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{{av}}
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The '''Dwarven language''' is one of the four [[language]]s the player will come across, besides [[Elvish language|Elvish]], [[Human language|Human]] and [[Goblin language|Goblin]]. This language is used in-game for the names of the universe, continents, rivers, dwarven governments and settlements, dwarves, artifacts and engravings. However, as of yet, it lacks everything necessary for proper conversation, like grammar or personal pronouns.
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{{distinguish|l1 = Khuzdul|wikipedia: Khuzdul}}
 
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The '''Dwarven language''' is one of the [[language]]s the player will come across. This language is used in-game for the names of the universe, continents, rivers, dwarven governments and settlements, [[Dwarf|dwarves]], [[artifact]]s and [[engraving]]s. However, as of yet, it lacks everything necessary for proper conversation, like grammar or personal pronouns.
 
  
 
==Alphabet==
 
==Alphabet==
Line 46: Line 43:
  
 
===Letter frequency===
 
===Letter frequency===
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This lists the frequency of each letter (and digraph) found in the corpus of Dwarven:
 
  
 
{| class = "wikitable sortable"
 
{| class = "wikitable sortable"
−
! No. !! Letter
+
! N !! Letter !! Frequency
−
! colspan="2"| Frequency
 
−
|-
 
−
|1 || A || 883 || 8.45%
 
−
|-
 
−
|2 || À || 14 || 0.13%
 
−
|-
 
−
|3 || Á || 18 || 0.17%
 
−
|-
 
−
|4 || Â || 35 || 0.33%
 
−
|-
 
−
|5 || Ä || 33 || 0.32%
 
−
|-
 
−
|6 || Å || 31 || 0.30%
 
−
|-
 
−
|7 || B || 308 || 2.95%
 
−
|-
 
−
|8 || C || 54 || 0.52%
 
−
|-
 
−
|9 || D || 425 || 4.07%
 
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|-
 
−
|10 || E || 697 || 6.67%
 
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|-
 
−
|11 || È || 16 || 0.15%
 
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|-
 
−
|12 || É || 14 || 0.13%
 
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|-
 
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|13 || Ê || 29 || 0.28%
 
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|-
 
−
|14 || Ë || 30 || 0.29%
 
−
|-
 
−
|15 || F || 50 || 0.48%
 
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|-
 
−
|16 || G || 336 || 3.21%
 
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|-
 
−
|17 || I || 690 || 6.60%
 
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|-
 
−
|18 || Ì || 16 || 0.15%
 
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|-
 
−
|19 || Í || 17 || 0.16%
 
−
|-
 
−
|20 || Î || 38 || 0.36%
 
−
|-
 
−
|21 || Ï || 32 || 0.31%
 
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|-
 
−
|22 || K || 489 || 4.68%
 
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|-
 
−
|23 || L || 650 || 6.22%
 
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|-
 
−
|24 || M || 524 || 5.01%
 
−
|-
 
−
|25 || N || 531 || 5.08%
 
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|-
 
−
|26 || NG || 103 || 0.99%
 
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|-
 
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|27 || O || 733 || 7.01%
 
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|-
 
−
|28 || Ò || 18 || 0.17%
 
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|-
 
−
|29 || Ó || 20 || 0.19%
 
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|-
 
−
|30 || Ô || 27 || 0.26%
 
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|-
 
−
|31 || Ö || 32 || 0.31%
 
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|-
 
−
|32 || R || 664 || 6.35%
 
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|-
 
−
|33 || S || 664 || 6.35%
 
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|-
 
−
|34 || SH || 295 || 2.82%
 
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|-
 
−
|35 || T || 623 || 5.96%
 
−
|-
 
−
|36 || TH || 318 || 3.04%
 
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|-
 
−
|37 || U || 619 || 5.92%
 
−
|-
 
−
|38 || Ù || 16 || 0.15%
 
−
|-
 
−
|39 || Ú || 13 || 0.12%
 
−
|-
 
−
|40 || Û || 30 || 0.29%
 
−
|-
 
−
|41 || V || 86 || 0.82%
 
 
|-
 
|-
−
|42 || Z || 232 || 2.22%
+
