody, the language not being susceptible of either; French singing to be but a prolonged barking, absolutely insupportable to an unprejudiced ear; French harmony to be crude, devoid of expression, and full of mere padding; French airs not airs, and French recitative not recitative. 'From which I conclude,' he continues, 'that the French have no music, and never will have any; or that if they ever should, it will be so much the worse for them.' 

Adding to the stylistic mystery, this is the endpaper of Gallica's edition, which (the pasted bookplate aside) seems more appropriate for the psychedelic 1960s than for Louis XIV's France:

Some background reading:

"William of Sherwood", from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Wikipedia on "Baroco"

Wikipedia on "Syllogism", including the derivation of this table of Baroco's relatives:

Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4
Barbara Cesare Datisi Calemes
Celarent Camestres Disamis Dimatis
Darii Festino Ferison Fresison
Ferio Baroco Bocardo Calemos
Barbari Cesaro Felapton Fesapo
Celaront Camestros Darapti Bamalip

Rousseau's 1753 "Lettre sur la Musique Française"
Wikipedia's (French) page on Rousseau's "Lettre sur la Musique Française"

 

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Nora Charles

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