Dreaming in Meroned

The Island of Meron

9999-01-18T12:58:00.000-08:00

It is the year 22 LM.

(Pop. 2.5-3 million)
approx. 230,000 sq km (for Terrans, slightly larger than Great Britain)

INHABITANTS:.

homo sapiens sapiens, seemingly the same species as humans on earth.
Nadeth, possibly a mutation in humans; defined as “a rare individual capable of communing with specific non-human mammals or avians with whom they have some acquaintance.”
Breleth, similar to Nadeth but able to communicate not only with specific ‘companion’ animals but also with the animal world at large.

LANGUAGE:

Meronian (Meroned) is a relatively compact composite language, built primarily from Korbeth (the language of Korba) and Aywen (the language of Etana). Because Meroned possesses a sound (zh) that does not exist in either of its neighboring languages, it may be assumed that it was originally more distinct, but due to extensive trade with Korba and Etana, grew to be more like Korbeth and Aywen (most notably the former).
A pidgin dialect of Korbeth, the language of Korba, is spoken in northern Meron. While it is usually learned with Meroned in the northwest, in the northeast it is the primary language and many people do not speak Meroned at all (see: MOUNTAIN FOLK).

How does Annuvar compare with Earth?
Meron Culture Test

Meroned Pronouns

2009-12-16T16:19:00.000-08:00

Meroned has only two personal pronoun groups: the subjective and the objective/prepositional.

Subject pronouns are used to refer to the actor of a sentence (she loved him).

Object pronouns can be direct (she carried it to him), indirect (she sent him a letter), reciprocal (they loved each other), and reflexive (she loved herself). In Meroned there is a single pronoun group to reflect all of these possibilities. Thus, the above sentences would read "she carried it to him", "she sent him a letter" "they loved them", "she loved her".

Propositional pronouns come, shockingly enough, after a preposition (he looked at her). In Meroned they fall in the same catch-all category as objective pronouns. Essentially, if it's not a subject, use the second type of pronoun.

Subject pronouns are as follows:

1st singular: y
2nd singular: bel
3rd singular feminine: elzh
3rd singular masculine: eld
3rd singular neuter: el
1st plural: yy
2nd plural: belo
3rd plural: yamy

Direct object/indirect object/reflexive/reciprocal/prepositional pronouns:

1st singular: ya
2nd singular: bahl
3rd singular feminine: ezhe
3rd singular masculine: ede
3rd singular neuter: ele
1st plural: yya
2nd plural: bahlo
3rd plural: yamy

Basic Aywen Grammar

2009-12-16T16:09:00.000-08:00

Like Meroned, Aywen has a Subject-Verb-Object (with direct object coming before indirect) word order, just as in English. For example,

I (s.) carry (v.) the cat (d.o.) to her (i.o.)

could be rendered, very formally as

haneltai (s.) sufielisha (v.) ta athiir (d.o) yui ta qiltarimii (i.o.)

or, somewhat informally, as

anel (s.) sufiesh (v.) athiir (d.o.) yui yalam (i.o.)

In the less formal sentence, ta ("the") can be dropped; indeed, in everyday Aywen speech, articles are rarely voiced, but rather are implied.

Aywen Verbs

2009-12-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

Aywen has infinitive verb endings just as in Spanish (always -ir, -er, -ar) and Farsi (-dan, -tan). It also has much more irregularity than Meroned and Korbeth; it does, however, have only one infinitive ending -

-et

Conjugation in Aywen is much more complex than in Meroned or Korbeth because there are so many pronouns - formal and informal for eight perspectives (giving a total of sixteen possible options) plus a passive tensea different conjugation for each. There are, however, relatively few tenses.

PRESENT TENSE

We'll use the example "to open", waethet.

Passive
3rd singular (it is opened): -eli, waetheli

Informal
1st singular (I open): anel -esh, anel waethesh
2nd singular (you open): noni -els, noni waethels
3rd singular (he opens): dath -eda, dath waetheda
3rd singular (she opens): yalian -ema, yalian waethema
1st plural (we open): nabae -en, nabae waethen
2nd plural (you all open): nonin -elsen, nonin waethelsen
3rd plural (they [m.] open): datii -ude, datii waethude
3rd plural (they [f.] open): matii -ume, matii waethume
3rd plural (they [n.] open): bel -un, bel waethun

Formal:
1st singular (I open): haneltai -elisha, haneltai waethelisha
2nd singular (you open): hanonil -elise, hanonil waethelise
3rd singular (he opens): qiltaridii -edashu, quiltaridii waethedashu
3rd singular (she opens): qiltarimii -emashu, qiltarimii waethemashu
1st plural (we open): hanabehni -elishan, hanabehni waethelishan
2nd plural (you all open): noninet -elisen, noninet waethelisen
3rd plural (they [m.] open): taridinii -edashun, taridinii waethedashun
3rd plural (they [f.] open): tariminii -emashun, tariminii waethemashun
3rd plural (they [n.] open): yambel -eshun, yambel waetheshun

PAST TENSE

Passive
3rd singular (it was opened): -ero, waethero

Informal
1st singular (I opened): anel -er, anel waether
2nd singular (you opened): noni -elor, noni waethelor
3rd singular (he opened): dath -edar, dath waethedar
3rd singular (she opened): yalian -emar, yalian waethemar
1st plural (we opened): nabae -eren, nabae waetheren
2nd plural (you all opened): nonin -elte, nonin waethelte
3rd plural (they [m.] opened): datii -ada, datii waethada
3rd plural (they [f.] opened): matii -ama, matii waethama
3rd plural (they [n.] opened): bel -an, bel waethan

Formal:
1st singular (I opened): haneltai -era, haneltai waethera
2nd singular (you opened): hanonil -elore, hanonil waethelore
3rd singular (he opened): qiltaridii -edashur, quiltaridii waethedashur
3rd singular (she opened): qiltarimii -emashur, qiltarimii waethemashur
1st plural (we opened): hanabehni -elishan, hanabehni waethelishan
2nd plural (you all opened): noninet -elitet, noninet waethelitet
3rd plural (they [m.] opened): taridinii -adashur, taridinii waethedashur
3rd plural (they [f.] opened): tariminii -amashur, tariminii waethamashur
3rd plural (they [n.] opened): yambel -ashun, yambel waethashun

FUTURE TENSE

Passive
3rd singular (it will be opened): -ena, waethena

Informal
1st singular (I will open): anel -eti, anel waetheti
2nd singular (you will open): noni -etar, noni waethetar
3rd singular (he will open): dath -eted, dath waetheted
3rd singular (she will open): yalian -etam, yalian waethetam
1st plural (we will open): nabae -etin, nabae waethetin
2nd plural (you all will open): nonin -etqa, nonin waethetqa
3rd plural (they [m.] will open): datii -etada, datii waethetada
3rd plural (they [f.] will open): matii -etama, matii waethetama
3rd plural (they [n.] will open): bel -etan, bel waethetan

Formal:
1st singular (I will open): haneltai -etishe, haneltai waethetishe
2nd singular (you will open): hanonil -etare, hanonil waethetare
3rd singular (he will open): qiltaridii -etedash, quiltaridii waethetedash
3rd singular (she will open): qiltarimii -etamash, qiltarimii waethetamash
1st plural (we will open): hanabehni -etinor, hanabehni waethetinor
2nd plural (you all will open): noninet -etqani, noninet waethetqani
3rd plural (they [m.] will open): taridinii -etada, taridinii waethetada
3rd plural (they [f.] will open): tariminii -etama, tariminii waethetama
3rd plural (they [n.] will open): yambel -etashun, yambel waethetashun

All actions fall within these three categories; their nature has to be determined from context. Because of the sensitivity to formality of the language, it's necessary to determine what level should be used in each situation. A rough guide suggests,

MOST FORMAL - with pronoun and formal conjugation. Use with the elderly, teachers, members of religious or political authorities, and other dignified personages - not just when directly addressing them, but also in reference during conversation. Is also used in most speeches, prayers, and literature as well as correspondences.

SEMI-FORMAL - drop the pronoun but still use formal conjugation. This is extremely common for everyday conversation with unfamiliar adults; children and adolescents use semi-formal language to refer to anyone older than they are, including relatives (often all adult family but the mother).

SEMI-INFORMAL - with pronoun and informal conjugation. Used between acquaintances and in most adult conversation provided both individuals know each other. Also in conversation between extended family members and friends. Possibly the most common form used.

VERY INFORMAL - drop the pronoun and use only informal conjugation. Used only among close friends and family. Many people have a circle of one or two dozen people with whom they use this form of address - it's reserved for immediate family and lifelong friends. It's better not to use it unless you mean it.

Fortunately for the sanity of those attempting to learn the language, formal pronouns are never mixed with informal verb forms (and vice versa).

Return to Aywen

Dakeba Mar

2009-07-26T12:05:00.000-07:00

(a map of Meron and of the world will be useful in reading this section)

Tribal Kingdoms (pre-DM)

The main problem with the governing system of late Dadurab Mar was the lack of unity among fiefdoms and the tendency of each domain to split upon the death of its leader. There was no system for succession; each leader could do little but appoint an heir and pray that his wishes would be honored after his death.

They often were not. The splintering of the fiefdoms and the constant petty wars between each domain became such a problem that one historian wrote: “A crop can hardly be sown but an army will appear to trample on it.”

Out of this mess came, in the last years of the era, a man in central Meron who had the will to unite. He was not a prophet nor an adherent of any particular religion; it is theorized that he was the bastard son of a minor chieftain who was unlucky enough to lose his lands when he chose the losing side in a squabble between two more powerful barons. Others claim that he was the child of a shepherd, dispossessed and wandering the roads between villages in an attempt to find a place to lay his head.

Whatever the case may have been, it was clear that Myrelyr came from less than noble roots.

Myrelyr’s Rise (1430 RM-40 DM)

Historians believe that he was born around the year 1412 RM, because if the bastard son theory is correct then that was shortly before the clash of two powerful fieflords in what is today approximately the site of Kassen. If this is his story, Myrelyr would have been raised with the knowledge that he was the rightful lord of the land on which he was born: in those days illegitimacy meant little to most people.

By the year 1430, when he was approximately eighteen years old, Myrelyr had raised a significant following and begun carving out his own kingdom in the Kassen area, in the northwest of the province now named for him. He began work on a castle at the top of a craggy hill, first leveling it and the constructing a massive fortress of stone shipped from the south. Around this hill grew a town of artisans and stoneworkers who were in the business of shaping the walls and the hill to suit Myrelyr’s exacting specifications.

The castle was the first piece of Myrelyr’s plan to unite central Meron under his banner. By 1437, an astonishing seven years after he had begun work on the castle, it was largely completed. From it he rallied many men to his banner and began annexing the regions around him.

Myrelyr was clever enough to not seek power over the entire island. Instead of pushing far south, north, or west, he pushed straight eastward to the sea, extending his reign through what is now East Province and establishing castles along the way to solidify his rule over the lands. He refrained from burning fields, though he executed leaders of those fiefdoms he conquered and installed his own men in their place. By 1442, the last year of RM, he had cemented his rule over a large area in central Meron and controlled much of the island’s agricultural base.

Leaders of other regions watched this with trepidation. They were not unified enough to stop him should he choose to cut a swath through their lands, and they feared that he would do exactly that. Myrelyr, however, had other plans. He probably aspired to one day rule all of Meron, but instead of taking it through brute force, he sent support and supplies to the most powerful man in each region, and they began the same type of conquest he had initiated, solidifying power centers for themselves by building fortresses and from there conquering other regions.

A man named Awar was the first to successfully ally with Myrelyr and establish his kingdom. He took South and Awar provinces (the latter now named for him) and threw his support behind a man named Pinar, who took the whole of the north with no difficulty (Pinar and North provinces) and ruled his people with a loose rein.

The western barons gave in without a struggle. Rather than falling at the sword, they swore allegiance to the man Myrelyr had picked for the west, Kinelvar, who took the whole region between Belar and the mountains south of Anwall (in what are now Kinelvar and West provinces).

The last region to unite was the south. The man Myrelyr had chosen was not a native Meron: he, Eveltar, was of Etana, and he and his colonists had come in the last fifty years, a last attempt for Etana to take control of part of Meron. Instead of attempting to fight him, Myrelyr offered him a large piece of the south: in return, he had to sever ties with his homeland and commit himself to Meron.

By the year 35 DM, Meron was successfully solidified into five kingdoms. Myrelyr was not a young man; he was in his mid sixties and, according to the records kept by his physician, suffering from ill health as the result of an old battle wound at his hip. He died in the year 40 DM, but he his last legacy was one to ensure that all his work was not in vain: he drew up lines of succession and sent them to his four allies. These lines laid out clear orders for who could inherit, but left open the possibility of disinheriting undesirable sons. Myrelyr himself passed his scepter not to his eldest son, but to his third child. He was determined that his kingdom would last.

Trouble in Awar (40 DM-190 DM)

Though Awar had been the first to join Myrelyr, he predeceased him and, although his eldest son held on to the kingdom until Myrelyr’s death, upon his passing it splintered between the nine sons of Awar. The other nations held firm, their resolve strengthened by the severe conflict they saw beyond their borders. A few times attempts were made to support one heir or another but they ended in a further splintering. By the year 100 DM, there were nearly as many fiefdoms in Awar as there had once been in all of Meron.

It was around the year 129 DM when a fourteen-year-old boy, Karbod, announced his prophethood. Born in Ubro, the site of Awar’s former capital, the boy recruited a following and began preaching unity. His followers called themselves Karbeans and more than half of what had been Awar was under his sway. One by one, the fieflords swore their allegiance to him, and by the year 140, when Karbod was just twenty-five, he headed not just a religious order but also a kingdom.

Myrelyr’s great-grandson, whose name is not known, was at that time in power in Myrelyr. He and his advisors felt that a religious movement was too dangerous to have in power and attempted to destroy them. While a unified Awar was a good thing, they wanted it on their own terms.

They killed Karbod. His nephew Vodal was his appointed successor, but in the year 148, just four years after Karbod’s death, Vodal was assassinated. Whether this was done on the behest of the Myrelyrs or was simply the work of some jealous Karbean is not known. In either case, the result was the same: the Myrelyrs installed an Awar heir and he united the kingdom under stricter rule than before. Yet Awar remained fiercely independent, and the Karbean movement was not killed, just robbed of its leadership.

Tranquility (190 DM-420 DM)

The two hundred and thirty years that followed the Karbean War were relatively peaceful. Around 230 a civil disturbance broke out in Kinelvar, when the king of it died suddenly without specifying which of his twin sons was to inherit. It ended when one killed the other. The surrounding kingdoms hastily moved to ensure that their lines of succession were protected, as per the guidelines Myrelyr had sent out before his death.

This era was, however, one of technological advancement. Medicine was leaps ahead of what it had been a few generations before, when it had relied almost entirely on prayer, hope, and strange medicinal concoctions. In addition, weapon-making techniques improved enormously, making swords more common and deadly than ever before.

To War (420 DM-453 DM)

Relations with Etana had been poor since the first contact between the two peoples, but in the middle of the fourth century DM it took a turn for the worse. Much of Meron’s technological advancement was due to tools gained from trade with Etana, which still got extensive aid from the people of Qaqia; the same alliance was what made Etana such a powerful force.

Etanan culture had been developing alongside Meron over the last 1500 years. While they were still closely tied to Qajendu, their mythology and religion grew further and further from their roots and they had a complicated belief system regarding their right to land and the morality of other peoples.

The Etanans held a strong belief that the Meron people were primitive savages. While they had a complex feudal system, a written language, and extensive trade networks, their religions were incomprehensible to the Etanans, who believed in the divine right of kings (not at all a part of Meron theological understandings) and regarded newly founded Karbea as hardly less objectionable than the old religions of Eemeo, which the people had brought with them when they came to Meron.

Thus it was that Etanan boats worried away at the southeastern shores of Meron. Sailboats had finally come south of Meron and were now in common use across Qajendu and even in parts of Aeone, and the Etanans had powerful longboats crewed by religious fanatics who were determined to convert the Meron people. There was initially some small success in conversion, but it didn’t take long for the novelty to wear off. Etanan religion was based on a belief system wholly alien to the Meron people, who revered nature and, unlike the Etanans, believed that it should be safeguarded, not consumed in pursuit of the Divine Three (the men who ruled Etana)’s wishes.

