2 - Druchii.net

Drukh-Eltharin – The Dark Elf Language
The Dark Elf language is in essence very similar to the Eltharin tongue of
their High Elf foes. It is based upon the dialect spoken in Nagarythe at the
time of Aenarion, but has been altered subtly over the millennia to better
suit the dark character of the Druchii and the chill desolation of their
homeland.
The written form of Drukh-Eltharin is also rooted in the Eltharin language
of Ulthuan. However, shortly after the Sundering, Malekith made the decision
to radically revise the system of writing used by his subjects. Along
with Hotek, Morathi and Furion, he created a new system of writing, using
similar rune-forms to the original Eltharin language, but combining them
together into complex sigils rather than arranging them in lines to form
words and phrases. This method makes written Drukh-Eltharin more suitable
for use in sorcery, as a whole spell can be encoded in a single symbol.
The complicated rules of sigil-construction also render it almost impossible
for anyone unfamiliar with the language to decipher a message of
any significant length written in Drukh-Eltharin. Even among the loremasters
of the Tower of Hoeth in Ulthuan, there are no more than a handful
capable of understanding Drukh-Eltharin sigils containing more than a
dozen or so word-forms. Mere human scholars find it difficult to accurately
determine the meanings of even the most elementary phrases of this
twisted language.
Like other elvish languages, Drukh-Eltharin makes great use of metaphor
and symbolism. For example, oriour, the word for blood, also represents
the colour crimson, as well as embodying concepts of birth and death: the
beginning and ending of life. Drukh, the root from which the Dark Elves
take their own name for their race, means harsh or merciless, but can also
represent steel or a sharp blade. Druchii can be taken to mean ‘the merciless
ones’ or ‘the steel blades’, among countless other phrases.
ways. This is generally viewed as an advantage over the crude languages
of the lesser races. It is not uncommon for rival nobles to send each other
letters which can be read in one way as beautiful poems and in another as
dire and bloody threats. The Druchii are a subtle and cunning race, but
they are not without honour. They consider oaths to be binding and even
a noble would be hesitant to break the letter (if not the spirit) of a promise.
But the Druchii language gives plenty of scope for loose interpretation
of such oaths, especially in the written form. For the Dark Elves, there is
no dishonour in circumventing a promise or a law through careful wording.
Such cleverness is highly valued by the Witch King, for it makes his subjects’
minds sharper and their hearts more cold and untrusting.
At the core of Drukh-Eltharin are the khydhani, runes which embody major
concepts such as life, death, hatred and loyalty. Most Druchii family
names are derived from one, two or three of these runes. For example,
Cynthariour (meaning, roughly, ‘Crimsondeath’) is formed from the runes
kynth and oriour. The names of the cities of Naggaroth are likewise
formed in this manner. Har Ganeth means both ‘city of executioners’ and