Aheywa

Aheywa is a non-spoken language used by the Riweni people of the Riweni River Basin. It is most commonly used when talking in front of non-Riweni people.

The Language

Aheywa is a tactical language communicated by creating patterns on the skin of the person it is being spoken to. Complex emotions can be shared through skin-to-skin contact and the connections Riweni people have with each other and the land they live on. It is known that the farther an Aheywa speaker is from their homeland, the weaker the emotions communicated are, and it is speculated that the cause is that Aheywa is powered by connection. There are instances of fluent Aheywa speakers being able to communicate with close friends or lovers outside of their homeland.

Language Structure

Many Aheywa patterns use only one hand, but some more complex sentences use two hands. The order is Person/Subject, Verb, Adjective, Object. So the sentence "Meet me at the bridge at night," becomes "we meet night bridge." Depending on the context, the emotions can vary. For example, if they were fleeing something, the emotion sent would be fear or freedom. If the sender wanted to go out with the reciever, the emotion sent would be affection. There are different base movements: Pulse, tap, drag, flick, spread, and more. Different motions have different connotations. For example, pulses tend to mean relating to people, while taps are found in actions and reactions. There are also different hand positions: Five fingers spread, two opposite fingers, index and middle finger, one finger, etc.

History

Aheywa was first developed in the Riweni River Basin by the Riweni people. Legends often attribute the discovery of the language to tree rats, rodents that live in trees and knock on hollow logs to communicate. The language took hold in the early Iksandi Invasion, as it was a way to pass information along quickly through captives. Many stories tell of how during the Bleeding Earth Night, Riweni captives pounded on the ground, using Aheywa to call for help from the earth. The urgency of Aheywa is passed down, and many patterns are meant to be signed quickly and with great emotion due to this.