Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
@moudhy.bsky.social
Assyriologist at Wolfson College (Oxford), writer plagued by self-doubt, lover of dead languages. I think we should all be doing what we can to save the planet.
My book 😎 https://lnk.to/BetweenTwoRivers
My book 😎 https://lnk.to/BetweenTwoRivers
Pinned
Happy Publication Day to me! 🎉😱🥹🧿
Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History is officially out!
It’s a history of the region through objects found in an ancient museum in Princess Ennigaldi-Nanna’s palace, and I hope you all like it 💛 lnk.to/BetweenTwoRi...
Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History is officially out!
It’s a history of the region through objects found in an ancient museum in Princess Ennigaldi-Nanna’s palace, and I hope you all like it 💛 lnk.to/BetweenTwoRi...
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Word of the Day goes to ancient Sumeria
"He who possesses many things, is constantly on his guard."
- Sumerian proverb
📸 Dr K. Wagensonner
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/45...
- Sumerian proverb
📸 Dr K. Wagensonner
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/45...
January 28, 2026 at 11:22 AM
Word of the Day goes to ancient Sumeria
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
The news is on as I attempt my #onehourreads this morning. Let's start with a #onehourread of Doc @moudhy.bsky.social's wonderful read #BetweenTwoRivers.
January 25, 2026 at 3:26 PM
The news is on as I attempt my #onehourreads this morning. Let's start with a #onehourread of Doc @moudhy.bsky.social's wonderful read #BetweenTwoRivers.
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Devouring Between Two Rivers by @moudhy.bsky.social instead!
January 25, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Devouring Between Two Rivers by @moudhy.bsky.social instead!
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
me, staring at this while i take a poo "damn i hope i matter a little LESS that's a lot of responsibility"
January 26, 2026 at 12:11 PM
me, staring at this while i take a poo "damn i hope i matter a little LESS that's a lot of responsibility"
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
“Nuisance Bear,” directed by Gabriela Osio Vanden and Jack Weisman, premieres in the U.S. Documentary Competition at the 2026 #SundanceFilmFestival, spotlighting polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba and the growing overlap between their ancient paths and human life.
Read more: sndnc.org/4spAYMc
Read more: sndnc.org/4spAYMc
January 4, 2026 at 5:35 PM
“Nuisance Bear,” directed by Gabriela Osio Vanden and Jack Weisman, premieres in the U.S. Documentary Competition at the 2026 #SundanceFilmFestival, spotlighting polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba and the growing overlap between their ancient paths and human life.
Read more: sndnc.org/4spAYMc
Read more: sndnc.org/4spAYMc
Good morning
January 26, 2026 at 11:45 AM
Good morning
Oh
Trump to Board of Peace members: “You are leaders of nations — in most cases very popular leaders, in some cases less so — but that is how life goes.”
January 22, 2026 at 10:26 AM
Oh
“cognitive amplifier”
Delicious to me
January 22, 2026 at 9:28 AM
“cognitive amplifier”
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Appalled to your core by what Trump's fascist henchmen are doing in the United States? Well, read for yourself: Nigel Farage wants to repeat it in the United Kingdom.
January 21, 2026 at 11:58 PM
Appalled to your core by what Trump's fascist henchmen are doing in the United States? Well, read for yourself: Nigel Farage wants to repeat it in the United Kingdom.
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
kidnapping a 5 year old to bait his father and then shipping them thousands of miles away should put you in prison, yes, but it should also cause every friend and family member you have ever had to permanently reject you in disgrace, and if they don’t, they share your shame
January 22, 2026 at 4:44 AM
kidnapping a 5 year old to bait his father and then shipping them thousands of miles away should put you in prison, yes, but it should also cause every friend and family member you have ever had to permanently reject you in disgrace, and if they don’t, they share your shame
This Data / Lady Gaga crossover from ancient Mesopotamia randomly getting traction today 😎
Actually “per my last email” was not unheard of in millennia-old cuneiform letters.
A woman named Datâ in the 8th century BCE wrote to her brother, “Why have I not seen your messenger until this very day? Now, if you are alive, let me forgive the shortcomings of your character…”
A woman named Datâ in the 8th century BCE wrote to her brother, “Why have I not seen your messenger until this very day? Now, if you are alive, let me forgive the shortcomings of your character…”
Did any of these ever start with “per my last tablet…”
January 22, 2026 at 6:13 AM
This Data / Lady Gaga crossover from ancient Mesopotamia randomly getting traction today 😎
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
I wrote about my experiences being sexually exploited as a child, and what we need to do to make sure AI doesn’t make that a reality for millions of children.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
My picture was used in child abuse images. AI is putting others through my nightmare | Mara Wilson
I was a child actor, exploited by strangers on the internet. Now millions of children face the same danger
www.theguardian.com
January 18, 2026 at 2:20 AM
I wrote about my experiences being sexually exploited as a child, and what we need to do to make sure AI doesn’t make that a reality for millions of children.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Dogs. Never not stupid and potentially bankrupting.
Very glad to be nearing some kind of end to the canine medical roller coaster ride this old man has been on this week.
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
January 16, 2026 at 10:09 PM
Dogs. Never not stupid and potentially bankrupting.