| 1 ||A || align=right |  7.91%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 2 ||À || align=right |  0.13%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 3 ||Á || align=right |  0.16%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 4 ||Â || align=right |  0.31%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 5 ||Ä || align=right |  0.30%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 6 ||Å || align=right |  0.28%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 7 ||B || align=right | 2.75%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 8 ||C || align=right |  0.48%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 9 ||D || align=right |  3.81%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 10 ||E || align=right | 6.29%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 11 ||È || align=right | 0.14%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 12 ||É || align=right | 0.13%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 13 ||Ê || align=right | 0.26%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 14 ||Ë || align=right | 0.27%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 15 ||F || align=right | 0.45%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 16 ||G || align=right | 3.95%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 17 ||H || align=right | 5.49%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 18 ||I || align=right | 6.21%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 19 ||Ì || align=right | 0.14%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 20 ||Í || align=right | 0.15%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 21 ||Î || align=right | 0.33%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 22 ||Ï || align=right | 0.28%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 23 ||K || align=right | 4.39%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 24 ||L || align=right | 5.84%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 25 ||M || align=right | 4.69%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 26 ||N || align=right | 5.67%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 27 ||O || align=right | 6.53%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 28 ||Ò || align=right | 0.16%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 29 ||Ó || align=right | 0.17%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 30 ||Ô || align=right | 0.24%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 31 ||Ö || align=right | 0.29%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 32 ||R || align=right | 5.95%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 33 ||S || align=right | 8.57%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 34 ||T || align=right | 8.39%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 35 ||U || align=right | 5.51%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 36 ||Ù || align=right | 0.14%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 37 ||Ú || align=right | 0.12%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 38 ||Û || align=right | 0.27%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 39 ||V || align=right | 0.78%
 +
|-                       
 +
| 40 ||Z || align=right | 2.06%
 
|}
 
|}
  
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==Graphemics==
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==Phonology==
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''The study of the [[wikipedia: Grapheme|graphemes]], or writing units, of a script, and of their relation to the phonemes of the spoken language.''
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* [[wikipedia:digraph (orthography)|Digraphs]] ''sh'', ''th'', ''st'', and ''ng''.
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* [[wikipedia:digraph (orthography)|Digraphs]] ''sh'', ''th'', and ''ng''.
 
 
** ''h'' only occurs in the digraphs ''sh'' and ''th''.
 
** ''h'' only occurs in the digraphs ''sh'' and ''th''.
−
* Common consonant cluster ''st''.
 
 
* Dwarven has no [[wikipedia:diphthongs|diphthongs]].
 
* Dwarven has no [[wikipedia:diphthongs|diphthongs]].
 
* ''c'', ''f'', and ''v'' are always followed by a vowel.
 
* ''c'', ''f'', and ''v'' are always followed by a vowel.
−
* Possible [[wikipedia: syllable structure|syllable structure]] either (C)<sup>2</sup>V(C)<sup>2</sup> or (C)V(C).
 
−
===Diacritic meaning===
 
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The Dwarven language has five diacritics ([[wikipedia:Grave accent|◌̀]], [[wikipedia:Acute accent|◌́]], [[wikipedia:Circumflex|◌̂]], [[wikipedia:Diaeresis (diacritic)|◌̈]], and [[wikipedia:Ring (diacritic)|◌̊]]) used on five vowels (''a'', ''e'', ''i'', ''o'', and ''u''). The ring accent only appears on ''a'' and the diaeresis accent doesn't appear on ''u''.
 
−
 
−
The use of diacritics in Dwarven could mean that vowels have different pronunciations, like in some European languages such as French, German, or Swedish, or that it is a tonal language (suggested by the existence of tone patterns in poetic forms) that indicates pitch, such as Chinese languages, Thai, Vietnamese, etc. The pronunciation of the diacritics is currently unknown.
 
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{|class="wikitable" style="border-collapse:collapse;"
 
−
! Diacritic
 
−
! Diacritic name
 
−
! Use in other languages
 
−
! Probable tonal meaning
 
−
|-
 
−
| ◌
 
−
| None
 
−
| -
 
−
| Neutral pitch
 
−
|-
 
−
| ◌̀
 
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| [[wikipedia:Grave accent|Grave accent]]
 
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| Low pitch, stressed vowels, open vowels, short vowels.
 
