GuyBoy
Hero
As always, this is well-considered and interesting.
Acain works well as a high language, and it also resonates with English speakers with both “arcane” and “archaic”, thereby subtly assisting suspension of disbelief for players. It would work well inscribed in sunken ruins (and spider-haunted ones!). As the language of sorcery, it would carry a faintly sinister vibe too.
The whole 1066 language thing is a fascinating case study. The dichotomy between “food words” such as pork/pig, beef/cow was largely due to whether one did the hard work raising them (ie Anglo-Saxon) or the easier work of eating them (Norman French). It was similar with what we now consider swear words describing sexual functions or parts of the human body; words like f**k and c**t weren’t considered swearing till after 1066, when language became very class ridden.
Even the French word for a castle keep - donjon - gave rise to the English word dungeon, as it was rarely good news for Anglo-Saxon peasants to be taken in to the lord’s donjon after 1066.
The fact that drinking wine is often considered “classier” than drinking beer, has roots in the preferred tastes of Normans v Saxons.
I’m probably digressing, but power assumptions of languages can be an interesting tool in your campaign.
Acain works well as a high language, and it also resonates with English speakers with both “arcane” and “archaic”, thereby subtly assisting suspension of disbelief for players. It would work well inscribed in sunken ruins (and spider-haunted ones!). As the language of sorcery, it would carry a faintly sinister vibe too.
The whole 1066 language thing is a fascinating case study. The dichotomy between “food words” such as pork/pig, beef/cow was largely due to whether one did the hard work raising them (ie Anglo-Saxon) or the easier work of eating them (Norman French). It was similar with what we now consider swear words describing sexual functions or parts of the human body; words like f**k and c**t weren’t considered swearing till after 1066, when language became very class ridden.
Even the French word for a castle keep - donjon - gave rise to the English word dungeon, as it was rarely good news for Anglo-Saxon peasants to be taken in to the lord’s donjon after 1066.
The fact that drinking wine is often considered “classier” than drinking beer, has roots in the preferred tastes of Normans v Saxons.
I’m probably digressing, but power assumptions of languages can be an interesting tool in your campaign.