Qaqia, Etana’s ally, was not interested in their religious convictions. It was, however, perfectly delighted to supply men and supplies if Etana wished to make an attempt to conquer Meron. The chief benefit of Meron was its extensive natural resources; Qaqia had farmland and plenty of timber, but the iron deposits in Meron’s mountains were not found on the mainland or Etana.

There was little social unrest in Meron of the time. People had settled into the five-kingdom arrangement and were not interested in rebellion of any kind. However, the bonds between their leaders had loosened in the last decades, and while there was no overt hostility, no one was particularly interested in any allegiance beyond that of the trade networks. Awar and Myrelyr in particular, always a little at odds tottered on the brink of conflict.

It was into this situation that the Etanans waltzed. They shipped a massive army up from Qaqia and, joining it with their own, they swept across the gap between Myrelyr and Awar and within a year and a half had decimated the Meron armies (what there was of them) and had established their own rule at Kassen, where Myrelyr’s heirs had once ruled. They executed all five kings and as many of their heirs as they could get their hands on and subjugated the Meron people

Dadurab Mar <-- | --> Zhey Mar

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Hillmen

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The hills of the south are not well-suited to farming, and people have turned to other industries as a means of livelihood. Some areas rely on pottery, while others deal in stone and iron mining, fancy work, and other handcrafts. Because of historical conflict with the Etanans, most cities and towns are walled in and guarded well, even in times of peace.

Culturally, southern people tend to live a slower lifestyle than their northern fellow-countrymen. Because of the extreme humidity in the summers, houses are built long, low, and airy, out of cool stone with tiled roofs and external kitchens. Southern people are richer on average but the gap between the wealthy and the impoverished is extreme.

Return to Southern Meron

South Province

2009-07-26T09:40:00.000-07:00

Though the northern provinces are commonly known to have secessionist leanings, people also remember that the south was once equally divided. The Uprising of of 690 began in South Province, spreading north to Awar.

This is in part due to South's feeling that it is underrepresented in the government. While its western neighbors are relatively respected, it is the underdog of the province and has little economy. Its chief export is stonework and luxury goods, but it makes little money in such business and is therefore not a wealthy region.

Return to Southern Meron

Eveltar Province

2009-07-26T09:27:00.000-07:00

While all the other regions of Meron were the domains of people of Eemeo descent, Eveltar Province is unique in that it is the one region where the Etanans were successful in pushing their way in from the coast. Eveltar Province has long since been assimilated into Meron culture, but the people there still tend to be lighter-skinned and -haired than those of Eemeo descent.

Despite its origins, Eveltar Province was the hardest hit of any during the Etanan war. Raiding parties regularly sailed along the coast burning fields and even sometimes whole villages. The custom of walling all cities, while now common to all of the south, originated in Eveltar Province as a means of safeguarding against attack. In addition, although it was initially settled by farmers, the people of Eveltar quickly gave up their crops because burning was so frequent that most people were unable to make a living at agriculture.

Eveltar Province therefore has more cities, towns, and villages than any other province, nearly all of them enclosed by stone walls. The high population density makes it also less comfortable than most other provinces, and the gap between rich and poor is greater than anywhere else in the country. People make their living chiefly through craftsmanship or mining; while West Province sits on rich clay deposits, the mountains of Eveltar Province are the best source of iron in the country. They are also quarried for rock, which is used to build homes, walls, and roads, the last of which gives Eveltar Province the best road system in the country, connecting all villages and towns with flat, even causeways.

Return to Southern Meron

West Province

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West Province is the wealthiest in Meron. Not only is its capital, Anwall, the site of the king's second palace, but it also contains the richest and purest clay deposits in the kingdom. The pottery from West Province is considered the best in the nation; western potters are famous for their unusual glazes and patterns, which are prized worldwide.

Though its wealth is extensive, West Province also has the fewest poor people of any of the southern nations. It is considered the "classiest" province: Anwall is its only really major city, but all of its walled towns are relatively clean, and the latest fad is piped water to people's homes. Only the rich can afford such luxury, but for those who can it makes life much easier and has dramatically reduced child drowning deaths as a result of wells closing in wealthier homes.

Anwall is also the childhood home of King Tamen, and he and his family still take frequent trips to visit the city, which is famous for its red walls and its tiled rooftops.

Return to Southern Meron

Southern Meron

2009-07-26T08:57:00.000-07:00

Provinces
West
Eveltar
South

People
Hillmen

Life
A Potter's Cottage
A Merchant-Potter's Home
An Anwall Manor

Return to Contemporary

Pinar Province

2009-07-26T08:42:00.000-07:00

Though it is the home province of Queen Ella, Pinar is chiefly known for its central role in the northern uprising of early LM. Its only town of any size is Dammel, the provincial capital, which is little more than a modest fishing port. However, the overthrow of the governor there and the subsequent people's rebellion nearly caused a civil war. The people who started the uprising were initially interested in sucession, but ultimately were defeated in their abortive attempt to conquer Myrelyr Province.

Though the uprising left many embittered in Pinar Province, in the aftermath it largely returned to its prior state of relative obscurity. the southern half of the province is richly soiled but heavily forested, so the majority of people live in the north and fish on the rocky coast. A further number of people, who style themselves the Kwedith, live in the mountains, but they interact heavily with the lowland fishermen and do a good business shipping luxury goods south to Kassen and further into the lower provinces.

Return to Northern Meron

North Province

2009-07-26T08:25:00.000-07:00

Belar, the capital of this province, is the oldest city in the country. It stands at the gap in the mountains, dividing the agriculturally oriented eastern half of the province from the rocky coastal villages which make their living on the seas.

This is indicative of the theme that has continued throughout the history of North Province, which has been torn between the rolling hills of the eastern farmland and the ragged cliffs of the sea since its inception. The people of western North in particular were staunchly supportive of secession, and when the northern rebellion was quashed their proposal to divide the province down the middle was unequivocally denied.

The mountain range that cuts a swath down the middle of the province is thee territory of the Nalaith, who, unlike their eastern cousins the Kwedith, were not drawn into the rebellion or even the Etanan war.

North Province's industries are split between fishing and settled agriculture, but the bulk of their wealth comes from trade, largely with the Korbeth, who ship goods to Kolus Port and have them shipped downriver. Though most people think of North Province as a rural, somewhat backwater province, it actually has four cities of note - more than any other province. They are, however, smaller than the cities of the south and less sophisticated, with the exception of Belar, which is the site of a second university.

Return to Northern Meron

Northern Meron

2009-07-26T08:23:00.000-07:00

Provinces
North
Pinar

People
Lowlanders
Nalaith
Kwedith

Life
A Peasant Cot
A Middle-Class Home
A Lowland Governor's Manor

Return to Contemporary

Myrelyr Province

2009-07-25T22:38:00.000-07:00

Named for the man who built a kingdom and created a dynasty that would one day rule all of Meron, Myrelyr Province is both the geographic and the political center of Meron. While much of it remains farmland and it is not the most metropolitan province in the kingdom, it is considered the height of civilization.

Kassen, which is both the provincial capital and the king's seat, is the origin of much of the technology and science that exists today in Meron, in addition to being a gravitational point for many artists and musicians. It is home to the leadership of the Karbean faith and in Hoka Palk's famed book Wonders of Our World the city is called "a beacon of civilization standing in the midst of green fields and azure rivers, framed by glorious mountains and crowned by the palace of the kings."

While Palk waxes rhapsodic as to the wonders of Kassen and Myrelyr Province, it is not without its problems. Median wealth levels are pulled high by the concentration of rich people residing in the capital city, but the gap between rich and poor is nearly as extreme as in West Province and it also boasts the lowest illiteracy rate among ordinary citizens (the wealthy are excluded in this statistic as they, again, skew the numbers). However, all and all, the people of Myrelyr Province are more content than anywhere else, and a random sampling suggests that, unlike in other provinces, people are satisfied that their kind are listened to in the government. "It's our people as rule us," said one man, "an' better them than those as come from faraway places. We got a queen that's come from stock like us and a king that's a good man. Not much more a man can ask for."

Return to Central Meron

Awar Province

2009-07-25T22:24:00.000-07:00

Though it is a part of the central region and remains thus in terms of political spheres and allegiances, Awar Province is culturally southern in many ways. Its original classification as a central province was largely due to the fact that it, like its more northwards compatriots, relies largely on farming to support its economy. Legends say that the prophet Karbod was born in a cot somewhere in the fields of Awar, and hundreds of Karbeans come looking for his birthplace every year

Despite its central culture, many people live a more southern lifestyle than in other central provinces. Most cities are walled and fortified, and crops tend to be sown in smaller fields as a result of the need to protect one's land against marauding Etanans. Awar was very hard hit throughout the war, and agriculture suffered enormously from the pillaging that went on in the later years of the conflict; it is only recently that it has rebounded and gained some measure of influence through trade. What saved it from being completely destroyed was the strategic placement of a major port city, Estallen, right between the mountains, the sea, and the river; thus, it was difficult for raiders to come through in any great force, since they had to slip by the walled city in order to attack the surrounding crops and villages.

The capital of Awar Province is Ubro, which nestles against the mountains on a hill overlooking the gorgeous countryside below. The second-largest business in Awar is livestock breeding, and the sheep fields are idyllic beyond the castle at Ubro. This has, however, earned Awar Province the unfortunate reputation of being a backwater province in a fairly metropolitan region.

Return to Central Meron

East Province

2009-07-25T22:10:00.000-07:00

Part of the original kingdom ruled by Myrelyr, East Province remains a stronghold of support for the monarchy. The shipyards of Hamrey are a key naval base, even after the war, and the province was firm in its defense of the kingdom's solidarity during the recent northern uprisings.

Return to Central Meron

Kinelvar Province

2009-07-25T22:09:00.001-07:00

There is little in Kinelvar Province but farmland and a few scattered village. It is chiefly notable for its disputed status in the Northern Uprising of 1 LM, wherein North and Pinar provinces attempted to secede from the kingdom, taking Kinelvar with them. Their status was a hotly disputed issue over the year in which the rebellion took place, and Kinelvar was left more divided than it ever had been before, with embittered families and little contentment.

Kinelvar is economically stable, but has little national influence: the provincial capital, Tive, is left off most maps due to its miniscule size, and the governor is a farmer himself, not a courtier. However, the gap between rich and poor is much less in Kinelvar Province than in other areas of the country, and the median wealth level is much higher. Few starve and there is no lack of work.

Return to Central Meron

Central Meron

2009-07-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

Provinces
Kinelvar
East
Awar
Myrelyr

People
The Plainsfolk

Cities of Note
Kassen

Life
A Peasant Farmer's Cottage
A Merchant's Home
A Typical Manor House

Return to Contemporary

Dadurab Mar

2009-07-25T20:26:00.000-07:00

Early Writings

The earliest documents found on Meron, the Anwall Parchments, are in an archaic form of the Qaqian writing style, used by the Etanans and poorly adapted to the Meron language. It is evident that Meron script was invented as a result of exposure to the idea of transcribing one’s history on parchment, stone, or wood; it is equally obvious that the Meron deliberately did not base their alphabet off Etanan styles (Meroned is written right to left like Arabic, while Aywen is written in columns). This suggests that the Meron and the Etanans were, even then, uneasy with one another.

The idea of a chronology system first appeared in these writings, dated in the Qaqian style. Somewhat arbitrarily, the dates given on these documents are counted as the beginning of Meron chronology, now labeled Dadurab Mar (this system invented in the midst of Dakeba Mar).

The Lost Age

Dadurab Mar (commonly abbreviated RM) is the period of relative anarchy between the date found on the Anwall Parchments (the originals of which are lost) and the coalescence of the six tribal kingdoms 1442 years later. It is thus named not because of any particular strife or difficulty that occurred during the period, but simply because so little is known about it.

Historians tend to divide the area into three separate periods, of indeterminate but roughly equal lengths. This is because, while the era is notable for the lack of information with regard to it, there were definite advances that occurred at certain points, which caused enormous cultural and political change.

First Era: Early Agriculture (circa 1-400 RM)

The information on the first era of Meron history is the most sketchy, largely because so few people know how to read and write and so few documents have survived. Archaeology is a field that has been conceived only in the last decade or so, and is occupied by only half a dozen university men who are regarded as oddities. Thus, there is little chance of excavating sites to see what life might have been like for these early Meron people.

Settled agriculture existed even then, but the technology level was incredibly low. Records suggest that primitive plows were pulled by horses, used to ease the backbreaking labor otherwise required to plant even the most modest plots of land. However, the majority of labor was done by hand and people lived in thatched houses, often in clusters of four or five. There was little militant activity, in large part because few had anything worth taking. However, there were those who attempted to steal others’ land for their own purposes, and as a result people tended to live in small groups as insurance against being caught unawares by raiders.

Trade was possible, but made logistically complicated by the difficulty of travel between disparate regions. Those who had horses used them for hard labor, not transport. However, by the year 400, there were extensive trade networks between the northern and southern areas of the island.

There was also continued, but curtailed, contact between Meron and its southern neighbor, Etana, which was still a colony of Qaqia. While the Etanan colonists had canoe-like ships with which they traversed the channel between the two islands, it appears that the Meron made no attempt to venture beyond their own shores (although around the year 200 appears the first mention of the use of river barges for trade, a practice that is still hugely popular in modern Meron).

Second Era: Seafarers (circa 400-990 RM)

The Meron disinterest in the salty barrier that surrounded them came to an abrupt halt at the end of the fourth century RM. This was the moment of first contact between the Korbeth and the Meron.

The Korbeth crossed the ocean from what was then the kingdom of Shafleyen (which occupied most of what is now Ñist) around 300 RM. They were fishermen, and they, unlike the people of the Qajendu and Aeone regions, had ships with sails. This enabled them to cross far greater distances with a relatively small crew than the eastern people, who relied solely on manpower to move their ships across the water. Shafleyen (which collapsed only a few hundred years after the Korbeth migration) was a fishing culture, relying heavily on ships.

Korba, rocky as it was, had little to offer in terms of farmland but was perfect for the Shafleyen people and their needs. It soon became a permanent colony and the Korbeth people adopted their own governmental system. Initially they concerned themselves mostly with northward exploration. They were aware of Meron as a landmass, but most of the people there lived in the southern and central areas of the island, where the richest farmland was.

The first contact between these seafaring peoples and the settled Meron occurred sometime around the year 400 RM and signifies a break in the expectations and traditions of society. The white sails of the Korbeth ships were new and exciting to the Meron, who had all the resources necessary to build their own ships but not the skills required. A free-for-all cultural exchange began between the two societies, neither of which had any interest in the other’s land but both of which were interested in trade and commerce between the two lands.

Meron was still divided into hundreds of small areas with their own interests and needs. The northernmost people were the first to make contact with the Korbeth and it is suspected that people from both cultures made the decision to settle on the rocky northern coastline. This explains the Meron-Korbeth hybrid language that is still spoken today in those regions. The majority of northerners are fishermen and trade between northern Meron and Korba is still extensive.

Korba gave Meron sail power; Meron reciprocated with a writing system. The Korbeth initially adopted the Meron alphabet wholesale, but eventually made small adjustments to accommodate their own language. The frenzy of linguistic exchange is also evident in the similarities between words in Korbeth and in Meroned, each borrowing from the other.

Roughly concomitant with the northern seafaring development was the southern acquisition of wheeled technology. It had existed on the periphery before, but two southern villages built a straight, flat causeway between their towns, so that for the first time wagons were useful for trade purposes. A network of roads quickly followed, and wagons became a common technology throughout most of the island.

The ensuing six centuries were a time of commercial explosion in the islands. There was still little in the way of organized government, but the different regions had by then coalesced into dozens of small fiefdoms, each with its own leaders and priorities. The Etanans nibbled at the southern shores, but were repelled by a coalition formed by a group of men from the area; this perhaps provided the impression that the country was more unified than it was, because the Etanans did not try again to continue their conquest.

Third Era: Fiefdoms (circa 990-1442 RM)

The last division of Dadurab Mar is more arbitrary, because there is no single event that can be pinpointed as the transition point between the entirely agriculturally based society and one that began to more closely resemble the feudal system of later ages.

