Robyn.Blaber at 17:40, 30 September 2026

2026-09-30T17:40:42Z

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	== Speakers and [[Dis]]tribution ==		== Speakers and [[Dis]]tribution ==
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	There are roughly 7 million speakers of the [[Aelf]]en language when all of its dialects are counted. The largest linguistic communities speak the [[Friggaelf]]en and [[Wodaelf]]en dialects, reflecting the two great cultural traditions that dominate [[Aelf]]en society. While the dialects remain mutually connected, differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, and expression can make the speech of one [[Aelf]]en community noticeably different from another.		There are roughly 7 million speakers of the [[Aelf]]en language when all of its dialects are counted. The largest linguistic communities speak the [[Friggaelf]]en and [[Wodaelf]]en dialects, reflecting the two great cultural traditions that dominate [[Aelf]]en society. While the dialects remain mutually connected, differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, and expression can make the speech of one [[Aelf]]en community noticeably different from another.

Robyn.Blaber: Created page with "{{Infobox language | language = Aelfen Language | image = https://imagedelivery.net/TNzzP2IqyQLYoHEs2ZN5aQ/3c918b47-09b2-4bcc-d99c-9234870f0a00/wiki#.png | caption = The lyrical language of the Aelfes, descended from the Wordhord family and shaped by several distinct dialects. Its ancient form survives only in fragments, while modern Aelfen remains known for elongated vowels, softened consonants, and an almost poet..."

2026-09-30T17:23:19Z

Created page with "{{Infobox language | language = Aelfen Language | image = https://imagedelivery.net/TNzzP2IqyQLYoHEs2ZN5aQ/3c918b47-09b2-4bcc-d99c-9234870f0a00/wiki#.png | caption = The lyrical language of the Aelfes, descended from the Wordhord family and shaped by several distinct dialects. Its ancient form survives only in fragments, while modern Aelfen remains known for elongated vowels, softened consonants, and an almost poet..."

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{{Infobox language
| language = [[Aelfen Language]]
| image = https://imagedelivery.net/TNzzP2IqyQLYoHEs2ZN5aQ/3c918b47-09b2-4bcc-d99c-9234870f0a00/wiki#.png
| caption = The lyrical language of the [[Aelf]]es, descended from the Wordhord family and shaped by several distinct dialects. Its ancient form survives only in fragments, while modern [[Aelf]]en remains known for elongated vowels, softened consonants, and an almost poetic quality.
| native_name = [[Aelf]]ish
| family = Wordhord
| usage = Spoken, Written
| regions = [[Aelfgarad]], [[Aelfwode]]
| speakers = 7,000,000
}}

The [[Aelf]]en language belongs to the Wordhord family, a family of tongues that includes several modern [[Aelf]]en dialects as well as the much older Elder [[Aelf]]en. Only fragments of the Elder language survive, preserved in carvings, ancient legends, and songs whose original meanings can be difficult to understand without the language itself. The Great Erasure destroyed most of the written and spoken record, but [[Aelf]]en [[Sophist]]s have painstakingly reconstructed enough of Elder [[Aelf]]en to hold simple conversations. Even then, they must often guess at the original tonality, leaving some ancient phrases open to interpretation.

Modern [[Aelf]]en is unmistakably lyrical to the ear. Vowels are commonly elongated, and consonants softened, giving even ordinary conversation the quality of a poem being recited. The effect disappears rather dramatically when the language reaches the military. [[Aelf]]en soldiers deliberately shorten their vowels into clipped chirps and strike their consonants as hard as flint, proving that even poetry can apparently be issued as an order.

== Speakers and [[Dis]]tribution ==
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There are roughly 7 million speakers of the [[Aelf]]en language when all of its dialects are counted. The largest linguistic communities speak the [[Friggaelf]]en and [[Wodaelf]]en dialects, reflecting the two great cultural traditions that dominate [[Aelf]]en society. While the dialects remain mutually connected, differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, and expression can make the speech of one [[Aelf]]en community noticeably different from another.

The language is less common among the other peoples of [[Otan]], though it is certainly not unknown. Traders are among the most frequent outsiders to learn [[Aelf]]en, particularly those who do business with [[Aelf]]en communities. Others take up the language simply because they have become enamored with [[Aelf]]en culture. For some students, apparently, learning the language is merely the first step toward becoming unbearable at dinner parties.
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== Writing and Literature ==
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An [[Aelf]]en edition of the Book of [[Woden]] can be found in virtually every [[Aelf]]en temple, but even this venerable work struggles to compete with The Gentleman's Guide to [[Aelf]]en Culture, Vol. 1. The enormous tome is the first of a completed set of nine volumes, accompanied by more than one hundred appendices. Its size, expense, and grandeur ensure that many readers who purchase the series never make it beyond the first volume, which is generally considered sufficient to establish the gist of [[Aelf]]en culture.

The Guide covers the great schism between the [[Friggaelf]]es and [[Wodaelf]]es, explaining how each contributes to [[Aelf]]en culture in its own fashion. It also devotes considerable attention to the unusual case of the [[Dunaelf]]es, along with notes on the contributions of the [[Wyrmaelf]]es. Heavily illustrated and produced at considerable expense, the book has itself become something of a cultural artifact. Translations into other languages command impressive sums, allowing the [[Aelf]]es to make a respectable amount of money explaining themselves to people who apparently cannot afford the time to simply ask.
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[[Category:language]]

Aelfen Language - Revision history

Robyn.Blaber at 17:40, 30 September 2026