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Bob Dylan’s source material (“When you got nothing you got nothing to lose”)
"He who possesses many things, is constantly on his guard."
- Sumerian proverb
📸 Dr K. Wagensonner
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/45...
- Sumerian proverb
📸 Dr K. Wagensonner
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/45...
January 16, 2026 at 2:22 PM
Bob Dylan’s source material (“When you got nothing you got nothing to lose”)
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
I'd probably read "finger" in this context as a unit of measurement, and I'm guessing this relates to city laws.
"When a liar steps through a door, he is neither inside nor outside." (ie the liar will bend the situation to whatever suits him).
Ancient proverbs are fun to unravel.
"When a liar steps through a door, he is neither inside nor outside." (ie the liar will bend the situation to whatever suits him).
Ancient proverbs are fun to unravel.
"When a liar enters the city gate,
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
January 16, 2026 at 3:15 PM
I'd probably read "finger" in this context as a unit of measurement, and I'm guessing this relates to city laws.
"When a liar steps through a door, he is neither inside nor outside." (ie the liar will bend the situation to whatever suits him).
Ancient proverbs are fun to unravel.
"When a liar steps through a door, he is neither inside nor outside." (ie the liar will bend the situation to whatever suits him).
Ancient proverbs are fun to unravel.
Very glad to be nearing some kind of end to the canine medical roller coaster ride this old man has been on this week.
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
January 16, 2026 at 10:04 PM
Very glad to be nearing some kind of end to the canine medical roller coaster ride this old man has been on this week.
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
It all began with a rotten wheel of Camembert that a fox dragged into our garden and buried under a bunch of autumn leaves…
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Another timely one
nir-ŋal₂-e a-na-am₃ bi₂-in-dug₄ nu-sag₉
“Whatever the authority said, it was not good” (also attested as nu-zid, ‘not true’)
cdli.earth/artifacts/22...
nir-ŋal₂-e a-na-am₃ bi₂-in-dug₄ nu-sag₉
“Whatever the authority said, it was not good” (also attested as nu-zid, ‘not true’)
cdli.earth/artifacts/22...
January 16, 2026 at 8:30 PM
Another timely one
nir-ŋal₂-e a-na-am₃ bi₂-in-dug₄ nu-sag₉
“Whatever the authority said, it was not good” (also attested as nu-zid, ‘not true’)
cdli.earth/artifacts/22...
nir-ŋal₂-e a-na-am₃ bi₂-in-dug₄ nu-sag₉
“Whatever the authority said, it was not good” (also attested as nu-zid, ‘not true’)
cdli.earth/artifacts/22...
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
'addag d ikka wkrkas imi n iɣrm
ikka-d ḍaras uḍaḍ
izwurt-id uḍaḍ'
(rendered into Tamazight)
ikka-d ḍaras uḍaḍ
izwurt-id uḍaḍ'
(rendered into Tamazight)
"When a liar enters the city gate,
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
January 16, 2026 at 2:33 PM
'addag d ikka wkrkas imi n iɣrm
ikka-d ḍaras uḍaḍ
izwurt-id uḍaḍ'
(rendered into Tamazight)
ikka-d ḍaras uḍaḍ
izwurt-id uḍaḍ'
(rendered into Tamazight)
"When a liar enters the city gate,
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
January 16, 2026 at 2:09 PM
"When a liar enters the city gate,
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
at his back is a finger,
at his front is a finger."
- Sumerian proverb
The fingers, presumably, are pointing at the liar, who has lied to those behind him and will lie to those in front of him.
Source: cdli.earth/artifacts/34...
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
god forbid a girl be both whimsical and full of rage
January 15, 2026 at 9:39 PM
god forbid a girl be both whimsical and full of rage
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
No. 20
"Through just a narrow opening great calamities may be seen within."
inna l-khaṣāṣa yurā fī jawfihā al-raqam
The meaning is that something momentous may be hidden within something modest or trivial.
"Through just a narrow opening great calamities may be seen within."
inna l-khaṣāṣa yurā fī jawfihā al-raqam
The meaning is that something momentous may be hidden within something modest or trivial.
January 15, 2026 at 4:27 AM
No. 20
"Through just a narrow opening great calamities may be seen within."
inna l-khaṣāṣa yurā fī jawfihā al-raqam
The meaning is that something momentous may be hidden within something modest or trivial.
"Through just a narrow opening great calamities may be seen within."
inna l-khaṣāṣa yurā fī jawfihā al-raqam
The meaning is that something momentous may be hidden within something modest or trivial.
No need for context, this applies to everything right now
What the fuck is going on
January 15, 2026 at 4:51 PM
No need for context, this applies to everything right now
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
What the fuck is going on
January 15, 2026 at 4:40 PM
What the fuck is going on
Reposted by Moudhy Al-Rashid (she/her)
Just published a paper on the complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir meme, the decade-old tumblr in-joke that continues to impact the public understanding of the ancient world. Paywalled but email me if you want a copy. 🏺
January 15, 2026 at 9:59 AM
Just published a paper on the complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir meme, the decade-old tumblr in-joke that continues to impact the public understanding of the ancient world. Paywalled but email me if you want a copy. 🏺