The divide between a lower and upper class probably began the moment the Meron set foot on land, but was already taking shape by the time the writing system was developed. It set a clear barrier between the lower class and the educated. Those who had time to be scholarly were typically young men or boys whose fathers were successful enough in business that they were able to hire others to do their grunt work for them.

In the late 900s or early 1000s, the split became more obvious as the informal landlord/serf system became more cemented. The fiefdoms had always had rulers, but never before had these chieftains “owned” the land on which the people in their villages worked.

The first castles were built in the early days of the Third Era. They were wooden forts built on hilltops, where richer or more powerful men were able to live in relative luxury off the fruits of their serfs’ labors. Several fragile tapestries still survive from such early days; because of the comfort in which the nobility lived, they were able to devote themselves to activities that were not strictly necessary, but in beauty and art for its own sake.

Money came into use in this period as well. It was easier to transport than goods for barter were. However, trade was still popular, and as it became easier to travel between fiefdoms, some areas began to move away from agriculture and people moved to places that were not arable. The northern fisherman had been plying their trade on the coasts for some time, but people moved further south to take advantage of rich clay deposits in the soil, which they used to make pottery. Though trade with Etana was still limited, some of the Meron pottery became so prized that it was shipped to mainland Qajendu and sold to the nobility there.

By the end of Third Era, the splintered fiefdoms were drawing together into larger tribal groups. In the year 1442, one particular young man rose to a position no one had before attained.

Prehistoric Age <-- | --> Dakeba Mar

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Prehistoric Humanity

2009-07-25T14:41:00.000-07:00

Creation Story

The creation stories of the Meron were born in the animistic traditions of the old religion and bear close resemblance to those told in the Aeone region, most specifically its western areas: the country now known as Eemeo [see map]. Though the languages have evolved far apart (the people of Eemeo now speak the vowel-laden speech of Uau), the terms used to describe the birth of Annuvar are similar in form and meaning.

The sun, Habara, (say the old myths) was born from the woman Starmother. It was lonely, so far away from its brothers and sisters in the black, and Starmother took pity on him and gave him a wife: the earth. Their children are the three moons, their grey-skinned son Pabrade and their icy daughters Palizha and Mafarzha.

In keeping with the traditions of the early religions, these five celestial bodies obeyed the laws of family life. The wife, Annuvar, circled the husband, Habara, while their three children looked to her and revolved around her. (In this sense, Meron science has been ahead of Earth astronomy for thousands of years. When the two planets between the sun and Annuvar were discovered, they were named Annuvar’s sisters, but no room was made for them in the mythology.)

Habara burned hot and bright while Annuvar grew green and vibrant from his light. It was then that the Great One, the father of the Starmother, deemed that there should be a smaller kind to walk upon her earth and tend to her growing locks of green and the animals that wandered her forests. For while Annuvar and Habara and their children were good and beautiful and strong, the Great One wished to have another lesser kind who could look upon the stars and the earths and the moons and see the greatness of his vision. So the Great One called forth humankind out of a tall-striding animal and made him above all the other animals. He said:

“I am your Creator. You are the children of my daughter’s children, the people of Annuvar. Here you will grow, prosper, and you will learn how to speak and how to love. And you will look up at the stars and you will remember the gift I have given you. And when you grow too old to move and close your eyes to rest, I will call your spirit up to the heavens and you will be with me forevermore.”

So it was that humanity lived in the forests and plains of Annuvar, and made children and learned to eat the things of the earth and to speak among the animals. But after a time, they forgot the words they had learnt from the Creator, for their lives were short. A time came when they did not even remember that in death they went to be with Him, and so they grew to fear it and use it against one another as a way to get what they wanted from their fellow men.

The Creator had foreseen this and said to the Starmother as she gazed with worry at the conflict wrought upon the soils of her son’s wife, Annuvar:

“I knew they would forget, but do not worry. In time I will send a messenger to them in the form of one of their own. They will not know him at first, but in him will be a piece of my wisdom. He will teach them to lay aside their sticks and stones and build themselves lives of peace, and he will tell them of Me and of My ways. And he will explain that when their spirits leave their physical cages, they return to Me.”

So it was that a man came to the peoples and taught them the ways their Creator wished for them, and when he died they remembered. But after a time, memory faded, and so the Creator said:

“There will be no end, for my spirit will come again and again to them, reminding them of the duty they must carry out to their people and to their selves and the peace that they must make with their own kind. It will not end; they will never be wholly cured of their human frailty. But, with the guidance of these messengers from Me, they will remember Me and remember peace and one day they will come out of the dark and into the light of eternity.”

This story, or some variation thereof, is a remnant of some early religion but was adopted into the traditions of Karbea, the only religion wholly native to Meron, and some form of it is also found in the Hafel doctrine, which is imported from Etana but which is gaining rapid popularity among the lower classes in Meron.

Arriving in Meron

The remainder of the prehistoric tale of the Meroned is not found in religious texts, and it does not begin on Meron. As evidenced in the origins of the creation myth, the Meroned are believed to be descendants of the original people of Eemeo (originally Vezhle), a country in the west of the Aeone region. Little of Eemeo culture remains, because they were long subjugated by their more militant eastward neighbors, Uau.

There are several possible explanations for the remarkable fact that Eemeo people ended up in Meron, when early evidence indicates that they did not possess long-distance ships until they acquired the technology from their northern neighbors, the Korbeth (of Ñist descent), well into their recorded history.

The first—and most widely accepted—scenario is that they were escaped slaves. The Uau, who are still infamous human traffickers, were shipping Eemeo laborers to buyers on Qajendu long before the earliest records of people on Meron were written—before, even, a writing system was known to exist anywhere but in what is now Shqo (the main recipient of the human cargo). If a slave ship were lost in a storm (or, some propose, was taken over by its cargo) and wrecked on the shores of Meron, it could explain the presence of Eemeo people there. The slave ships were known to pack as many as 250 people below decks—a substantial gene pool. The Eemeo were not habitually watermen and would probably have salvaged the remains of their ship to build homes, losing their seafaring technology.

The main argument against this theory is that there is no proof of it. Another equally improvable possibility is that Meron was a failed colony of Eemeo, or an attempt to escape the thumb of Uau, which even then was in the business of empire-building.

Whatever the case may have been, a group of Eemeo found their way to Meron and established themselves there. It is possible that they had to fend off early forays from the east; the people of what would later be Qaqia had already moved into Etana, and might have also been interested in their northern neighbors as well. The Korbeth would not have arrived from Ñist until much later; their first contact with the Meron was in the early years of Dadurab Mar.

--> Dadurab Mar

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English to Aywen:I

2009-03-15T18:26:00.001-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
I (formal)	haneltai
I (informal)	anel
I love you	anmerno
ice	aist
icy	chenaist
I'd	nelis
idea	nadori
if	bel
ill	qelo
I'm	nelwas
I'm sorry (informal)	antain
imitate	qali
imitation	qalene
important	aya
in	manii
influence	chayii
instead	ashi
into	noma
iron	lelest
irony	abael
is	yas
island	lenlae
it	ilii
it'll	namilii
it's	iilas
I've	neliet

H<-- -->J

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English to Aywen:H

2009-03-15T18:24:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
had	catacero
had to	carytque
hair	celaman
halfling	perrennien
hand	famar
happen	prelet
happened	prelero
happy	jolis
harbor	celac
hard	dinla
harm	iislor
has	cataceli
hate	gehdet
hated	gehdero
hates	gehteli
hatred	gehvimhor
have	catacar(et)
have to	coretque
he (m.)	dath
head	latimiina
heal	arenet
healed	arenero
healer	arendalt
heals	areneli
hear	marno(et)
heard	manoero
hearken	mallel(et)
hearkened	mallelero
hearkens	malleleli
heart	merienmiil
heaven	esselas
held	essadero
hello	maevan
help	cend(et)
helps	cendeli
her (f.)	yalam
here	san
heritage	relli
hero	adom
heroic	adomor
hidden	wator
hide	towat
hill	arenniu
him (m)	yalad
history	dequil
hold	yae, essadet
holder	yaedalt
holds	essadeli
hole	aqi
hollow	iiros
holy	lellas
home	lanrel
honey	asui
honor	marilan
hook	lenetar
hope	iisar(et)
hoped	iisarero
hopes	iisareli
horizon	ryar
horse	ohen
horse (f.)	roman
horse (m.)	rodan
house	lesur
how	oyn
human	edain
husband (m.)	adiirae
hustle	thwal

