Midani is the common tongue of Zakhara. It is spoken by all "enlightened" citizens of that region as well as by most unenlightened savages of that land.[1] A version of Midani is also spoken by the Bedine.[2]
Variants
Zakhara has five regional dialects.[3] In Qudra and the Free Cities, Midani is spoken with a sharp, precise rhythm, with the ends of sentences frequently clipped. In the Pearl Cities, most voices are more melodious. In the Pantheist League, consonants are trilled, seemingly at random. In eastern Zakhara, Midani is spoken with a nasal accent. In Huzuz and Hiyal, the accent sounds flat and mechanical compared to other Midani speakers. The latter, of course, believe they speak the "true" Midani tongue.[1]
Thieves' Cant is a choppy Midani lingo spoken only by rogues. It varies slightly from city to city.[1]
Maran is a related language.[3]
Dead Tongues
Related to Midani are several forgotten languages no longer spoken by any living cultures. They include Noga and Kadari (from the Ruined Kingdoms).[1][3] Other dead languages once spoken in the Zakhara region, such as Affa, Drow Elven, and Chun, are apparently not related to Midani.[3]
History
Midani has roots in all four elemental tongues.[3]
In -339 DR, nomads migrated through a portal from Zakhara to the Anauroch Desert, intermingling with a handful of Netherese survivors and becoming the Bedine. The Bedine retained their ancestral Midani tongue, but lost all knowledge of the written version of that tongue. Centuries later, traders from surrounding lands introduced the Thorass alphabet to the Bedine, which they now use.[2]
Appendix
See Also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Jeff Grubb (August 1992). Land of Fate (Adventurer's Guide to Zakhara). (TSR, Inc), p. 124. ISBN 978-1560763291.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Reynolds, Forbeck, Jacobs, Boyd (March 2003). Races of Faerûn. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 106. ISBN 0-7869-2875-1.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Thomas M. Costa. "Speaking in Tongues." Dragon Magazine Annual 1999. Page 29. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast.