Old Elven

Old Elven is the old formal tongue of the High Elves, the tongue the scholars still name things in. Every people's formal name is Old Elven (the Vetti): the high elves are the Leuhtalbi, the old tongue's light elves, and the dark elves the Þarkalbi, its dark elves. For every day the High Elves speak English, which is why the common names are English. Av is the dark elves' own tongue: its words come from the same old roots, worn down by three long shifts of sound, so that Old Elven Albi and Av Av are one word, elf.

How it is written

A long vowel is written twice: aa, ee, ii, oo, uu — Meenaz, the moon; Lootav. Þ is the th of thin and ð the th of this; ǫ is an open o. Av writes ä and ö as well (Täk, dark). Both tongues give a noun, and a verb, a capital letter.

The elves, in both tongues

• elf — Albi · Av Av (a species: Avi)
• light elf, the high elves — Leuhtalbi · Av Lootav (Lootavi)
• dark elf — Þarkalbi · Av Täkav (Täkavi)
• dark — Þark · Av Täk

The dark elves call themselves Av, elves, and Täkav when they mean their own kind and not the High Elves, whom they call Lootav. The High Elves do the same in English: Elf, and High Elf beside the dark.

Species are neuter

A species' formal name is neuter and ends in -i, whoever the people are and whatever their sex: Albi, Trovi, Dverfi, Vatli. Av keeps the -i on a species name (Avi, Täkavi) and on nothing else.

Nouns

Old Elven has three genders and four cases — the one who does a thing, the one it is done to, whose it is, and to whom or where — and one regular pattern for each gender:

• Kuning-, king (masculine): Kuningaz · Kuningan · Kuningas · Kuningai — and many: Kuningooz · Kuninganz · Kuningǫ · Kuningamaz
• Stern-, star (feminine): Sternoo · Sternoon · Sternooz · Sternooi — and many: Sternooz · Sternooz · Sternǫ · Sternamaz
• Gat-, gate (neuter): Gati · Gati · Gatis · Gatim — and many: Gati · Gati · Gatoo · Gatim

Av gives a noun no endings at all: Konung is a king, any king, doing or done to.

Word order

Old Elven puts the verb last and a describing word after its noun, and marks who did what by the endings. Av goes subject, verb, object, with no articles and no endings, and puts whatever describes a thing before it.

The dark elf sees the star above the forest.
Old Elven: Þarkalbi Sternoon uf Waldai Sehwit.
Av: Täkavi Sev Uv Vald Ster.

The moon shines, and the god guards the gate.
Old Elven: Meenaz Gliimit, ak Gudaz Gati Wardit.
Av: Meen Gleem, na Gud Vard Gat.

Some words

The record holds only a handful of the old words so far.

• fire — Fuuri · Av Fuur
• forest — Waldaz · Av Vald
• gate — Gati · Av Gat
• god — Gudaz · Av Gud
• hall — Halli · Av Haal
• ice — Iisi · Av Iis
• king — Kuningaz · Av Konung
• moon — Meenaz · Av Meen
• mountain — Bergaz · Av Berg
• night — Nahtoo · Av Naht
• oath — Aiþi · Av Aath
• queen — Kweenoo · Av Kween
• realm — Riiki · Av Riik
• river — Floodaz · Av Flood
• rune — Ruunoo · Av Ruun
• shadow — Skadwi · Av Skad
• star — Sternoo · Av Ster
• stone — Stainaz · Av Staan
• sun — Sunnoo · Av Sun
• wyrm — Wurmi · Av Wurmi

See also: the Vetti · the Hollow