−
| Low pitch
 
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|-
 
−
| ◌́
 
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| [[wikipedia:Acute accent|Acute accent]]
 
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| High pitch, stressed vowels, close vowels, long vowels.
 
−
| High pitch
 
−
|-
 
−
| ◌̂
 
−
| [[wikipedia:Circumflex|Circumflex]]
 
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| Used to represent falling pitch or long vowels.
 
−
| Falling pitch
 
−
|-
 
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| ◌̈
 
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| [[wikipedia:Diaeresis (diacritic)|Diaeresis (diacritic)]]
 
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| Used to show that a vowel should be read separately (like in ''coöperate''). This is certainly not its use in Dwarven, because there are no diphthongs. It could also indicate a sound change.
 
−
| Mid pitch
 
−
|-
 
−
| ◌̊
 
−
| [[wikipedia:Ring (diacritic)|Ring (diacritic)]]
 
−
| ''Å'' is a completely separate letter from ''A'' in various Nordic alphabets, and this diacritic is only used on ''a'' in Dwarven...
 
−
| Rising pitch <!--probably...-->
 
−
|}
 
−
 
−
The coincidence of ''Å'' being a separate letter in the Nordic alphabets and the ring diacritic only being used on A in Dwarven is probably just that, a coincidence. If ''Å'' is distinguished from ''A'' in Dwarven, then it is quite strange that no other accents are ever applied to it.
 
−
 
−
General suggestions for the pronunciation of the various languages were developed [https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/7ttsz9/suggested_pronunciation_system_for_dwarf_fortress/|Ring here.]
 
  
 
==Vocabulary==
 
==Vocabulary==
−
{{main|Language#Vocabulary}}
+
{{main|Template:Language table}}
−
 
 
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The average word in the Dwarven language is 5.088 letters long. The longest known word is ''ngathsesh'', meaning "[[vomit]]".
 
−
 
 
−
The average word has 1.868 syllables. Generally, words either have one or two syllables.
 
−
 
 
 
=== Notes ===
 
=== Notes ===
−
Interestingly, the language lacks words like dwarf (possibly ''bistök-udos'', "hairy man", or ''duradudos'', "bearded man"), human (technically they have ''udos'' ("man")), goblin or elf (though one could use ''dák-enur'' ("tree-hug") for that). However, it is not lacking words for "[[pearl]]" (''kovest'') or "pumpkin" (''elbost'') which do not even exist in-universe.
+
Interestingly, the language lacks words like dwarf, human, goblin or elf (though one could use dák-enur -tree-hug- for that). However, it is not lacking words for pearl (kovest) or pumpkin (fongbez) which do not even exist in the dwarven universe.
−
 
 
−
The letter W does not exist elsewhere in the dwarven language, so it is unlikely that the word "dwarf" is the native moniker of dwarves for themselves. However, "dwarf" might be adopted from the original dwarven word for their own kind, and similarly they might call other races by their respective chosen monikers. "Dwarf" would then be some other language's approximation of the native dwarven pronunciation, whose correct dwarvish spelling could purely hypothetically resemble forms such as "dorf" or "dvôrfum".
 
−
 
 
−
== D for Dwarf ==
 
−
 
 
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{{D for Dwarf}}
 
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Although dwarves are capable of creating massive and powerful fortresses, killing unimaginable beasts and demons, wiping out entire civilizations, and becoming incredibly buff after hours of constant mining, they all develop a glaring weakness known as [[cave adaptation]], which causes dwarves to puke when exposed to the outdoors. It is because of these thousands of disturbances that the vile substance accelerating out of their guts had been given the <s>stupidly long name</s> incredibly ''intimidating'' title of "''ngathsesh''" due to the countless victims it has affected (including the poor bastards that have to clean the damned mess).
 
  
−
== See Also ==
 
−
* Raw: https://github.com/DF-Wiki/DFRawFunctions/blob/master/raws/v50/language_DWARF.txt
 
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* Suggested pronunciation: https://www.reddit.com/r/dwarffortress/comments/7ttsz9/suggested_pronunciation_system_for_dwarf_fortress/
 
  
 
{{gamedata}}
 
{{gamedata}}
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[[Category:Language]]
 
[[Category:Language]]
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[[ru:Dwarven language]]
 

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