Linguistic glob

It is a well-documented phenomenon in psycholinguistics that, under conditions of extreme emotional arousal—whether sudden rage or acute physical pain—a speaker reverts to their mother tongue, often involuntarily. Historical evidence demonstrates that this linguistic reflex can have concrete consequences. For instance, an intelligence agent during the First World War was reportedly exposed precisely because, in the throes of labor, she spoke in her native language rather than the language of her operational environment. Pain, in this context, acts as an unmediated conduit for identity, stripping away learned or imposed linguistic behavior. Plutarch’s account of Alexander the Great provides a compelling historical illustration of this principle. When, in a moment of uncontrollable anger, Alexander struck Cleitus, he reportedly called out “in Macedonian. Such an observation is not a mere anecdotal flourish; it is indicative of a broader linguistic truth: under extreme emotional duress, e...

By Γιώργος Μίχας (Geórgios Míchas) ARVANITIC, THE LANGUAGE OF THE ANCIENT MACEDONIANS Plutarch tells us that Alexander the Great, after killing Cleitus in a moment of drunken rage, called out to his guards “in Macedonian.” This statement has been known for centuries. It is clear. It is explicit. And yet it is systematically neutralized, relativized, or explained away—because it is inconvenient. If “Macedonian” were simply Greek, Plutarch’s remark would be meaningless. Authors do not specify a language unless there is a contrast. No one writes that a man shouted “in Greek” when Greek is the only language in the room. The very need to name Macedonian presupposes linguistic difference. This is not an interpretation; it is elementary logic. So the question is unavoidable: what was this Macedonian language? It could not have been Slavic. This should not even be a subject of discussion, yet it is endlessly recycled. Slavs appear in the Balkans roughly a millennium after Alexander. To project...

 Language Before Theory: Albanian as a Challenge to Dominant Narratives of Linguistic Origins Introduction Dominant scientific narratives on the origin of language present themselves as neutral, universal, and impartial. In reality, behind this facade of objectivity lies a structural deception: they explain the birth of language using linguistic and conceptual categories that already presuppose language itself. This is a methodological trick disguised as scientific rigor. And when a language like Albanian defies these models, all the contradictions of a system that prefers to ignore what does not fit the norm become painfully visible. Albanian is not an anomaly to be cataloged or marginalized: it is a blow to dominant narratives, a living proof that the linguistic history told in Western textbooks is often an ideological construction rather than a genuine inquiry. Methodological Circularity: The “Sages’” Trick Modern linguistic studies reconstruct the origins of language through pr...

Linguistic and Identity Persistence among Albanians: A Historical Anomaly in the Longue Durée. Introduction The widespread perception that history is often “distorted” or incomplete is not unfounded, particularly when examining the experiences of stateless populations (Schwartz, 1995)¹. The case of the Albanians—especially the Arbëreshë communities in Italy—represents a paradigmatic example of the misalignment between historical reality and dominant historiographical narratives (Elsie, 2001)². The extraordinary persistence of language and identity within these communities, maintained for over five centuries without political autonomy, constitutes an anomaly in the European context and raises significant questions for prevailing interpretative models (De Rada, 1882)³. 1. Structural Limitations of State-Centered Historiography Traditional historiography relies heavily on sources produced by states, institutions, and administrative apparatuses (Braudel, 1980)⁴. This approach tends to marg...

 Cròno- as a Cyclical Code: A Semiotic Reading Abstract This article presents a semiotic analysis of the morpheme crono- as a symbolic code of cyclicity. While traditionally derived from the Greek chrónos (“time”), the morpheme in modern lexical and conceptual formations conveys temporal continuity, recursion, and regeneration. Drawing on Saussurean structural linguistics, Peircean iconicity, Eliade’s models of cyclical time, Lotman’s concept of the semiosphere, and Bakhtin’s chronotope, this study demonstrates that crono- functions as a self-referential semiotic module whose form and structure parallel, conceptually, the symbolism of water sources as perpetual origins. The metaphor of the “O rotating within O” is interpreted as a coherent code articulating cyclical temporality. Keywords: crono-, semiotics, cyclicity, time, recursion, chronotope, iconicity 1. Introduction The morpheme crono- is commonly understood as deriving from the Greek chrónos (“time”). Beyond etymology, howev...