G<-- -->I

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English to Aywen:G

2009-03-15T18:22:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
game	diiro
garden	yeran
garland	laria
gate	oristae
gave	inalarero
gaze	atim
gem	mero(et)
gemmed	duimero
general	enarth
generation	parelea
gentle	morel
gently	chenmore
get	asim(et)
gets	asomero
gift	anna
girl (f)	mala
give	inalaret, anni
given	inalero
gives	inalereli
glass	lalya
gleam	iulmar(et)
gleamed	iulmarero
gleams	iulmareli
glint	forel(et)
glinted	forelero
glints	foreleli
glorious	duiallam
glory	allam(et)
go	halamet
goal	haien
god	eyael
God	Esselviestel
god (f)	emael
god (m)	edael
goes	halameli
gold	mastel
gone	halil
good	anist
goodbye	anamar
got	asil
gown	lassam
grace	hataranya
grandfather, maternal	lanadar (great: -aru)
grandfather, paternal	evadar (great: -aru)
grandmother, maternal	lanama (great: -aru)
grandmother, paternal	evama (great: -aru)
grasp	lisobar9et)
grass	ethii
great	calli
green	shiiri
grew	mellero
grey	huthan, hithlem
grief	twyn
grind	quelar
ground	quelyr
grow	mellet
grows	melleli
grudge	hael
guess	dilican
guilt	porcani
gull	gatiumae

F<-- -->H

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English to Aywen:F

2009-03-15T18:20:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
face	wamanae
face (2) ("face it")	deawa
fact	aliscth
fade	qiraet
faded	qiraero
fades	qiraili
fair	aravae
faith	anala
fall	mothet, menaroth
falls	motheli, menaloth
familiar	rieto
family	telantii
far	hamor
farewell	mariinmar
farmer	aruthal
fast	haelo
fate	winda
father (m)	adiu
fear	acin(et)
feared	acinero
fears	acineli
feather	sisinae
feel	esen
fell	menatero
field	inalam
fifteen (num.)	yiibaich
fifty (num.)	baichyii
fight	dagorma(et)
fill	neid
filth	dangher
find	marfin(et)
finger	undant
finish	faelet
finished	faelero
fire	uliain
first	laniesu
fish	marinii
five (num.)	baich
flash	asrii
flat	ramis
flicker	bro
flighty	quidar
float	lafe
flower	tiulemaret
flower (plant)	arlyn
flowered	tiulemero
flowers	tiulemeli
foam	canam
fold	hiimy
follow	baramb(et)
food	lametae
fool	galamor
foolish	duigala
foot	padel
for	car
forest	hiia
forever	devanar
forge	ladiun
forge (2)	nador(let)
forged	nadorero
forges	nadoreli
forget	leman(et)
forgot	lamanero
forgotten	lematara
forlorn	adan
form	messaet
formed	messaero
forms	messaeli
forth	penna
fortress	wesoruan
forty (num.)	maryii
fought	dagorero
four (num.)	mari
fourteen (num.)	yiimari
frail	wethan
friend (formal)	apata
friend (informal)	essien
friendship (formal)	apatar
friendship (informal)	essientar
fright	hagle
from	tambar, enetil
frost	maraist
fruit	daelna
full	dell

E<-- -->G

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English to Aywen:E

2009-03-15T18:18:00.001-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
each	bryar
ear	crefil
early	nanii
east	otaqento
easy	maret
eat	havme
echo	onama
eight (num.)	linta
eighteen (num.)	tolina
eighty (num.)	linyii
eleven (num.)	yiilani
elf	eyen
encircle	cwantlar
end	gamarai
end (archaic)	lastobarumna
enemy	laiyil
enemy (f)	laimil
enemy (m)	laidil
enough	pacil
entire	cali
entry	hadae
ere	payatai
Etana	Aywae
Etanan	Aywen
eternity	sendora
eve	rien
even	lad
evening	rieth
ever	anarii
everlast	vantas
every	lynem
everyone	lyalys
evil	braghu
exact	epin
exactly	chenepi
except	filador
exclamation point	cula
exhaust	nantae
extend	lassyn
eye	waelas

D<-- -->F

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English to Aywen:D

2009-03-15T18:15:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
dance	duilet
dark	hanu
darkness	hanua
data	dormu
daughter	yatana (f)
dawn	miren
day	perriel, morfa
deaf	jel
deep	caneli
defend	emboet
defended	embero
defender	embodalt
defends	embeli
defense	embel
depart	qecani
destiny	acath
diamond	cament
did	emi
die	darach
dim	paritar
disappear	masin
distant	roel
do	ema
dock	celacanas
does	emor
doesn't	mordan
dolphin	faewen
dome	heneltama
don't	emano
doom	athamethi
door	cliur
down	pre
dragon	cangamar
dragon (evil)	marghen
dragon (good)	ericant
draw	epul
dread	duthen
dream	delmata
dress	pellet
dressed	pellero
dresses	pelleli
drift	arafla
drive	meroth
drown	orb
dust	wessucel
duty	awes
dwarf	dwarvae
dwell	lesaenet
dweller	lesaedalt
dwelling (home)	lesai
dwells	lesaeneli
dwelt	lesaenero

C<-- -->E

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English to Aywen:C

2009-03-15T18:12:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
cake	brois
call	amyn(et)
called	amynero
calls	amyneli
came	parnelo
can	masto
can't	mastin
capture	secoa
care	dillaret
cared	dillarero
cares	dillareli
carried	sufiero
carries	sufieli
carry	sufi(et)
cast	yacet
cast down	yator
casts	yacero
cat	athiir
catch	hemelet
cause	berhae
center	yestae
certain ("specific")	mamlen
certain ("sure")	naient
chain	siia
chance	uith
chapter	adyn
chest ("locked chest")	briel
child	yatan
choice	etamla
choose	etambet
chose	etambelo
chosen	etambela
circle	essetar
circlet	laqe
city	minel
clear	qentiel
clock	kiweth
close	iianwet
closed	iianwero
cloth	ninnem
cold	aiset
color	qeyessar
come	parn(et)
comes	parneli
comfort	muin
comma	jenehar
communicate	nosaiya
compassion	issulii
confident	delesta
confound	thepas
content	joliel
coral	risan
corridor	pamanat
cost	alii
could	marlo
could not	marlobil
council	holori
counsel	sirval
count	narel
courage	wes
courageous	duiwes
cousin (f)	tayma
cousin (m)	taydor
cover	aelet
covered	aelero
covers	aeleli
craftsman	naredaen
crave	hentet
craved	hentero
craves	henteli
create	ceridet
created	ceridero
creates	cerideli
creation	cerithan
creator	ceridalt
crest	piutar
cried	delerin
crisp	eshar
crude	bes
crumble	bendor
cry	dena
crystal	lantis
curl	celetar
curls	celetath

B<-- -->D

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English to Aywen Dictionary

2009-03-15T18:08:00.000-07:00

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V| W | X | Y | Z

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English to Aywen:B

2009-03-15T18:06:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
back	letho
ballad	faruiavii
ban	hain
band	omelii
bard (f)	faruanar
bard (m)	faruanar
base	catast
bathe	ariishet
bathed	ariishero
be	aiv(et)
beard	heselet
bearded	chenhese
beast	berlas
beautiful	duimellui
beauty	mellui
because	nainii
bed	dlaetha
bee	asellom
been	aivero
before	amwy
began	thiethero
begin	thiethet
behind	arien
being	aivador
belied	mahero
belies	maheli
believe	har(et)
believed	harero
believes	harelo
beloved	meriella, maracar
bely	mah(et)
benefit	aeldii
between	erratam
beyond	pator
bind	lohenet
bird	sabyn
birth	celesii
birthday	lesinor
bit ("a little bit")	hadu
black	mirricor
blend	yahemari
blind	iren
blood	galoth
bloom	alilet
bloomed	alilero
blooms	alileli
blossom	tulienet
blossomed	tulienero
blossoms	tulieneli
blow	fanef
blue	erostel
body	bellith
bold	aesan
bond	lohar
book	dafha
both	gilna
bound	lohenero
boy (m)	dona (m)
break	cesset
breeze	qema
brick	eargon
bridge	mwelae
bright	aressii
bring	galat
broke	cessero
broken	cessero
brother (m)	lendor (m)
brought	galith
brow	fessta
brown	thoamea
bundle	nuyth
buried	adis
burn	ulii
bury	adiirn
business	ielstamais
but	aniil
by	qi

