Giant language

The giant language is primarily spoken by giants and the inhabitants of Midgard.

Giants hold that the runes of the giant language are the first writings of the world. The runes having been divinely inspired by primordial beings.

The language that giants share is one of the few remnants from their once-grand empire. Over time it has fragmented into many dialects, and each type has its own distinctive accent, but giants of different types can generally understand one another. Any non-giant who learns the Giant language can converse with all types of giants, but giants sometimes have a hard time hearing the tiny voices of human-sized creatures, and some vowel sounds emitted by giants are nearly impossible to reproduce for any creature that doesn't have lungs as large as beer barrels.

Maat and Maug


Two words have special significance in the Giant language and the giants' worldview. Neither one of them translates directly into Common or any other language, because their definitions encompass several related concepts. Maat (pronounced mott) is the term giants use to describe ideas, behaviors, creatures, and objects that they consider good, holy, honorable, or desirable. Maug (pronounced mog) is the counterpart term, embodying what other languages call evil, unholy, dishonorable, or undesirable.

Individual giants aren't necessarily thought of as maat or maug by their kin. What matters isn't a giant's personal philosophy but its standing within the ordning, which is influenced by behavior and attitude but also by a host of other factors. Every individual commits both maat and maug acts, and rises or falls in the ordning as a consequence. A giant isn't judged by other giants on the basis of whether what it did was inherently good or evil, but on whether its actions enhanced or diminished the qualities giants admire-the "giantness," if you will-in themselves and their clans.

A storm giant, for example, might see the raiding practices of hill giants as distasteful but not maug, because brutal raiding is an inborn trait of the hill giants. If those same hill giants worshiped demons, however, that act would represent a flagrant turning away from the traditions of the ordning. Hill giants who choose that path make themselves maug.

Non-giants are considered maug out of hand and must usually prove themselves maat to gain a giant's respect.

Runes and tale carvings


Many giants are illiterate or nearly so- particularly hill, frost, and fire giants, which place little value on learning. Instead of writing stories with words, they typically tell their tales with pictograms etched in wood, ice, stone, or even earth, in the case of hill giants. These "tale carvings" relate legends or the stories of important events or meetings in the manner of highly sophisticated cave paintings. Often they employ aspects of legends about the giant pantheon. For example, Memnor's face or head floating above the shoulders of another giant indicates that the giant was a liar or a deceiver; a depiction of lallanis being stabbed in the back represents the betrayal of love. Such symbols and visual allegories are well understood by giants, but they can be indecipherable to viewers who aren't steeped in the giants' mythology. Most non-giants find a tale carving as unintelligible as giants would find poetry written in Elvish.

Glossary


Yes ja
No nei
Hello Velkomen
Goodbye Ha det bra!
Sorry unnskyld
Thank you (very much) (Tusen) takk!
Help! hjelp
Werewolf wahrwolff

armor-harbunad
arrow-pi/
battle- slag
black- sort
bravery- prakt
cloud giant-skyejotun
cow- kue
chieftain-fore,
danger-fare
death- dod
dwarf-dverg
enemy-uven
elf-afv
evil/unholy /dishonorable-
maug
fire giant-i/djotun
fortress-Jesting
frost giant-isejotun
gold-gi/
good/holy/honorable-moat
greetings-he/singen (he/s)
hill giant-haugjotun
home-heim
honor-rang
intruder-ubuden
journey-ferd
human-van
king-kong
light-stig
meat-kjott
mother-hild
red-rod
shield-sko/d
silver-so/11
stone giant-steinjotun
storm giant-uvarjotun
teeth-tenner
temple-bapart
tribe-stornrn
up-opp
warrior- krigga
white-kvit
wind- vind

Phrases

What is your tribe and rank?
Who is your leader?
I give you respect.
Who goes there?
Where are you going?
My name is Red Wind of a Thousand Evils.
Attack our enemies!
Lead me to your king.

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