New Pages

I haven’t been able to blog as I would like, but I do have a couple things to mention.  I’ve created two new pages (see tabs above or pages in the side menu) for Greek and Latin.  For the Greek I have uploaded pdfs for verbs and participles.  For the Latin, nouns, pronouns, verbs, and a vocabulary list section.  When these pages are updated I’ll make sure to mention it in the postings.  Enjoy!

Pliny-Trajan 10.96-97

I have uploaded a vocabulary word list for the correspondence between Pliny the Younger and emperor Trajan, letters 10.96-97, concerning the matter of Christians whom Pliny had encountered in the Roman province of Pontus-Bithynia in Asia Minor (ca. 112-114 CE). 

• For the text go to the Latin Library.
• Vocabulary word list (.pdf)
• Update: for the latest click on Latin Pages in the side menu.

Greek Verb Paradigm

Here is a concise, printable Greek verb paradigm (pdf) of the verb παιδεύω.  You will notice that it is divided up by active and middle/passive voices — each having the indicative, subjunctive, optative, imperative and infinitive moods.  Although this one is more extensive than the previous one of λύω, I do not have participles included yet.  It is version 1.0. Later versions will eventually include them.  Also included here is the λύω paradigm.  If you find any mistakes with either one of them, please leave a comment!

• Update: for the latest click on the Greek Page in the side menu.

Break

I finished my first semester at FSU. I received all A’s in my courses. Now if I can maintain that tract… While on break, since I did not take the first semester of Greek I (Attic), I’m preparing for Greek II, intending to jump in at that point. There is a lot of overlap, of course, with Koine, but there are particular grammar points and vocabulary I haven’t studied before. Next semester I have lined up a few that I’m anticipating to be worthwhile: Latin — Horace (Epodes and Satires mostly), Alexander the Great, Greek II, and Pliny & Tacitus. The last one here will be taught by Miriam Griffin of Oxford. She will be visiting lecturer for the Spring, that is what I have heard. I’m cooking up a few things related to my studies: a comprehensive Greek verb chart geared more toward Classical than Biblical studies; vocabulary word list for the Pliny-Trajan correspondence, letters 10.96-97. Stay tuned! 

In the News

Some items have been circulating around, so I’ll mention them here:

• Free online course available, full with transcripts, lectures (mp3, video), and syllabus, from Yale: Introduction to the OT (Hebrew Bible).
• The Harvard Papyri Collection is now giving public access to several, if not most or all, papyrus texts of the collection. Sample: text of Romans 1.

Textual Criticism Quiz

For matters relating to textual biblical studies, Dan Wallace over at Parchment and Pen has posted a quiz on New Testament Textual Criticism.  I went through it last week but discovered, with the answers now available by Dan, that there is key phrasing to some of the questions!  If you are interested in such quizzes head on over there before reading any further here.  The answers are now posted but I encourage you to work through the quiz first.  It’s a great learning exercise for ancient texts and manuscripts.

Some of the key phrasing — for example, with #1 the key word is “published” not “printed.”  With #6 the key word is “complete.”  My original answer was P52.  I should read my questions more carefully!

Here is the link to Dan’s answer key.

Free Rice

A new site Free Rice, started this month, gives vocabulary quizzes for people who want to donate rice for the poor. Its banner states, “For each word you get right, we donate 10 grains of rice through the United Nations to help end world hunger.” This morning, while eating breakfast, I donated a portion — very easy! Give it a try.

Virgil’s Aeneid on iTunes

From a recent browsing through iTunes U, I discovered Standford University has available a series of lectures on Virgil’s Aeneid by Susanna Braund. So far the lectures I’ve heard are very informative and worth hearing. Take a look, listen and download.

Program of Imperial Domination

I’m now getting a chance to post! I wanted to share a few things for paper research in my Early Roman Empire course I’m taking this semester. Originally, I wanted to focus on the Romanization of the East in the areas of Palestine and Israel, with particular interest in the interaction between Marcus Agrippa and Herod the Great in the early Empire era. But I was unsure of what material to hone in within that. Though, over the course of the semester, I have noticed in the class lectures a recurring motif, which has intrigued me, of imperial domination depicted in imperial art — i.e., the image of the ‘orb of the universe’ — depicting emperors posing with foot near or on a globe to represent their domination over the (known) world. I’m also interested in the divine or semi-divine attributes given in these depictions. I haven’t started research officially but I know I have some good leads for the construction of the paper. Below are a few images. Hopefully, as I research this, I’ll find more images of this sort (foot near/on globe with emperors of the early Empire). If any of you have leads for more images, please share and leave a comment!

Silver denarius, Octavian as Neptune, before 31 BCE. Notice on the right: DIVI F — divi f(ilius), “son of a god” (emphasizing his inheritance to Julius Caesar).

Imperial family in marble relief. “Apotheosis of Augustus,” Claudian era, 40-50 CE. Notice on the right: Augustus depicted as Jupiter, wearing a crown, with his foot placed on the globe.

Trajan’s Fountain, Ephesus. Before 114 CE.

Detail of Trajan’s Fountain. Although poorly preserved, you can still clearly see the globe and a foot next to it.

Latin Nouns

Here is the next printable PDF — Latin nouns.  Soon I’ll have a link up at Google Docs in that format.Download: Latin nouns

• Update: for the latest click on the Latin Page in the side menu.