Friends of the Thesaurus Linguae Latinae
A Newly
Urgent Petition:
The Thesaurus linguae Latinae is the most authoritative dictionary of ancient Latin in the world. It is the only lexicon to be based upon every single surviving Latin text from the earliest times down to AD 600. It is overseen and published by the International Thesaurus Committee, which comprises delegates from 38 learned societies representing every continent except Antarctica.
Three issues are published every two years. The project is 95% funded by a grant from the German government, supplemented by contributions from the member societies according to their means. Some countries, including the USA, also send an annual Fellow to be trained in lexicography and compose articles for the dictionary. Short-term summer fellows, normally graduate students, receive highly concentrated training over a period of 8–10 weeks, during which they are able to compose two or three short articles for the project.
About us
Since 1984, the Society for Classical Studies (SCS, formerly the American Philological
Association) has sent an annual postdoctoral Fellow to join the team of approximately
13 scholars at the Thesaurus linguae Latinae institute in Munich. The Fellow receives
detailed training in lexicography and contributes articles to the lexicon. Each
contributor works intensively with an editor to produce articles of the highest quality.
The learning curve is very steep, and the Fellow becomes familiar with the entire range
of Latin sources covering eight centuries from the earliest surviving texts to
approximately AD 60o. All the Fellows report that the experience has transformed their
subsequent research and teaching.
For four decades since the inauguration of the Fellowship, the Fellow’s stipend (now
$60K p.a.) has been funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the
Humanities (NEH), supplemented by donations from members of the SCS. The
Fellowship is advertised in the fall, a national selection committee is appointed,
interviews are conducted on Zoom in January or February, a candidate and alternates
are selected, and an offer is made straight away. Such is the quality of the Fellows, that
at least two former SCS Fellows have subsequently been offered long-term contracts at
the TLL and accepted them.
The NEH grant was abruptly terminated in April 2025. The SCS has generously pledged
to support the 2025–26 Fellow for the entirety of their Fellowship. The Friends of the
Thesaurus linguae Latinae are committed to raising $62K (stipend plus $2K honoraria
distributed among the members of the selection committee) in time to advertise the
Fellowship for 2026–27 in fall 2025. The Biggs Family Foundation, with its ongoing
commitment to the preservation and the promotion of the Classics, is proud to support
the Thesaurus linguae Latinae. To that end, the family is committed to providing up to
$31,000 in matching funds, contributing a dollar for every three dollars donated to the
Friends, with the goal of supporting the Fellowships for 2026–27 and 2027–28. All
donations will be formally acknowledged.
You may make your gift at the DONATE button below or for larger gifts or gifts of stock
please contact Kathleen Coleman or Henry Biggs directly for wire transfer information.