My poem translated into Arberish by Giovanna Brunetti. (The Upper Ionian area of ​​Cosenza) Nan kamnuat e Patrias jonë ne zjarr Anjat arbareshë nisan tua vajtur ka nang a din, prej lloka llargu. Kur një copaz ja Patrias këputat, na cinon por rranjat tona, gjaku jonë, shpirtin jonë nang a harrojam mosnjëherë! A qjellim tek delët jonë, A qjellim tek kankat jona Malat kujtojan si ish motit, Malat murmurjarjan si vjen dita manat. Andj ka çdo kankë shpirti arbëresh ngrathat Çdo herë këtu Çdo herë i zgjuar Çdo herë na thrret! Ditat shkojan Vjeçat shkojan Shekullet shkojan Ma kujtim rrjedh si lum i fort edhe pa fund, Tua sjellur palan jonë, gluthan jonë, gjakun jin. Fluturon parsipar dheravët Nget çdo zamar Edhe kushdo a do mirë Nang a harron mosnjëherë! Rron tek fjalat tona, Rron tek kankat jona, Rron tek zamërat tona. Një flakë çë nang mand të shuthat. Një goljë çë nang mand të mbillat. Arbëresh of Montecilfone Italy translated from Gioacchino Desiderio Ndën timit ta dheut jonë i’atit, çë d...

Mythology and the Source of Life in Albanian Tradition Introduction The study of Albanian language and its connection with greek mythology offers a unique perspective for understanding concepts of life and cosmic order in traditional thought. This article examines the figures of Zeus and Cronus, the etymological links of the word "Zeus"  “Cronos” with Albanian, and how concrete and abstract meanings interact through symbolic and pictorial traditions. The analytical approach aims to show that mythological and linguistic interpretations are neither linear nor singular, but multifaceted and complex. 1. Zeus and His Interpretations The figure of Zeus can be interpreted in several ways: As voice (zëri); As the source of life (zënes); As fire (zjarri); Or as God  "Zot/Zojsi" in Albanian language and mythology . However, according to mythological sources, Zeus is not the first source of life. Cronus (Kronos), his father, is considered the origin of human life. Cronus’ posi...

The Greek verb spáo / spázo (to break, tear, pull) is not an original Greek formation. It derives from the Albanian verbal structure bash > besh (to do, to make) combined with the negative particle S. s’ba = unmake → from which spao develops the meaning “to break” or “to undo.” This shows that the concept expressed in Greek here—“breaking” or “unmaking”—is linguistically traceable to Albanian roots, not the reverse. In short: spáo = s’ba + action → unmake → break. The Greek verb encodes the same conceptual logic already present in Albanian verbal morphology.

I’m revisiting a topic I wrote about years ago. A Codical–Ideographic Interpretation of the Albanian Words grua (“woman”) and burrë (“man”) 1. Introduction The Albanian lexical items grua (“woman”) and burrë (“man”) are among the most fundamental terms of the language. Their earliest known written attestations appear in the glossary of Arnold Ritter von Harff (1496), where they are recorded respectively as: Groëa – woman Geneyre – man In Modern Albanian, these forms have stabilized as grua and burrë. This study proposes a non-traditional, codical–ideographic interpretation of these words, drawing on symbolic structures attributed to the Danube Script and on logographic principles rather than on standard comparative Indo-European methodology. 2. Methodological Framework The analysis is based on the assumption that early linguistic formations may preserve ideographic and logographic encoding, in which phonetic forms are secondary to symbolic structures. In this framework, graphemic ele...

 

The English flower: proposed etymology and Albanian perspective Abstract This study examines the etymology of the English word flower, combining traditional Indo-European derivations with a proposed semantic perspective based on Albanian. While conventional etymologies trace flower to Latin flōs, flōris and Proto-Indo-European *bhel- (“to thrive, bloom”), such accounts do not address the primordial semantic concepts embedded in human cognition, particularly those related to birth and life. This analysis proposes that a flower may be conceptualized as the “child” of a tree, a notion reflected in Albanian lexemes such as bilë (“daughter”), bir (“son”), lule (“flower”), and verbs associated with birth and movement (bë, lind, lëviz). This approach highlights the continuity between early symbolic meanings and the later lexical development of words designating natural phenomena. 1. Introduction The English word flower is commonly derived from Latin flōs, flōris (“flower”), via Old French flo...

Linguists generally propose that the English word flower derives from Latin flōs, flōris (“flower”), via Old French flor, and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *bhel- meaning “to thrive” or “to bloom.” This root is said to be shared with words such as bloom, blossom, and flora (the Roman goddess of flowers). Many flower names have distinct origins—for example, daisy from Old English dæges ēage (“day’s eye”)—while others, such as chrysanthemum, derive from Greek roots like ánthos (“flower”) and khrýsos (“gold”). The commonly cited etymological chain may be summarized as follows: Latin: flōs, flōris (“flower”), with the accusative form flōrem Old French: flor or flur (“flower,” “prime,” “innocence”) Proto-Indo-European: *bhel- (“to thrive, bloom”), linked to Germanic forms such as blōstma (“blossom”) and bloom However, within these proposed etymologies, something fundamental is missing. Contemporary methods of tracing word origins reveal a significant gap: the absence of the p...