A<-- -->C

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English to Aywen:A

2009-03-15T18:03:00.000-07:00

AywenEnglish


English	Aywen
abandon	belset
abandoned	belsero
able	sana
about	sydil, pall
above	parin
absolute	norelas
absolutely	chennore
across	essa
admit	shio
affirmative	siian
after	menet
again	iietar, antad
age	amuir
ah	aiye
alas	estamel
alike	nytha
alive	thed
all	latiel
almighty	latielore
alone	adun
alongside	sasadar
already	ilniir
also	dora
always	carent
am	yas
ancient	aram
and	mae
anger	isalar
animal	barlan
answer	yanet
answered	yanero
answers	yaneli
any	achna
anyway	achnathii
apart	lenel
apparent	duiwamii
appear	wamii
are	yas
arm	lethel
around	auil, iama
arteficial	atwen
as	ariil
ash	athiella
ask	fael
assault	maenet
assaulted	maenero
assume	maeneli
at	iuvan
at last	tan-iuvanii
aunt (f)	meya
autumn	renor
awake	esliir
awaken	eslan
away	patore
awkward	naete
Aywen	Aywen

-->B

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Aywen

2009-03-15T18:01:00.001-07:00

SPEECH & PRONUNCIATION

Aywen Pronunciation

Basic Aywen Grammar

Verb Conjugation

Prefixes and Suffixes

DICTIONARIES

English to Aywen

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Korbeth Numbers

2009-03-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

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Korbeth Script

2009-03-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

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Korbeth Prefixes and Suffixes

2009-03-15T13:19:00.000-07:00

Korbeth has a lot of prefixes and suffixes. I don't know the technical term for many of them, but hopefully that's all right as long as I get the point across. I will arrange them alphabetically and by category, but first - the two most important:

PLURAL (prefix): m/me-
POSSESSIVE (prefix): ílá-

You can go a long way with just these two. The form of the plural is determined by the noun ending and (unlike in English) is always regular - an "m" for nouns beginning with vowels and a "me" for those beginning with consonants: "ear", ákráfth, pluralizes to mákráfth, while "heart", stárí, pluralizes to mestárí.

PREFIXES

ADVERB (-ly): bro-
DOER (-er): er-
POSSIBILITY (-able): ní-

SUFFIXES

LACK (-less): -dai
INCREASE (-er): -ed
INCREASE (-est): -em
NAME (feminine): -má
NAME (masculine): -dá
OPPOSITE (un-): -gor
ORIGINATING (-ian): -eth
SURFEIT (-ful): -ul

Many words in the regular Korbeth vocabulary make use of these prefixes and suffixes already, but feel free to add them. "Dark", wáren, becomes wárened, "darker", just as it does in English.

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Korbeth Verbs

2009-03-15T13:00:00.000-07:00

While most Korbeth verbs are regular, they don't take the common-ending form of verbs in Spanish (always -ir, -er, -ar), Farsi (-dan, -tan), Aywen (-et), or other languages. However, they do conjugate regularly. As with my Meroned dictionaries, I've conjugated some things in the regular word list, simply for my own convenience; it's easier to look up "was" (dákíor) than to remember that it's the past tense of "is" and go find kíor, then conjugate it. However, in order to really use that word list, you'll need to know your conjugations (even if there are no point-of-view ones).

TENSE

Korbeth has the same number of tenses as Meroned and they conjugate similarly to Meroned (though whether the similarity is because they're related is debatable). We'll use the example "to know", kelí.

SIMPLE TENSES

Present: do-, dokelí
Past: dá-, dákelí
Future: de-, dekelí

These prefixes are just attached onto the front of the word. With words such as "to open" (eíd), the past tense drops its e's (deíd, beíd), but the rest of the prefixes retain their vowels.

PROGRESSIVE TENSES

Present (is fading): dobá-, dobákelí
Past (was fading): dábá-, dábákelí
Future (will be fading): debá-, debákelí

PERFECT TENSES

Present (has faded): dolai-, dolaikelí
Past (had faded): dálai-, dálaikelí
Future (will have faded): delai, delaikelí

PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSES

Present (has been fading): doqe-, doqekelí
Past (had been fading): dáqe-, dáqekelí
Future (will have been fading): deqe-, deqekelí

IMPERATIVE (commanding)

-note, kelínote

PERSPECTIVE

Unlike Meroned and Aywen, Korbeth doesn't conjugate for perspective - it's the same no matter who's speaking. This does mean, however, that pronouns are necessary. Using dokelí ("know") to speak informally:

Singular

First person (I or nor): nor dokelí
Second person (you or kel): kel dokelí
Third person (he/she/it or ndabí/nádámí/ílá): ndabí/nádámí/ílá dokelí

Plural

First person: (we or yyo): ían dokelí
Second person (you all or mekel): mekel dokelí
Third person (they or bel): bel dokelí

THAT'S IT!

These rules are almost universally applicable. Simpler than most languages.

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Korbeth Pronunciation

2009-03-15T12:48:00.001-07:00

STANDARD consonant sounds

B
hard b sound as in “bath”

C
ch sound as in "chore"

Ch
n/a (goes to “c”)

D
hard d sound as in “do”

F
as in “left”

G
hard g sound as in “girl”

H
soft h as in “hall”

J
exists only in words borrowed from Meroned - “zh”

K
hard k as in “cork”

L
as in “loud”

M
as in “man”

N
as in “noon”

P
as in “pay”

Q
n/a"

R
rolled (as in Spanish)

S
soft, as in “pass” (not “hers”)

Sh
as in "rush"

T
as in the Spanish “t”

Th
soft as in "bath" (not "bathe")

V
as in “vandal”

W
as in “was”

X
n/a

Y
as in “yes”

Z
n/a (goes to S)

STANDARD vowels

A
aa as in the American “dance”

Á
rare; ah as in the English “dance”

E
a pure eh sound as in “met”

I
a short i as in “kit”

Í
a long i as in "bee"

O
a long o as in “go”

U
oo as in “too”

Ai
as in "dry"

Ae
as in "play"

Au
As in "how"

A note: diacritical marks are used to indicate pronunciation, NOT stress. In addition, the vowel combinations listed above have their own letter of the alphabet in Meroned and are typically dipthonged versions of other vowels. All other vowel combinations are pronounced individually (a+o being an example, although it's not a common combination).

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Korbeth Grammar

2009-03-15T12:42:00.000-07:00

Korbeth, unlike English, is in SOV (subject-object-verb, indirect object coming before direct) word order. Thus

I (s.) carry (v.) the cat (d.o.) to her (i.o.)

would be rendered (informally),

Nor (s.) yai mahád (i.o.) ai anthlíwá (d.o.) dokopu (v.).

Or, literally translated back,

I (s.) to her (i.o.) the cat (d.o.) carry (v.)

It has fewer conjugations and modifications than Aywen and Meroned, but it's a more grammatically complex language. It tends to be lengthier, but has more contractions than either of its neighboring languages.

