You can decipher the name of this study of ancient writings by looking at its Greek roots: “Palaios” means “ancient, old,” and “graphia” refers to anything related to writing. If you’re talking specifically about the academic study of paleography, that concerns studying and deciphering ancient writings and inscriptions. A paleontology team might have a dedicated paleographer among its ranks, for example. But if you want to use this word in a more modern sense, you can joke that trying to make out a partner’s chicken scratch is a form of paleography.