The word " kumbon " in Albanian, meaning “echo” or “to produce a repeated sound,” should be understood within the internal linguistic context of Albanian, and not simply as a loanword from Latin. Its root can be analyzed as ka (to have) + mbon (to sound like an echo), reflecting the phonetic structures of Albanian that convey the meaning of sound and the perceptual experience of hearing. Etymological analysis: Kumbon (Albanian): “echo,” “produce a sound,” or “boon / bh(ë)oon.” (to make OO-n) Some authors have attempted to connect it with the Latin com-bonare (“to sound well”) and the root bonus (“good”), but this connection is purely formal-linguistic and lacks primordial semantic support. There is no evidence that the core meaning—“echo / repetition of sound”—derives from Latin. The Albanian language word bumbullim / bubullim (storm, thunder) come from the same sound symbolism “ bum, bum ” and are directly related to kumbon, reflecting the same concept of repeated sound as ...

Erechtheus: Earth, Wind, and the Semantics of Breaking The figure of Erechtheus (Ancient Greek: Ἐρεχθεύς), an early king of Athens, is traditionally interpreted through Greek etymology as deriving from roots meaning “tear” or “rend” (erékhthō, ἐρέχθω) and “earth” (chthōn, χθών), producing the meaning “earth-shaker” or “smasher of the earth.” This etymology emphasizes his chthonic associations, linking him to the earth-born king Erichthonius and underscoring his role as a mediator of ritual and natural forces. From a comparative-semantic perspective, Albanian provides an additional symbolic dimension. The verb kthej (past tense ktheva, participle kthyer) encompasses a wide semantic range, including “to turn, flip, bend, plough, transform, rotate, return, or break.” Its etymological root thyej , meaning “to break,” reinforces the metaphor of rupture and transformation. Paired with Ere (“wind”), the compound suggests “the one who breaks or transforms the wind”, aligning with mythic narr...

The Symbolism of Ianuarius and Janus: A Semantic-Symbolic Perspective Introduction The Roman calendar, like many ancient temporal systems, encodes more than mere dates—it reflects concepts of time, thresholds, and initiation. The month Ianuarius (January) offers a fascinating case study. Named after Ianus , the deity of beginnings and transitions, it marks the threshold between the old year and the new, symbolically bridging past and future. This article explores Ianuarius from a semantic-symbolic perspective, highlighting cross-linguistic patterns that illuminate how early cultures conceptualized beginnings, orientation, and boundaries. Ianus : The Deity of Beginnings and Thresholds Janus is traditionally depicted with two faces, one looking backward and one forward, emphasizing his role as a guardian of transitions. He presides over gates, doorways, and temporal thresholds, embodying both initiation and reflection. In Roman thought, this duality encapsulates the cyclical and directi...

The Modern Greek word “ απόδειξη ” (“proof”) is usually presented as a simple inheritance from Ancient Greek ἀπόδειξις. That’s convenient—but misleading. Traditional etymology stops at Greek literary explanations and refuses to look at the Balkan linguistic reality. Here’s the truth: ἀπο - functions exactly like the Gheg Albanian “à bo ” (“it has been done”, b>p), marking a completed action. δείκνυμι (“to show”) matches the Albanian di (“know”), di, ditë (“day”), diell (“sun”)—preserving a concept of light → seeing → knowing. -σις / -ξη marks the result of an action, consistent with this semantic logic. In short : what is done in the light is seen; what is seen is known. This is the real idea of proof—not some abstract Greek invention. Ancient Greek formalism tries to hide this, forcing the word into rhetoric or logic. Modern Greek even stretches it to mean receipts or invoices—but that doesn’t explain its origin. By excluding Albanian and other Balkan substrate evidence, main...

 What I am doing in this article is root–semantic probing, not naïve word-matching. That distinction is crucial, and it is exactly the kind of analysis that curse tablets invite but mainstream linguistics avoids when Albanian is involved. Let’s take my findings one by one and situate them methodologically, not rhetorically. 1. nys / nis (“to start, set in motion”) Albanian nis / nys encodes initiation, activation, setting something into action. This semantic field is ritual-critical, because curse tablets are structured around: initiating binding setting a spell in motion activating divine or chthonic forces Greek curse language often uses opaque verbs whose semantics are inferred only contextually. Albanian preserves transparent motion/activation verbs, which are precisely what one expects in early ritual speech. Even if the form is not identical, the semantic architecture matches the function of the text. 2. di / ditë (“day; know”) This is one of the strongest Balkan survivals. I...