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Korbeth

2009-03-15T12:32:00.000-07:00

SPEECH & PRONUNCIATION

Basic Korbeth Grammar

Korbeth Pronunciation

Verb Conjugation

Prefixes and Suffixes

DICTIONARIES

English to Korbeth

WRITING

Korbeth Script

Korbeth Numbers

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Meroned

2009-03-15T12:29:00.000-07:00

SPEECH & PRONUNCIATION

Overview

Basic Meroned Grammar

Meroned Pronunciation

Verb Conjugation

Prefixes and Suffixes

Pronouns

DICTIONARIES

English to Meroned

Meroned to English

WRITING

Meroned Script

Meroned Numbers

Famous Meron Texts

CULTURALISMS

Common Colloquialisms

Regional Dialects

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English to Korbeth:Z

2009-03-15T12:27:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
zero (num.)	kwintá

Y<--

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English to Korbeth:Y

2009-03-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
year	gwisdim
yes	amí
yesterday	pimbánu
yet	hál
you (formal)	kamátánt
you (informal)	kam
you (plural)
young	ákám
your (formal)	ílákamátánt
your (informal)	ílákam
you're	atantae
you're welcome	tantuneth
yowl	vuni

W<-- -->Z

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English to Korbeth:W

2009-03-15T12:23:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
wait	aflowí
waited	dáflowí
wake	ití nár
walk	siruíl
walked	dásiruíl
walks	dosiruíl
wall	osefel
wander	tobár
wane	áyás
want	anídae
want to	ánai
wanted	dáanídae
wants	doanídae
warn	áltoá
warrior	nagodí
was	dákíor
wash	halí
watch	lelesu
water	teremáli
waterfall	málowith
wave	mwento
wax ("the moon waxes")	maeví
way	g'magí
wayside	mágot hí
we (formal)	maiándá
we (informal)	ían
we are (formal)	maiándákor
wear	amae tí
wears	doamae tí
weary	kártahák
weave	owae
weaves	dowae
weep	amem
weeps	doamem
welcome
well	natokí
went	dáld
were	dákíor
we're (informal)	íantae
west	aemáril
what	elel
when	es
whenever	esurí
where	dídos
which	kárígwí
while	bulíen
whisper	adaefth
white	lármae
who(m) (formal)	dámam
who(m) (informal)	dám
whole	hígelo
why (question)	eldí
why (statement)	drelís
wide	stíonís
wife (f.)	namí
wild	yedun
will ("shall")	dekíor
will ("strong-willed")	yitaeamo
willed	dáyitaeamo
wills	doyitaeamo
wind ("blowing wind")	natímí
wind ("wind a string")	dlai
wine	intadkí
winter	gresádí
wisdom	ná nárámo
wise	árramor
wish	metí
with	síkí
woe	mebu
woeful	mebuol
woke	dáití nár
wolf	gwindunis
woman (f)	mímá
wood	aieh
word	thrínel
wore	dámae tí
work	disís
world	annuvár
worn	amae ai
worry	sáhent
worth
would	saisorí
would not	saisordá
wound ("wound around")	dlaino
woven	owae nae
wrap	nedlí
wraps	donedlí
write	uál
written	uol
wrong	hlí
wrote	dáuál

V<-- -->Y

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English to Korbeth:V

2009-03-15T12:20:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
valley	mídití
vault	koloro
veil	telitae
verily	ají
very	epdofí
vice	apaeá
victory	aeodo
virtue	boenwí
voice	asbí
vomit	blarig

U<-- -->W

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English to Korbeth:U

2009-03-15T12:18:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
uncle (m.)	dwíddo
under	taru
understand	maeuá
undying	betílidgor
unfamiliar	aulengor
unfold	cholagor
unfolded	dácholagor
unfolds	docholagor
unlike	bekdagor
unsought	dálebgor
unspoken	maelogor
until	ádowáth
unusual	acogor
unwise	árramorgor
up	urár
upon	uránt
us (formal)	ámámaiun
us (informal)	ámai
usual	aco

T<-- -->V

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English to Korbeth:T

2009-03-15T12:17:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
take	mweo
taken	dámweo
takes	domweo
tale	effár
talent	áwepep
tall	hítu
tame	áfenám
tamed	dáfenám
taught	doáfenám
teach	haiel
tear ("shed tears")	wenwin
tell	áspís
tells	doáspís
ten (num.)	amáol
than	mí wel
thank	wes hím
thank you	wesántí
thanked	dáwes hím
thanks	dowes hím
that	lae
the	ár
their (formal)	íláyambá
their (informal)	belí
them (formal)	yambá
them (informal)	yamá
then	bár
there	neb
these	bwmelí
they (formal)	yambel
they (informal)	bel
thing	padíl
think	kílesaf
thinks	dákíles
thirteen (num.)	atílol
thirty (num.)	atílátor
this	ílahás
those	bwmal
though	sanb
thought	gho kíl
three (num.)	atílá
thrice	atílwár
through	náko
thunder	atjae
thus	orsad
tick	ámo
tie	norab
tight	álek
time	tomíbá
to	yai
together (formal)	taláráhanmár
together (informal)	talán
token	táyís
told	dáspís
tomorrow	estlen
tongue (language)	eyan
too	m'lí
took	dámweo
torment	wintwí
torn	wevai
tough	áwnewae
tower	mínnais
town	lengu
translate	haiokí
translation	hákeí
trap	áwlek
travel	stener
traveler	estenrí
treasure	bí naeof
tree	dlideth
tress	bríthes
trick	nákad
tricky	lae nakád
tried	dádrelae
tries	dodrelae
trouble	laugwís
true	sdeí
truly	brosdeí
trust	mdár
truth	sedír
try	drelae
turn	náríg
turret	noraewed
twelve (num.)	amátol
twenty (num.)	amátor
twice	amátwár
twilight	líaníel
twin	naeamá
twist	pwuá

S<-- -->U

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English to Korbeth:S

2009-03-15T12:15:00.000-07:00

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English	Korbeth
sacred	montu
safe	eku
said	dákonor
sail	afrínae
sailed	afrísae
sails	afrímae
salt	satrí
same	níl
sand	sebefth
sandal	efdlí
sapphire	laeá
sash	relek
save	aíldh
saved	dáaíldh
saw	nerík
say	konor
says	doaíldh
scar	márae
sea	án-hílthor
search	wemrun
searched	dáwemrun
second	amaeth
secret	foreyí
secure	dálídi
see	wedonth
seek	aleb
seeks	doaleb
seem	druw
seemed	dádruw
seems	dodruw
seen	dáwedonth
seep	mwo
seeps	domwo
seldom	kíkae
send	lád ulá
sense	tugo
sent	dálád ulá
separate	shasí
separated	dáshasí
seven (num.)	alel
seventeen (num.)	alelol
seventy (num.)	aletor
shall	awá
shallow	pelochád
shard	aftí
share	notolae
she (f.)	nádámí
sheep	traug
shift	n'lo
shine	gwinel
shines	dogwinel
ship	thorás
shoe
shone	dágwinel
shore	saghai
short	venestren
should	raes
should not	raes es
shout	kas
show	híth
shuffle	tuthrítu
shy	embaerí
sick	evaeanách
sight	wedond
sign	rigáwae
silver	silvael
similar	lágiwík
sing	brelaen
sir (m.) (addressing man)	anádá ílá
sister (f.)	lemmá
six (num.)	alekwá
sixteen (num.)	alekwáol
sixty (num.)	alekwátor
skin	yelíwth
sky	leífamí
sleep	árefaeá
slender	linwisth
slide	landis
slip	dekae
slow	elármb
slowly	broelármb
small	presk
smell	lafhá
smith	slumás
smoke	áldus
snake	kweíl
so	abí
soar	weíf
some	endoek
something	ekárth
sometimes	íekwá
somewhere	naek
son (m.)	danlá
song	braelí
soon	álspae
sorcerer	abenelun
sorrow	índígá
sorrowed	dáíndígá
sorry	índí
sought	dáleb
soul	bíenkíth
south	abenetor
sparkle	stárenyae
speak	mael
speaks	domael
spear	aneg
speech	ná mael
spiderweb	awístu
spin	welko
spindle	wel kíá
spirit	wináreth
spite	kret heí
splendour	mabu
split	adeknár
spoke	dámael
spoken	maelo
spray	w'lakrae
spring	nefíalon
stand	elfo
star	aeastá
statement	kekíkwae
stay	uri
stayed	dáuri
stays	douri
still ("still there")	wemdos
still (not moving)	mantomí
stone	boeslí
stop	enadwid
story	kapí
strange	mátá
stranger ("strange one")	slislíno
strawberry	aealos
stream	welepeth
strength	ekosth
strengthen	naekos
strike	ámthu
string	wení
strong	osthae
suffice	nímor
sufficient	moranae
summer, first	kamláfí
summer, second
sun	flaelí
sung	brelaena
sunlight	shiflaelí
sunrise	flaelán
survive	mat thá
swan	nínae
sweet	ábwid
swift	atanán
swirl	or ál
sword	gorekon

R<-- -->T

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