Languages

There is no "common" language in Caveorth, though there are languages that are widely known regionally, and several languages that are known across the world.

Worldwide Languages

Draconic - dragons, lizardfolk

This ancient language is the core common language of all Dragons, and it changes slowly. Draconic has seeped into most racial languages, due to their dominant influence over millennia. Dragons do not socialize enough for the language to evolve or even have spreadable dialects.

Elder Dwarven - academic

Elder Dwarven is the ancient language of the Dwarven people, given to them by Marduuk when he presented them the first sweet waters. It was used throughout prehistory and long into the Drogonstall Empire, until the dwarves disparate conditions caused the language to split and evolve. Elder Dwarven is no longer spoken as a cultural language, but it is still taught in Dwarven academies and centers of learning, as many old histories and the earliest arcane texts are still written in Elder. It is rarely spoken aloud except for certain ceremonial rites, and its real pronunciation is likely forever lost.

Giant - firbolgs, giants

Giant is the ancient language of Giants, and is spoken by most Giants and Giant-kin. This is magical based language with roots in rune magic, and thus it is resistant to change.

Goblin - goblinoids

Goblin is spoken by most Goblinoids, and is the command language used by Hobgoblins. It is heavily influence by Draconic and Elder Dwarven, with a mish mash of common languages absorbed in.

High Cavalieath - Imperial elves

Language of the ruling class of the Cavalieath Empire. Born from Draconic with heavy Elven influence, this language is virtually dead.

Krahnogga - gnomes

Krahnogga is an ancient language of the Gnomes, spoken by most Gnomish tribes before the Dragonlords, and it is still used today when tribes and disparate Gnomes meet each other or talk formally. Not all gnomes learn Krahnogga though, and many interactions between different Gnomes will default to the language common in the region. It is a unique language that has managed to hold onto most of its core with very little incursions from Draconic and Elven languages.

Ralveleon - dark elf

Ralveleon is a descendant Elvish language from root Elvish lounges, long since lost. It developed separately from High Cavalieath being spoken by Dark Elves. It is still held as perhaps the purist form of Elvish still spoken today.

East of the Fallow Sea

Broathaa - human

This language is from the lands around and south of Gold Mountain. Little is known if this language is spoken regionally in these lands or if it is just spoken as a trade language by sailors, merchants, and pirates. What is known, however, is that this lilting language full of trills and sounds odd to both Cavellion and Kathorean is commonly encountered in ports across all seas.

Corsalin - human

A variation of Kathorean, forming a Creole language mostly with Broathaa and a sampling of several other international languages from across the seas. While using familiar words and sounds as both Kathorean and Broathaa, native speakers of either cannot easily understand Corsalin, if they can understand it at all, and often will come to incorrect conclusions about anything they do happen to 'understand'.

Corse-Rav Pidgin - dark elves, forest gnome, human

Corse-Rav Pidgin is a rough pidgin language formed from the Creole of Corsalin, some common Kathorean words, and Ralveleon Elvish. This language is not suitable for full and in-depth conversations, but it deep enough to facilitate trade and basic travel through and around the woods and border regions of the various forests in the East of the Katheorth Empire.

Druven - dwarven, North region

Druven is the common language of the Dwarven peoples of the North. It is an evolution of Elder Dwarven mixed with Elven language cognates over the years.

Feariliath - firbolg, forest gnome, wood elf

Feariliath is a blended language of fey and Khranogga with a heavy emphasis on Giant style speech. The vocabulary is built on Draconic, Fey, Khranogga, Elvish core languages, and Giant. This language is spoken only by Forest Gnomes and Firbolgs, as the language that has codeveloped with their new shared culture. The Wood Elves, having lost much of their language identity, have nurtured and kept this language alive and growing, with many Wood Elves speaking Feariliath as well as High Cavalieath.

Kathorean - human, Imperial

Kathorean is the old and established language of the Katheorth Empire. It traces its lineage from both High Cavalieath and the root languages of the human tribes found throughout the plains around the Kathwood as well as Druven influence from dwarven trade and tradesmen. It is the official language of all Imperial business in the empire.

Lil'Cavalieath - elven, halfling, Imperial

This derivative of High Cavalieath is relegated to the Imperial Elves sequestered in Val'Lilethian, and is usually only heard when encountering Elven Patrols or sanctioned trade caravans. It is a guarded language, not out of secrecy, but out of seclusion. Knowledge of High Cavalieath would allow one to read Lil'Cavalieath, but much context might be lost.

West of the Fallow Sea

Cavillion - human, halfling, Western region

Cavillion is the language spoken by the peoples of the common regions of the West. It is often in use in places like Caveleon, Cavor, Liverfeld, and Galerough. It is a grating language with long flues and harsh stops, with lyrical indents and vocabulary borrowed from several languages. It core of the language is Elvish, with many Draconic words used divorced from their original context. Halfling speech and tribal language color this language further.

Decaviche - human, halfling, rock gnome, Northwest region

Decaviche is a common language spoken across the North West, most commonly in Decarim. Many citizens of Caveleon also speak Decaviche to faciliate trade. This is another blended language comprised of various Gnome cognates, Draconic, Elven flourishes, and Goblinoid.

Drusha - grave dwarven, South region

Drusha is the formal language spoken by the city and fortress dwelling dwarves of the South. It is based on Elder Dwarven, with many influences from Drushikka that have crept in over the centuries. This language sounds haughty to many of those that live in the Aldruk Desert, and to foreign dwarves would sound both stiff and silky. Speakers of Drushikka can usually converse with speakers of Drusha, though complex matters may be lost and decorum is almost impossible to transfer.

Drushikka - druk dwarven

Drushikka is the language spoken by the Druk dwarves and other nomadic peoples of the desert. Formed primarily from Elder Dwarven, Drushikka is a pastiche language that serves as a common tounge when dealing with the peoples, trade, and settlements of the Aldruk Desert.

Hranogha - rock gnome

Hranogha is a descendant language of Krahnogga, and is structured similarly with familiar pronunciation, trills, and mouth sounds. While the languages cannot be used to converse, they will often sound identical to the untrained ear. The written form of Hranogha is very distinct, since it has incorporated a variety of scientific notations and shorthand. It is a common theme for the Rock Gnomes of Decarim to use Krahnogga interchangeably with Hranogha in order to sift out the locals from outsiders.

Tortakkal - tortle

Tortakkal is the language spoken by Tortles, and has a vast majority of vocabulary and structure shared with Lizard Folk. It is a developmentally unique language, with virtually no linguistic tie ins with any other developed language.

Yhearogga - ochre gnome

Yhearogga is an evolved form of Krahnogga, spoken by the Gnomes of Ochrewatch. It is structurally similar enough that it can often be understood in written form, but the pronunciation is too different for conversations. Yhearogga also has a a deep and developed method for talking about engineering and science, to the point where most scientific terms used in other languages are loanwords.