Lubunca and Kaliarnta are two “Lavender Languages”: argot used by LGBT communities in both Turkey and Greece respectively. In this paper, I explore their early origins in nineteenth century Athens and Istanbul, and the maritime circulations that connect them. As has been demonstrated by linguists, both languages draw heavily off of Romani— and yet despite their common origins, they have seldom been studied together. Deploying mixed methodologies, I situate the emergence of both languages in the context of larger nineteenth century shifts in discourses around gender and sexuality throughout the Islamicate world, and argue that the two emerged out of a context in which modernizing practices of policing sexuality led to the emergence of new queer subject positions. As such, I argue that the two languages— with their common historical point of origin— represent a kind of archive of becoming, a record of the birth of a queer subject position.