For people who might've thought that Classical Greek was any less raunchy than the Bible

Ran into this, from the CBC.
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappen...vulgar-update-complete-with-f-bombs-1.6048829

 

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It's filthy. I like that. . .

 

Anyone familiar with the comedies of the Athenians has got to know that scatological language (from the Greek, skat (feces) was an essential part and parcel of the performance. Why this might be surprising to scholars or the general public is, well, surprising.

 

I wonder what Victorian translations of Aristophanes were like -- were they heavily expurgated?

 

Good question, but I think that anyone seriously interested in reading Aristophanes circa mid to late 1800's was also well enough educated to read them in the original Attic Greek. I do recall once reading a 19th Century English version of one of the Roman historians, possibly Procopius and his Secret History. Periodically, with no warning, the text would continue in Latin, and then back to English. I got the impression that the Victorian authors figured that if any readers had mastered the Classical languages that it was safe to let them read it. For the hoi polloi, best to keep them unaware of these matters. I must admit, by the way, that I had wished I had paid a bit more attention to my Latin Instructors even if much of that vocabulary had not appeared in Cicero and Vergil.

 

You just need to wait for this comprehensive Latin dictionary, which has been a work in progress since before 1900, and has an estimated completion date of 2050! https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappen...-finishing-ancient-latin-dictionary-1.5382464. In other words, it already dwarfs the time it took to complete the original edition of the OED.

 

As It Happens is a Canadian classic. Thanks for posting, I missed this bit of the program!

 

First:
The Canadian got the info from the Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2...torian-era-spares-no-blushes-lexicon-classics

https://www.theguardian.com/comment...he-art-of-lexicography-ancient-greek-lives-on

Second:
There is not much difference between Victorian English and Canadian English

I have never heard of English words as EDITED
How do you pronounce a hyphon ?

( If someone wants to read it in the above references , that is up to them. Anyone can normally hear how they are pronounced by showing off winners auctions to some one who lost)

 

That's been a convention in written English for centuries, in rendering obscenities, or G-d (for religious Jews) or, although it's dated, anonymous proper names.

 

I am totally aware of this.
But I hate to be forced to call someone
"He Who Cannot Be Named"
And the definition of an obscenity is very variable.

But please - no new "political" thread

 

I have no idea what your point is, or why you were complaining. I thought you were actually asking a serious question, but obviously not. In the future, I suggest that you say what you mean. Keeping in mind that using "four-letter words" on Coin Talk is prohibited. And keeping in mind that nobody's forcing you to do anything. How Orthodox Jews write a certain name is none of your business.

 

You can use any language you want to away from CT, but on CT, it's 5th grade stuff or Doug @GDJMSP will getcha.

 

I was just looking at the thread, 'The Rules,' which, while cautioning against the traditional bugbears of 'religion and politics,' has the wit to acknowledge that history (including its cultural and, Duh, linguistic dimensions) and, in direct consequence, numismatics, are innately inseparable from either one. It's admirably nuanced. Recommended reading.

 

@Severus Alexander, it's fun to run across another fan! The chemisry between Carol Off and, um, that guy who left to broadcast in a local Newfoundland show was inimitable.

 

Are you one of our forum Canucks, @+VGO.DVCKS? (Poetry, that.)

 

Sadly, no. But it was always fun to think that, just across the border, there was a civilized country, where grownups live.
(To my fellow Americans, Sorry for the hyperbole....)

 

My wife and I are both retired teachers. Together we have taught every grade level from Pre-K to grad school. Let me assure you that fifth graders, at least in the hallways and school yard, are using language that could serve as a primer for naval boot camp. if you want evidence of this try going into the middle school bathrooms. These kids must have been studying the graffiti and art work on the walls of some of the better know establishments in Pompeii and Herculaneum.

 

Valued perspective....

 

I taught 8th grade science one year...that was enough!

 

Wishing it wasn't 8th grade biology ...but I wouldn't be betting money. Yep, that would have been enough war for one veteran. We salute you for your service!