What’s the draconic word for . . .
Filed under Writing Journal on June 18, 2004
Tagged: Dungeons and Dragons, Realms of the Dragons II
I’ve been given the opportunity to come up with an official word for the draconic language. As I was writing my short story for Realms of the Dragons 2, I decided there was a phrase in the opening scene that I wanted spoken in draconic. I turned to my copy of the Draconomicon, which has a list of basic vocabulary on page 29. To my surprise, the word I was looking for wasn’t there.
I emailed Phil Athans and asked if he knew whether there was a word already in existence somewhere in the game lore. He replied that he could not find one and so I was free to make it up.
Now, I’m no linguist. Coming up with words in fantasy languages is something I have struggled with as I formed my own fictional setting. So, I thought I would ask for some help from the folks here at Pens & Swords. I’d like to know how you would say “lightning” in draconic. Please post your suggestions in the forum, and I’ll select the one I like the most for use in the story.
For those who don’t have the Draconomicon, here is an excerpt from the section on language that may help in creating the word:
“The spoken form of the language sounds harsh to most other creatures and includes numerous hard consonants and sibilants. It includes sounds that humans generally describe as hissing (sj, ss, and sv), as well as a noise that sounds a great deal like a beast clearing its throat (ach).”
Some example words from the list of basic vocabulary include:
- darastrix (dragon)
- ixen (fire)
- arcaniss (magic)
- kepesk (storm)
